Many of you have expressed concern about the plants damaged by the recent winter storm.
After consulting with landscape experts, we believe that some of the plants only appear dead, but will likely drop the dead leaves as new growth appears in early spring. Until then, we will not know the extent of the damage with absolute certainty. Resist the impulse to prune out the dead leaves because they provide protection from additional winter storms yet to come. Pruning too early will result in additional damage to plants and risk killing them. Taking this “wait and see” approach will help us determine the extent of the damage and minimize unnecessary pruning and replacements. Abbottsford is in communications with Sunrise and will re-evaluate contract pruning needs in mid to late February. Hopefully, the damage is not as extensive as it appears. If surface pruning is all that is needed, no extra expense will be necessary. If any heavy pruning or removal of dead plant material is needed, Sunrise and other landscapers you use will need to charge extra for those services.
Our recommendations at this time are to contact your desired landscape service provider and get on their schedule now for future pruning services in the early spring. Landscapers will likely be inundated with a high volume of extra pruning requests in early spring. Go ahead and put your name on their list and check in with them in a few weeks if you know you want extensive pruning or removal of shrubs on your property.
