After pruning the hedges, your garden probably looks like it’s been hit by a hurricane! Cleaning up the yard is not easy even if you use ergonomic garden tools. It is difficult to clean the area after pruning and can cause back stiffness.
Regardless of which gardening tools or hedge shears you use, you want to make sure that cleaning the garden will be fast and efficient. Here are some cleanup hacks that will make your life a little easier after a day well spent pruning your garden hedges:
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How To Clean Up After Trimming Hedges
Catch Trimming with a Tarp
Use this trick for quick and easy cleanup -- lay a tarp under the hedges before pruning them. A regular tarp will do, but if you don’t have one, you can use pieces of landscape fabric or burlap that you no longer need. Just tuck the tarp under the hedges, and it will catch the trimmings as you prune. If the tarp is too long or big, cut it into size. If there’s a gap between the hedges, cut a slit into a piece of tarp, so it slips easily at the base of the plant. You can use rocks or pieces of wood to set the corners in place.
Prune from One end to the Other
Instead of pruning in different places, try pruning from one end to the other. This way, the trimmings are more manageable. By the time you’re cleaning up, the tarp you just laid on the ground would’ve caught most of the trimmings. You can stop anytime, do a quick cleanup, and pick up where you left off.
Remove Trimmings using a Rake
A rake is such a handy tool when cleaning the garden, more so if you’ve got a lot of hedgerows to prune. To speed things up, get a rake and use it to clean the tops of the freshly-pruned hedges. Any tiny bits of trimmings will get caught in the rake, like a giant comb of sorts, making it much easier to tidy things up in the garden. The rake has a wide-toothed end, so it can clean up the hedgerows quickly in one pass. Below, you can use the rake to collect trimmings that didn’t quite make it on the tarp you laid.
Tarp + Rake
If you didn’t lay the tarp underneath the hedges before pruning, you could try collecting the trimmings after pruning using a rake and then piling these up on a nearby tarp. Just gather the trimmings in the middle of the tarp, then bundle them up when you’re done. You can move the tarp around as you work and empty it in a nearby bin. You’ll collect the bulk of the trimmings, so cleaning up after pruning will be much easier.
Use a Wheelbarrow
A wheelbarrow is one helpful piece of equipment for yard work, including pruning and cleanup. You can dump the trimmings collected in the tarp or the trimmings you raked. If you’re using the tarp, unfold it over the wheelbarrow as if pouring its content so the trimmings won’t fall all over the yard.
A Rolling Trash Bin
If you don’t have a wheelbarrow, a great alternative is a wheeled trash bin. You can use an organic bin; some municipalities provide this for free. Just dump the trimmings you’ve collected in a tarp or move the rolling trash bin with you as you prune and dump the trimmings. Check with your local town yard waste disposal instructions because most times, you can leave the hedge trimmings out by the curb for pickup by your local waste management company.
More Cleanup Tricks
Take care of your tools: It’s essential to keep your garden tools clean and sharp, especially pruners. Pruning tools get a lot of use in and around the garden. By keeping the blades sharp, you can make cleaner cuts, and the plants will heal much faster. Invest in high-quality garden tools with blades that stay super sharp for easy maintenance.
Fertilize after pruning: After you’re done with the pruning, add fertilizer to minimize trauma and maintain the denseness of the foliage. You can use organic fertilizer or a 10-10-10 commercial fertilizer. Do this, especially if you’re pruning early in the spring season.
Add mulch: Lay a fresh layer of mulch below your hedges to keep weeds away, add insulation if you’ve pruned early in the spring season, and improve the look of your garden. You can also use the grass clippings as mulch.
Rake trimmings by rows: If you are bagging the trimmings for disposal, we suggest raking the debris in a row instead of a pile. This way, you can break down the row of trimmings into manageable portions for bagging.
Trimming hedges doesn’t have to be a chore! With these tips, you can speed up the cleanup and have more free time to enjoy the garden. If you’re on the market for high-quality pruning tools, we got your back. Shop here and enjoy great deals on our best products!
