Well, rosemary is a fairly big plant, and yours is a little below average for a mature plant. If it looks untidy, just give it an all-over haircut. Rosemary is very amenable to trimming - it's not a bad topiary plant, actually. But don't chop off more than about one-third of total growth at any one time.

Oh how I love rosemary, and would LOVE to see a picture of your plant!
I didn't know, until the other weekend, that rosemary could be a nice topiary plant. I saw some at Home Depot that were rather mature, done quite well and very healthy.

Thanks for the tips granite! I have been very successful with forsythia in that manner, haven't tried it on lavender or Rosemary but will do so today. Will take a pic first for you Gborosteve and post it later today or this week @ least. :)

My old rosemary has just had very severe treatment after deciding to lie down across the path for the last few years rather than stand up. I had to take a saw to it resulting in a large pile of rosemary branches which would be sufficient for an entire flock of roast lamb. Pity we don't have a functioning fireplace; it would smell wonderful if burned. It is beginning to put up shoots from the trunk and I have also stuck in some cuttings. Roseyp, forsythia is one of the easiest shrubs to grow from cuttings. Rosemary is not quite so obliging but is fairly successful all the same.

You can also make nice Christmas wreaths from the trimmings. Even if the rosemary dries out, it can still be used as a flavoring. There are usually a few twigs of rosemary clipped in a refrigerator magnet in my kitchen for myself but those generally don't get made into wreaths and tied with ribbons.

You could also take the trimmings and soak them in bath oil to get a rosemary scented bath or soak them in cooking oil for rosemary oil to cook with.

I cut my rosemary back by about two thirds or at least a half every holiday season, but that is pretty much also the beginning of rainy season so the rosemary doesn't seem to care about being clipped. We also have a year round growing season so there isn't any harsh winter for the bush to survive, I don't think cutting it that far back would work if there were harsh climate conditions.

thanks for all the responses - hope to cut back tomorrow -

here is a pic of the huge bush - the gardenias it is in between are about 5 feet high (and need fertilizing).....i have never managed to insert the pics here, it is a link to a page with pics

Here is a link that might be useful: my HUGE Rosemary bush

That's a nice-looking rosemary, but it's less than half the height of mine! Mine has about the same spread, however, and I keep it pruned because I don't have the space to let it spread.

I wish I had a camera!

Daisy - that is why i am gonna cut mine back - to let the plants UNDER it breath and grow - course, gotta finish weeding - there is only so much time in the weekends....

Wow Roseyp8255, that's quite a rosemary bush. I think it's beautiful. I wouldn't touch it, but that's me. I love rosemary. I'm so glad you had a camera to share the picture with us. Thanks!!! Just an incredible picture!

Does it matter what time of year you trim rosemary...to keep from losing the blooms the following year?

I can't answer for other climates than mine (subtropical), but I trim my rosemary any time of the year, whenever I feel that it needs it. Mine is in flower all the year round.

Lucky you. Here in Z6, the winters kill it..

Any advice on how to prune a full-grown rosemary bush into a christmas tree shape?

Full-grown? Some rosemary only grows a foot tall. Some kinds can be very big. Continual trimming of the stems is the only to to help shape it.

This is a very large rosemary that has spread in many directions and I was wondering if wrapping it in some type of metal mesh would be a good way to start shaping it into the Christmas tree shape.

Thanks! Amy

Most Christmas trees have a conical shape and there is usually a leader at the top. I don't know if Rosemary has single top leader, but with repeated trimming, I suppose it could evenually form into something similar. If grown in a mesh, it may poke stems through enough so that they grow out and then you cannot remove the mesh without damage.

My Rosemary tree (like a little Dwarf Alberta Spruce) lasted well through the winter but by February the branches were pretty much dead. In the spring I noticed one little green shoot had survived - and now the plant is regenerating nicely. Next winter I will bring it inside......

amymay_grower -

Personally I find the natural forms bushes and trees take to be quite beautiful and I would suggest that for your rosemary but there is a topiary forum that may have some suggestions on how to clip specific shapes. Other than that, be sure to clip no more than 1/3 of the living parts of your bush at any time.

FataMorgana