Mid-Atlantic Gardening: Your Neck of the Woods Chat- Winter Solstice 2012, 3 by Gitagal

Gitagal wrote:
Paul--
we cross-posted....

Yes--beginning of the growing season--BUT before the leaves start growing--will be the best time.
Well--at least you are getting to see a lot of pictures of YOUR shrub-to-be!
I just looked at it. There are two fresh, new sprouts that have come up from the very base.
They look so clean and smooth--compared to the older stems.
Shoud I allow these to continue and maybe cut odd one of the older stems???
On many shrubs (eg Lilacs) they recommend that a couple older stems be cut out and newer stems be
allowed to take their place.
Now I am not sure how to prune it. let me go out and take some pictures...

If you go back and look at he picture of the bloom on the Chinese Wiki link--and compare it to mine--
they are one and the same. Besides being called "Gou Ying"--it also had the name as "dog-eared...something..."

OK! Here are pictures--just 10 minutes old....may give you a better perspective of the job ahead....

1--One side of the base of this Shrub.
2--the opposite side of the base. here you can see 2 of the newer shoots that have come up from the base.
center and left. The one on the left is the biggest one. There is a 3rd one, a smaller one, to the right--not showing here.
3--Here is the bigger shoot--half way up the shrub
4--Here you can see the same shoot--a bit higher up.
5--The base of the shrub looking down to the center--sort of....