Two years ago, my wiegela was cut back hard, down to four or five main stems (more like stumps really) about 30cm above the ground, in order to repair the brick wall behind. The end result looked pretty brutal, like something they have in the zoo for the vultures to perch on.
It is a resilient beast though, and last year, as expected, it put on plenty of new growth, and I refrained from pruning it at all, because I really wanted to see all that new growth in bloom this year. And bloom it did…
My weigela in bloom, two weeks ago.
It has now finished flowering, so it’s time to cut it back. This should give it sufficient time to put on new growth before the dormant season, which will then flower next spring.
As with all pruning jobs, the standard approach applies; start off by getting rid of the three D’s; dead (or dying), diseased and damaged material. None of these really apply in the case of my own Wiegela because most of the growth is healthy and productive, having sprouted from the main trunk only a couple of years ago.
Prune weigela as soon as it has finished flowering
However, there is also a fourth pruning ‘D’ that I was recently introduced to - ‘Damned nuisance’. As you can see above, a number of my wiegela’s flowering stems are trailing over the path, so I will shorten them to a convenient length, and all other overly-long stems by around one-third.
I will also remove thin, spindly branches from their point of origin, so the plant can invest all of its energy into the stronger, more productive stems. If your wiegela is congested with unproductive and / or crossing stems, thin these ones out by removing them at their point of origin, or as close to the ground as possible.
Prune out the thinnest, weakest stems
For other strong, young stems, I will remove the tips, just above a node, a couple of nodes (or leaf-buds) down from the tip of the stem. This should encourage more side stems to grow, and the bush should fill out during the rest of the growing season.
If your wiegela is old, neglected, and in need of rejuvenation, remove no more than a third of the largest, woody stems right down to the main trunk. These shrubs have a great capacity to bounce back so you can be brave. Just don’t leave it too late, or there’ll be no flowers next year.