How do I prune a bottle brush shrub?
Shape PruningPrune your bottle brush shrub lightly after it blooms. This evergreen shrub with red flower spikes blooms mid-spring to early summer. Hummingbirds, butterflies and other pollinators swarm the flowers. Cut the faded blossoms and leggy branches back to a well-rounded or space-fitting shape.RejuvenationPrune an old bottle brush shrub during dormant season. According to the University of Florida, severe pruning reshapes the shrub and removes non-flowering wood. Cut off a third of the old wood down to the ground. The next year, prune off another third. The third year pruning removes the last old wood; the entire shrub is rejuvenated.
