Skip to content
Grow In Backyard
Herbs

How to Cut Rosemary: Where to Cut So It Grows Back Bushy

Cut above a leaf node in the green growth, never into bare brown wood. Old rosemary will not resprout from it — which is how plants get killed.

By Salma 2 min read Save to Pinterest — opens Pinterest in a new tab
Rosemary branch herb
Photo: domeckopol, Pixabay Content License, via Pixabay
On this page

Cut in the green, above a leaf node. Never into bare brown wood — rosemary does not come back from it, and that one mistake kills more plants than any pest.

The rule that matters

Where the cut lands
Where you cutWhat happens
Green growth, above a nodeTwo new shoots. Plant thickens
Green growth, mid-internodeRegrows, but a short dead stub is left
Bare brown woodUsually nothing. That stem is finished
Whole plant into bare woodThe plant dies

Rosemary sits with lavender and most Mediterranean sub-shrubs in the group that will not regenerate from old wood. Buddleia and dogwood forgive hard pruning; rosemary does not, and the mistake is irreversible.

The afternoon that kills an old rosemary

A big leggy plant looks like it needs cutting back hard. Cut all the bare stems down and in most cases nothing comes back — there are no dormant buds in that wood to respond.

If the plant is already bare at the base, take cuttings and start again rather than attempting a renovation that usually fails.

Harvesting is pruning

There is no real difference, which is useful: picking for the kitchen in the right way keeps the plant in shape.

  • Take growing tips, two to four inches, cutting above a node
  • Move around the plant rather than stripping one side
  • Little and often beats an occasional heavy cut
  • Year-round for the kitchen — only shaping is seasonal

A plant tipped regularly from its first year never develops the bare-bottomed, tuft-on-top shape that old rosemary is famous for.

Cuttings, which make all of this low-stakes

Rosemary roots very easily, so there is no need to risk an old plant:

  1. Take 4-inch non-flowering tips in late spring or early summer
  2. Strip the lower leaves from the bottom half
  3. Push into gritty compost — half perlite or sharp sand
  4. Keep barely moist, somewhere bright and out of direct sun
  5. Rooted in four to six weeks, pot on when growth resumes

Three cuttings taken this summer replace an exhausted plant next year. That is a far better plan than a hard prune nobody can undo.

Step by step

Time
PT20M
Cost
0
You need
An established rosemary plant
Tools
Sharp secateurs or scissors

  1. Find the green growth

    Look along a stem from the tip back toward the base. The soft green leafy section is where the plant can regrow. Behind it the stem turns brown and bare — that wood holds few or no dormant buds.

  2. Cut above a leaf node

    Choose a point within the green growth, just above a pair of leaves or a visible side shoot, and cut there. New growth comes from that junction, so a cut above a node gives two shoots where there was one.

  3. Never cut into bare wood

    A stem cut back into leafless brown wood usually does not resprout. Doing it to a whole plant kills it, which is the commonest way an old rosemary is lost in a single afternoon.

  4. Take no more than a third

    In one session, across the whole plant. Rosemary recovers slowly and a hard cut leaves it unable to rebuild. Spread a renovation across two or three seasons rather than one.

  5. Shape after flowering

    The main shaping prune goes in after flowering in late spring or early summer, which leaves the plant the whole season to put on growth that will harden before winter.

  6. Stop pruning in autumn

    Late cuts push soft new growth into the cold, and soft growth is what frost kills. Light picking for the kitchen is fine year-round; shaping is not.

  7. Use the prunings

    Strip the lower leaves from a few of the healthiest cuttings, push them into gritty compost, and keep them barely moist. Rosemary roots readily, which is the easy way to replace a plant that has gone woody.

Common questions

Where do you cut rosemary so it grows back?

Within the green leafy growth, just above a pair of leaves or a side shoot. New shoots come from those junctions, so a cut above a node typically produces two stems where there was one. The critical rule is to stay in the green — the bare brown wood further down the stem carries few or no dormant buds, and a stem cut back into it usually never resprouts.

Can you cut rosemary back hard?

No, not in one go. Rosemary is among the Mediterranean shrubs that do not reliably regenerate from old wood, so cutting a leggy plant back to bare stems usually kills it. If an overgrown plant needs renovating, take no more than a third in a season and spread it over two or three years, always cutting into green growth. Often the better answer is to take cuttings and replace the plant, since rosemary roots easily and a young plant outgrows a struggling renovated one.

When is the best time to prune rosemary?

After flowering, in late spring or early summer. That gives the plant the rest of the growing season to make new growth and harden it before winter. Avoid pruning in autumn and winter: cuts then stimulate soft growth that frost damages, and the wounds heal slowly in cold weather. Picking sprigs for cooking is fine at any time of year.

How do I harvest rosemary without damaging the plant?

Take the top two to four inches of growing tips, cutting just above a leaf node, and move around the plant rather than repeatedly stripping one side. That is effectively light pruning and keeps the plant bushy. Taking long woody stems from the base, or shearing one face flat, is what produces the bare-bottomed plant with a tuft on top that most old rosemary ends up as.

Why is my rosemary woody and bare at the bottom?

Age combined with never being tipped. Left unpruned, rosemary extends its stems and progressively abandons the older growth behind the tips, so the base becomes bare wood while all the leaves sit at the ends. Regular light tipping from the plant's first year prevents it. Once it has happened it cannot really be reversed, because cutting into that bare wood will not produce new shoots — the practical fix is cuttings and a replacement plant.

Backyard Weekly

Know what to plant, week by week

Join the weekly email for seasonal jobs, fixes for what is going wrong, and gear worth buying.

Not ready to subscribe? The planting calendar is free and needs no email.

By subscribing you agree to our privacy policy. Grow In Backyard will never sell your address.

Keep reading

Crumbled dried oregano leaves scattered on a pale surface
Growing Guides ·

How to Dry Oregano (And Why It Beats Fresh)

Oregano is one of the few herbs that genuinely improves dried. Cut before flowering, hang it somewhere dark, and leave the leaves whole until you cook.