Bypass vs. Anvil vs. Ratchet

Bypass pruners work like scissors — two curved blades pass each other, creating a clean cut. Best for live growth on plants, flowers, and green wood up to about 3/4 inch thick. This is what most gardeners should buy first.

Anvil pruners press a single blade down onto a flat surface, like a knife on a cutting board. Better for dead wood but crushes live stems. Use these for clearing dead branches, not pruning live plants.

Ratchet pruners use a multi-step mechanism that multiplies your hand strength. Ideal for gardeners with arthritis, carpal tunnel, or limited grip strength. They cut in stages — squeeze, release, squeeze again — rather than in one motion.

Pruning Shears: Our Picks

For hand-held cutting of stems and branches up to 3/4 inch thick.

Loppers: Our Picks

For branches 1 to 2 inches thick. The longer handles provide leverage that hand pruners cannot.

Pruning Technique Basics

The right tool with the wrong technique still damages plants. Here are the fundamentals of making clean, healthy cuts.

Where to Cut

For most plants, cut just above an outward-facing bud or node at a 45-degree angle sloping away from the bud. This directs new growth outward rather than into the center of the plant, improving airflow and reducing disease risk. The 45-degree angle sheds water away from the cut surface, preventing rot.

For dead or diseased wood, cut back to healthy tissue — you'll see the transition where the inside of the stem changes from brown or discolored to white or green. Cut at least one inch into healthy wood to ensure you're past the infection zone.

When to Prune

Timing depends on what you're cutting. Flowering shrubs that bloom on old wood (lilac, forsythia, rhododendron) should be pruned immediately after flowering. Shrubs that bloom on new wood (roses, butterfly bush, hydrangea paniculata) are pruned in late winter or early spring before new growth begins. Fruit trees have specific pruning windows — generally late winter during dormancy.

Avoid pruning in late summer or early fall. New growth stimulated by pruning won't have time to harden before frost, leaving the plant vulnerable to winter damage.

Maintenance Between Cuts

Wipe pruner blades with isopropyl alcohol or a 10% bleach solution between plants when pruning diseased wood. This prevents spreading pathogens from an infected plant to a healthy one. A rag soaked in rubbing alcohol, kept in your back pocket while pruning, makes this a quick habit rather than a chore.

Sap buildup on blades increases cutting resistance and can harbor bacteria. Clean sap off with a rag dampened with mineral spirits or WD-40 after each pruning session. A light coat of camellia oil on the blade prevents rust and keeps sap from sticking as aggressively next time.

Safety

Always cut away from your body. Engage the safety lock when carrying pruners between cuts or when setting them down. Bypass shears are spring-loaded — an unlocked pair can open unexpectedly and cause cuts. When using loppers overhead, wear safety glasses — bark chips and small branch fragments fall directly toward your face.