When to prune butterfly bushes

Prune butterfly bush hard in late February, before new growth begins, because it blooms best on young wood.

The window: Late February, before new growth begins (one source extends the window to late February to early March).

It blooms best on young wood, so prune before new growth kicks in.
Prune hard every year before new growth begins.
Even if the plant is already fully leafed out after a mild winter, it still needs a hard prune in late February.

The mistake to avoid: Do not skip the hard prune just because a mild winter or early spring has the plant fully leafed out.

Timing varies by region and year; your local extension office is the closest authority.

Grounded in: uaex.uada.edu. Every timing follows sentences verified verbatim on those pages.

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