The previous owners of my house installed two shrubs that have become an annoyance. I think they are Hinoki Cypress, but I might be wrong about that. They were quite striking when I first bought the place, but they are way too tall now. I keep thinning them out and trimming to keep them from touching. I tried for several years to lop off the tops, but they keep growing. You can see in the attached photo that they are up to the second story window. Is there anything I can do to get them to stop growing? Can I cut them down severely to start over, like you can do with azaleas? What do you recommend?

Remove them!! They will keep getting big and if you do it not you will have less of a headache later. Find some nice ornamental trees that will stay small and bloom. Evergreen trees are a huge issue, which I hate with a passion!! Sorry but you have a great looking home!

@Guest_smm
Welcome to NGA! I guess by your screen name you don't plan to stay but if you do you will find a bounty of information and helpful and interesting gardeners to socialize with, mostly drama free. 😀

Some woody plants, such as the azaleas you mentioned, can resprout when cut to the ground. So can yews, one of the few "evergreens" which can.

Conifers such as the ones in your picture cannot make new growth if they are cut back to bare wood. You can do "heading back" of a trunk or branch to its junction with another trunk or branch which has a living tip. That's it.

I don't think you can reshape these to a form you'll be more satisfied with, so I agree with @karmahappytoes. Allow yourself to have happy toes and better karma by removing them. And don't be guilt-tripped by anyone who says you shouldn't.

Maybe someone else will have an idea for how to tame them if you really want to keep them. I've just lost too many battles over the years with conifers I tried to master. They have a way of asserting their power as they mature. It took a chain saw to finally assert my mastery over them.

Pat

I really don't like the idea of cutting down established trees and shrubs BUT I understand your problem. Bear in mind when those trees are gone the front of your house will get allot more sunlight. I took 9 way over grown photinias out this spring. 3 were a hedge next to the sidewalk. they were taller than your cypress and had black spot so severely they dropped leaves constantly. My beds were always messy. Gone and I'm not missing them one bit. The other 6 were in front of my porch and had grown way to tall. They were too ungainly to reach and prune. Gone. don't miss them either but they did shade the hostas so I'll have to find homes for them. Good luck with your project.

Thank you everyone for your replies. I have no idea how much it costs to get large plants removed, but I may have to look into it. Someone elsewhere suggested maybe limbing them up and planting stuff underneath. Not sure how that would look, and it wouldn't fix the height problem. Can I just cut off the top foot or two?

If I ever do get them removed, I would like to install a native large bush or short tree in the corner and a smaller bush closer to the porch. I suspect that mountain laurel would do well there, given that the azaleas in front thrive. Plus it has the benefits of being evergreen and becoming gnarly over time. Any thoughts on that idea?

Guest_smm, your azealas can be cut back to the soil to rejuevante them. Do it after they flower next spring so you can see them bloom.

As for your other trees that should come out, I would also be concerned about the
root and you foundation another reason to remove. Another reason to remove. Don't get me wrong, I'm a total tree hugger here but when placing a tree one should know their root systems.

If even thinking it is a good idea to take them out, it is probably a GREAT idea to take them out, sooner the better. Problem trees only get more problematic. Your reluctance is understandable but stopping you moving on for better long term results. Trust me. I AM in this boat with a Little
( not little ) Gem Magnolia.

Hi & welcome! That IS a very beautiful home!

Agree with the above inputs, I would remove them too.

Trees & shrubs that are too close to the house can beat the heck out of the siding, or worse, during storms. I'm concerned about the other one too, farthest to the left in the pic. It will continue to get wider and taller, and flop farther to the sides, and with more force, when it storms.

If you want more shrubs, look up info about how big they can get before deciding. You can put them farther out, like those in the foreground in your pic. When they have enough room to reach their full size, you don't have to waste your weekends mangling them, and your yard will have a more natural look, not like it's hidden, or being slowly swallowed by green meatballs and cones.

There is a plant database on this site with a lot of pics. Not all plants are pictured, but it's worth checking whenever you have some kind of curiosity about a plant.
http://garden.org/plants/