Pruning the Dwarf Evergreens

This year our garden treat to ourselves was to have Certified Arborist and Host of Garden Talk Radio Bob Carey prune our dwarf evergreens and boxwood. He also cheerfully restructured our Apple Bower and pruned our street tree out front.
This is an 'after' shot.

At times it was surprising to see how much Bob pruned off of our shrubs. A large part of our goal was to reclaim our side walk as well as reshape the shrubs. These shrubs, planted for winter interest in the herb garden, have grown well beyond our expectations!

We asked Bob Carey for a few guidelines and he says: For formal shrub maintenance, to either cut them back or to restrain them be sure to reach inside and cut out sections to let light in because foliage concentrates at the tips. He also adds that when hand pruning a novice is often conservative and takes nips just at the ends. Assess how much material you can remove without causing the shrub to look over pruned. Also cut back at a fork or juncture which opens the shrub for light and creates a looser more open effect.