Proven Winners® Color Choice® Sunjoy Todo® Barberry

After back filling and lightly compacting the 50/50 mix of existing soil and compost give the Barberry Sunjoy Todo Shrubs a good deep watering. This is not to be rushed. Most of the water you put on the plant at first will run away from the plant until the soil is soaked. A general rule of thumb is to count to 5 for every one gallon of pot size. For example a one gallon pot would be watered until you count to 5 a three gallon pot would be 15 and so on. Check the plant daily for the first week or so and then every other day there after. Water using the counting method for the first few weeks. Gator bag Jr. can be used to help aid in this process and also provide plants with a good soaking due to the slow release of the water into the root-zone of the plant. Soaker Hoses can also be used to water when planting a long hedge.

Apply an early spring fertilizer with a product such as Espoma Tree-tone or Plant-tone at the recommended rate this will give the Barberry Sunjoy Todo Shrubs a boost of nitrogen that will be needed for healthy abundant foliage. Follow this up with a early summer application of Espoma Flower-tone, this will provide the necessary nutrients and raise the acid level in the soil which Barberry Sunjoy Todo Shrubs favor. Espoma products are easy to use, just sprinkle around the base of the plant and water it in. Be careful with products such as miracle-grow as these products can burn newly planted plants when not used at the recommended rates. Slow-release fertilizer can help prevent rapid sucker growth that is vulnerable to diseases and insects. Since an organic method of applying manure and/or compost around the roots, produces excellent results and also improves the condition of the soil, this would be an excellent first line of attack. Organic additions to the soil can also be combined with a shot of chemical fertilizer for maximum effect. If chemical fertilizers are used on your Barberry Sunjoy Todo Shrubs, applying a slow-release, balanced fertilizer once a year in the spring is probably the simplest solution. There are many slow-release fertilizers on the market. If you can find a fertilizer formulated for shrubs and trees, this fertilizer would work well on Barberry Sunjoy Todo. However, slow-release is certainly not the only way to fertilizer barberries such as Barberry Sunjoy Todo. A less expensive fast release fertilizer such as a 10-10-10 will work just as well if applied twice during the early spring and early summer. If you are looking for a fertilizing routine tailored to your specific conditions, a soil sample should be taken and the fertilizer and trace elements matched to the needs of your soil. Don't fertilize Barberry Sunjoy Todo Shrubs after August. Fall is the time for shrubs to begin preparing for dormancy. Fertilizing at this time may stimulate new growth that will be too tender to withstand the winter.

We highly recommend that you mulch your Barberry Sunjoy Todo Shrubs with either a ground hardwood mulch or a ground cypress mulch depending on your local availability. Any type of mulch will do but cypress or hardwood mulch will be of a higher quality and provide better nutrition overall as they breakdown. Mulching helps to keep weeds away which will compete with your new investment for water and nutrients. A 2 to 3 inch layer of mulch is sufficient but remember to take care not to cover any part of the stem of the plant with mulch. Its better to leave a one inch gap of space between the mulch and the stem or trunk of the plant.

Barberry Sunjoy Todo Shrubs will take to pruning and shearing very well, to either promote good color or maintain a manageable size. Pruning should be done while dormant, in either late winter or VERY early spring before any growth begins. You may hard prune it down to about 12” every few years, which will produce a lot of regrowth and a very dense plant. If you prefer a more open and natural form, simply remove up to one third of the branches down to the ground each year or two. By thinning rather than shearing you will have an 3 foot tall and wide, elegant mound of gorgeous deep red foliage. Or shear as needed to maintain size, or every 4-6 weeks to produce new colorful growth. Eventually your Barberry Sunjoy Todo Shrubswill develop thick central branches that become trunk-like, particularly if you are not pruning hard every year. Growth will be dense to the ground. Maintenance pruning is generally necessary as twigs develop up the length of the bared trunks. If there are too many main trunks, a few may be pruned out completely depending on the form you desire. Pruning has been described as a “combination of art and science.” I find pruning to be one of the most relaxing yet rewarding chores in the garden. Pruning a specific plant to look a specific way, involves art in creating a unique definition for a specific plant, and it involves science in understanding the physical growing habits of the plant to be pruned. The most important reason for pruning Crimson Pygmy Barberry is to improve the overall health of the plant which in turn will reward you with a brilliant display of tri colored foliage. Many times, Barberry Sunjoy Todo Shrubs that have not been pruned in a few years will develop dead or degenerative twigs. Removing the dead and dying limbs will minimize the possibility of diseases such as “die-back” and will also allow the plant to re-concentrate its energies and produce flowers. Another reason for pruning Barberry Sunjoy Todo such as many times, a plant may outgrow its intended size in the landscape, and must be pruned to re-define its purpose. Pruning should always be associated with re-invigorating a plant by allowing it to focus its energies on producing more vigorous branches and foliage. Specific plant objectives require specific pruning techniques. If an Barberry Sunjoy Todo Shrubs is being trained as a hedge , it would need to be pruned differently than if it were being grown as a shrub form. Screenings and hedges of barberries would need to be pruned for their specific purpose within the landscape. It is also important to understand the specific growing characteristic of a certain barberries when pruning that particular plant. It is important to always use sharp tools when pruning Barberry Sunjoy Todo or any plant for that matter. Knives, hand cutters, saws, and shears should be sharpened if necessary before pruning any plant. A sharp cut will heal quicker than a jagged cut, which will also minimize the likelihood of disease investing a cut during pruning. It is generally recommended by me to not use power equipment such as gas hedgers to prune plants. Pruning large Barberry Sunjoy Todo may be minor or major. Its general purpose is to maintain or restore vigor to the plant. Large Barberry Sunjoy Todo that have been severely pruned have the advantage of a large root system that has excessive capacity, and its roots are capable of supplying all of its energies to a smaller number of branches and foliage. This enables the plant to increase its vigor, and become healthier. Pruning large barberries that are well established will enable the plant to have continued vigor, and lead to many more years of supplying beauty to the landscape.