If that's what you want to do, do it.

w/o a picture.. this is really impossible ...

as bboy notes.. do whatever you want to do .... the worse that happens.. is that they look like carp.. and you have them removed next summer...

but if you are as overplanted as you say.. why not just cut them flush.. kill the stump.. and be done with them ...

this is the front of your house.. not some back 40 research station to find out how horribly you can disfigure a plant.. and find out how many years it will take to look good again ....

please post a pic.. and get some real opinions ... but never feel guilty about getting rid of some ugly overgrown plants.. that were improperly planted a decade or two ago ... be done with them ...

ken

The only way that they will look decent with a heavy pruning is if you cut them all the way to the ground and let them grow ALL new growth. Cutting them back to a couple of feet will never, ever result in something attractive.

I will tell you that I have had mixed outcomes with dwarf yaupon holly rejuvenation, however. Are you sure that that's what they are? Other small leaved hollies rejuvenate beautifully, predictably. Ilex crenata cultivars, for example.

The timing for this type of pruning will depend upon your location...January might be a bit early.

Thanks, all. Here is a pic of the overall area. After looking at a lot of pictures, I think the smaller ones up front are Japanese holly. The bigger ones in back, I have no clue. The holly tree at far right we will be keeping. If we rip out and start over, I would not know what to use. I like a formal look, nothing weepy. Some goshiki osmanthus, maybe, with something darker behind it . . . But again, if these could be salvaged, it would be my preference.

Here's a close up of the foliage on what I think might be Japanese holly . . .

Here's a close up of the mystery foliage. When we bought the house, we were told they were all hollies. Does anyone have an idea what variety this one might be? Could it be inkberry? It looks too thick, doesn't it?

Many thanks.

in my world.. the usefulness of those plants expired a decade ago ...

listen to me.. the front door.. is NOT a spot to spend 3 to 5 years renovating a bunch of grandpa-like old bushes,..... get rid of ALL OF THEM ... maybe if they were out the back door.. i might enjoy watching how they dealt with mutilation... but not out front ....

even the one on the right.. when you remove the smaller squat one in front of it.. it will have a big gaping brown spot.. which will look like carp ....

whats the rest of your landscapers idea.. other than saving the two i want dead????

where you are... might make a difference!!

thx for the pix.. looks nothing like what i imagined ...

and dont forget... its not whether these specific plants can recover.. its about the statement you are making at the front door .... big difference there ...

ken

Thanks for your views. We are in zone 7B. My landscaper has no clue what to do beyond get the old ones out. (He just does our weekly maintenance.) I don't have a designer right now, but all the rest of our landscaping and hardscaping has been professionally done. I keep telling the guys to prune those front shrubs aggressively, but they just keep growing. Everything here has overgrown this year in all the rain. Even the good stuff. My pergolas are about to collapse. It is just awful. Thanks again.