Box hedge: Box is an evergreen and maybe at risk of frost. In cooler climates you should only cut it into the desired shape in spring. Box can cope with being cut down to the old wood in the spring and will then push itself out again. When it starts to push out, apply a little fertiliser and reshape when the branches are around 5 cm long.
Cotoneaster: Floor-covering cotoneasters are very resistant to frost. They can now be shaped to suit the planting area with a hedge trimmer. The plant will withstand being cut back to the old wood, however this is best done in spring. Young plants should be trimmed in spring to half of the branch length of the previous year for a more compact structure and better branching.
Yew: Can handle being trimmed extremely well, even right down to the oldest wood. You should ideally cut it back in spring because conifers act as wind breakers in winter gardens and offer protection for birds.
Lilac: Hardly needs to be trimmed, can handle being trimmed back to the oldest wood but this is best done in spring and it often responds to trimming with strong growth. If you decide to cut it back, trim the older branches and twigs to an even length all around. If you want to promote new growth, cut free the long branches in the middle; do not shorten them. Only leave the strongest 5-7 of these. Cut back older bushes to 30-50 cm if necessary in order to regenerate the bush through new growth in 2-3 years.
Fig: Trim in spring since it can freeze easily, you should therefore only cut it back a little in spring. Mainly concentrate on the shape and thinning it out. Like quince trees, figs do not respond sustainably to pruning. They do not branch better if you trim the one-year top shoots. Only one-year long branches can be encouraged to branch if they are cut back in a suitable place.
Grasses: You do not have to cut them back right now; instead, rope them together if necessary and cut them in spring. This protects the heart of the plant from frost and winter moisture as is required, for example, for pampas grass.
Cherry trees: Thin out ornamental cherry trees in spring after they blossom. Fruiting cherry trees should be trimmed immediately after the harvest and only cut or thin them out a little! Trimming too heavily will cause gum to flow, which can kill the plant after a few years.
Kiwi trees: Leave around three to seven side branches on the main vertical branch (depending on the support system of the kiwi tree), these are the main branches which will bear fruit. The buds of fruit bearing branches will grow from these main branches. Shorten these in the summer to around eight to ten leaves starting from the first leaf above the fruits. In late winter, shorten the same branches to three to five buds and new fruiting branches will sprout from here again. Every three to four years remove this ageing branch complex right at the main branch and replace it with a young fruit branch.
Corkscrew willow: Best trimmed in spring; in the winter the thinner branches in particular can freeze. You will notice this in spring and can remove them. This tree can cope with both light and very heavy trimming, even down to the old wood.
Privet: Handles trimming extremely well, even down to the old wood just a hand's width above the soil. Otherwise the same applies as for hedges.
Olive trees: Best trimmed in the spring. Thin them out by removing older growth or branches which are too tightly packed. Reduce the shoot length by trimming back to another branch deeper in and round off evenly. The olive tree handles very heavy trimming down to the oldest wood in spring by pushing out long shoots. Thin these out to a few structural branches.
Plum trees: Do not trim in autumn; cut back in late winter before the buds swell.
Rhododendron: Shorten the branches when blossoming ends, trimming back to a favourable lower branch. Alternatively, trim back to the old wood; strong rhododendrons handle trimming very well.
Roses: Cut all flowerbed roses and climbing or bush roses back by a third. Finely trim in spring. Leave the rose hips on wild roses as decoration and thin down in spring rather than cutting them now.
Japanese umbrella pine: Does not handle trimming well; only trim in spring due to sensitivity to frost. Then cut back a shoot to a favourable twig, this makes the shoot shorter but a green frond remains as tension wood.
Citrus trees: Only cut in spring; then thin out and round off evenly to encourage new growth and a large amount of blossom (e.g. oranges blossom on one-year old wood).
Angel's trumpets: Only trim a little before winter. The more you cut back now, the later the plant will bloom in the new season because the blossom growth has to form first.
Citronella: Citronella plants are not usually cut back because they get more beautiful from year to year. However, if necessary you can cut back a good hand's width, which is best done in spring.