How to Choose and Use Pruners

Ask This Old House landscape designer Jenn Nawada shares some tips about pruners. Click here to SUBSCRIBE to the official This Old House YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=thisoldhouse Cost: $15-$30 Skill Level: Beginner Tools: Bypass pruners [https://amzn.to/2Y0uT9M] Anvil pruners [https://amzn.to/2IUU1va] Bucket [https://amzn.to/2PF7d8c] Shopping List: Bleach [https://amzn.to/2GTYMmG] Steps: 1. Pruners get their names by the way they cut. The blades on the bypass pruners slide slightly pass each other, hence bypassing one another. The blades on anvil pruners perfectly line up and crush together when cut, like a hammer to an anvil. 2. Because of their intense cut, anvil pruners are stronger and great for cutting dead wood or bulk material. However, that strong cut can also damage the tissue of live plants, so it shouldn’t be used for delicate pruning. 3. Bypass pruners, on the other hand, can cut in a way that doesn’t damage the tissue of the plant and are perfect for precision cuts. When pruning, Jenn recommends looking for V’s in the plant and making the cuts there until the plant is shaped and healthy looking. 4. After pruning, Jenn recommends cleaning the pruners thoroughly to prevent them for transferring disease from one plant to another. To do this, take a small bucket of three parts water and one part bleach mixed together and swirl the pruners with the blades open in the solution. Then, wipe the blades down dry to prevent rusting. Resources: When it comes to pruning, Jenn prefers to use a pair of bypass pruning shears, which are manufactured by ARS (https://amzn.to/2V6miFH). For cutting back dead wood and bulkier items where a precision cut isn’t needed, anvil pruners will get the job done faster. The pair Jenn demonstrated are a pair of Fiskars anvil pruners (https://amzn.to/2Wdn944). Expert assistance with this segment was provided by Nawada Landscape Design (http://bit.ly/28YHZAi). Ask This Old House TV Homeowners have a virtual truckload of questions for us on smaller projects, and we're ready to answer. Ask This Old House solves the steady stream of home improvement problems faced by our viewers—and we make house calls! Ask This Old House features some familiar faces from This Old House, including Kevin O'Connor, general contractor Tom Silva, plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey, and landscape contractor Roger Cook. This Old House releases new segments every Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Keywords: This Old House, How-to, home improvement, DIY, ask this old house, jenn nawada, kevin o'connor, pruners, landscaping, gardening, tools Watch the full episode: http://bit.ly/2H5fI8u Follow This Old House and Ask This Old House: Facebook: http://bit.ly/1psm4fC Twitter: https://twitter.com/thisoldhouse https://twitter.com/asktoh Pinterest: http://bit.ly/1psm4fE G+: http://bit.ly/1CtsNjJ Instagram: http://bit.ly/1psm1QZ Tumblr: http://bit.ly/1CtsLbH