Does anyone else feel like they don’t know when to stop?

When you are close to something you can't see the effect. It is best to cut some bits off, then stand back and look. You can always cut more off.

But it is good to be decisive and not nibble at things. It often looks dramatic, but if done right within a few months it looks much better.

There is also a certain shock factor. It has looked a particular way for a long time, you don't see it slowly grow, but now you have a sudden change. You will get used to it in a week or two.

It'll be fine.

Hi Stuart333. Oddly enough I did stand back at times, though I still didn’t see how badly it looked. I dread going back in the garden.

Your reply has given me comfort, which I’m so grateful for. Thank you so much.  

Hi Stuart333. Oddly enough I did stand back at times, though I still didn’t see how badly it looked. I dread going back in the garden.

Your reply has given me comfort, which I’m so grateful for. Thank you so much.  

I have a red robin, Photinia x fraseri. It is about 10 ft tall. I grew it as a tree, with a single trunk. Thee are no branches till about 5:feet up then I keep it as a 3-4 ft wide column with a flat top.

It got too big at one point so I cut it back so it was just a trunk with stumps of side branches. It grew back and made it more dense. You can chop to shape without worrying.

Photinias have a number species and will either become a large shrub or a small 30ft tree eventually. If you don't cut them they will flower, but the flowers are nothing to get excited about.

www.rhs.org.uk/.../details

Yes I really want to avoid this kind if thing happening again so I’ll make sure to have someone with me.

I like the idea of the piece of string too. I work better visually and that makes perfect sense.

I never thought of that. I guess light will be reaching new areas so it could encourage new growth.

Thank you. 

I didn’t know that about dogwood. I’m learning about gardening here as well! Thanks also re: red robin. I just have to be patient now and hope the neighbour’s plants thicken out next spring too.

You’ve all been really kind on here. Thank you. 

Mr_Indeed_Autism said:

dogwood and red robin. 

Dogwood - you absolutely need not worry as, generally, it is almost indestructible.  Many a year; I have literally raised it to the ground.  It is fast growing in its recovery from a hard pruning (even if sometimes I wish it were not so!).  The average growth rate is about 45 cm per year.  Fun fact: common Dogwood is a native shrub to the UK - where it is used to competing against other plants in the hedgerows and edges of woodlands.

Red Robin - can be somewhat more fussy; depending on the season and rainfall.  The average growth rate is a bit more modest at about 15 to 23 cm per year.  If you are in any doubt and want to start cultivating some backup plants - it can be propagated by semi-woody cuttings in summer.  Fun fact: it was first bred in New Zealand.

Hope that helps set your mind at ease.

Having someone else to watch can help, they have a different perspective.

You can also tie a piece of string across at the height you want so you don't go too low.

But you are assuming you have made a mistake. Maybe you have done the right thing. Most people don't prune hard enough, which is why things end up overgrown and misshapen.

That’s a relief.

No, thankfully not a conifer. 

A lot of flowers elsewhere are going over so I’m putting the garden to bed soon. I can wait till Spring.

Like you said, it’s probably the shock at the moment.

I’d like to know how to avoid this in future. Perhaps not do things on my own and have my wife nearby?

Ok, both of these will grow back, even if you chop them down almost to ground level.

As long as it was not a conifer hedge, it will come back.

It may look like a lot of sticks if you have cut it hard. It might take till next spring to get good leaves again.

Not sure but there is dogwood and red robin. 

What type of plant(s) are the bushes, do you know?