Garden Q&A: What's the best season to prune a bay tree?

Whether you're a gardening beginner or expert, Irish Examiner columnist Peter Dowdall has the answer to your questions

A bay-leaf bush. Hard pruning any evergreen shrub puts it under stress until new growth emerges, says Peter Dowdall. File picture

QUESTION

Can I give my bay-leaf tree a hard prune now to tidy it up or is it better to wait until spring?