Dwarf conifers: pruning

[mike004]

When/how should dwarf conifers be pruned?

Two of mine are OK, another is brown with dead wood.

Should I cut them back now?
I'm not sure about dwarf conifer growth rates -- whether they are as fast as leylandii! I don't want them getting out of hand and putting on a lot of wood.

Mike

 

[mrgrumpy]

No they don't grow as fast as 'Leylandii' Why prune them if you want to keep them dwarf? The problem is, if you prune the centre 'leader shoot' the conifer will start to bush out. The 'brown patches' could be just lack of sunlight, or at worst 'Red spider mite'. As a rule a conifer takes about 5 years to grow 3 feet, And 'Leylandii' takes 12 months to grow 3 feet.
Some conifers are selected to always stay dwarf. Hope I've been of some help.