Can you hard prune a Fatsia Japonica? It's really out of shape with foliage mainly on the top part with nothing down below. I removed a Phormium from in front of it a while back blocking out light, but now it's in full view and not looking pretty.

Thanks

Di

Hi
Course youn can. The plant is very vigorous. In colder climates people grow it as a die-back perennial. It grows back from the ground level every year.
I'm worried about mine. Las time I saw it in March, it was ok. But I ain't rally sure if it has survived last winter. The other one I keep in pot completely defoliated, but it's just what I wanted. Bare stems with a crown of leaves on top will give it more of that Japanese look.

Yep you can (and Dave B -I think- did a post describing how he prunes his. If I find this post later on, i'll put a link to it)

Thanks guys. I've done a bit of pruning before but never the extent I want to do now. I'm going to trim some shoots practically down to soil level and some with a bit more length, giving a layered effect. and just trim the damaged top.

Hopefully it'll come through for you Marcin. Fingers crossed.

Di

If it has survived that means Fatsia japonica i tuffer that anyone ever thought and its description in many gardening books will need to be changed.

Wikipedia put this one down to -15. Another nursery puts it at -5. A big difference, but definitely alive after -10 here.

Di

Mine lost a growing point this winter at around -6c.Lost a whole plant last winter at -9c.

Far as pruning,well you can cut it to the ground & it will re-shoot fine.It's a member of the Ivy tribe,Fatshedera is a cross between Fatsia & Hedera(ivy).



metalhammer.

Found the thread, but my memory was playing tricks, not much about actual pruning as such, just how Dave (B) keeps his at 6' and bushy. Here it is tho'

Don't want to hijack your thead, DiCasS but has anybody sown seed? and if so when are they ripe? (my berries have just turned black) I would have thought they are easy as I have moved two self-sown ones from the most inhospitable of places.

'twas alive after -30C and lower in my garden. Maybe its hardiness has summink to do with the climate it grows.

Easy from seed, just wait for the berries to turn black and juicy and squish them out and sow them in ordinary multi purpose compost.[the actual seeds should be dark too when ripe]
From just one Umbel you will get hundreds of them so you can sow several of them in the same pot, just leave them outdoors in a sheltered spot and wait a few weeks.

Cheers for that Nigel.

I'll have a bash this year as I have so many fruits!

Nothing exciting, but just to follow up....... I now have loads of little Fatsias shooting ! (Thanks Nigel ) Kept them in a unheated propagator and it took only 4/5 weeks. One of the easiest seeds I've tried. No wonder they self sow so easily.

Some of my germinating Fatsias

I have loads of those bloody seedlings popping up all over my garden! So this year I chopped off the berry stalks before they could fall off

Also my with my Fatsia I only leave the current years flush of leaves on the plant, so that now it's a tall branching thing, which looks more exotic in my opinion...

This is my fatsia japonica that i brought off ebay was very suprised with the size as well. It is now planted outside and is loving the horse manure

This is my fatsia japonica that i brought off ebay was very suprised with the size as well. It is now planted outside and is loving the horse manure