Dwarf Myrtle is a very tough plant that requires little to no pruning to maintain its dense compact form, if you desire it to be the size it will naturally grow to. Most often it is used in the landscape as a hedge or clipped shrub, which can be sheared as needed any time of year (D). It is best to shear consistently, so that cutting is always done into the portion of branches with leaves below it, for best appearance, although plants have no problems if cut back to smaller branches below leaves (they just look bare until they regrow). If hedges or clipped shrubs are pruned back to the exact same point every time, they will eventually develop woody growth at the cut points that will eventually need to be pruned out. To avoid this, try to cut back to a slightly different spot each time while maintaining the same overall look. Pruning a small, residential scale, low hedge, can normal be more attractively done with a nice sharp pair of manual hedge shears rather than a more dangerous, bulky, and easier to lose control of electric or gas trimmer. For hedges, to ensure the lower branches to not get shaded out over time by the upper branches and die, it is best to slightly taper the vertical edge of the hedge so the top part of the hedge is cut slightly further back from the bottom part. This will make sure the lower part of the hedge maintains good sunlight exposure (S). References