rarely if ever.. does simply cutting down a shrub or tree .. kill it ...

i grow them in full sun ...

have you considered moving the hosta and bleeding heart.. and killing the invasive burning bush.. and just leaving this monster where it is???

thats my usual fallback when i dont want to work that hard .. lol ..

all that said... i would cut it back to about 2 feet .. so i have some sticks to tug on ... dig a 2 or 3 foot root ball ... about 18 inches deep ... go dig the new hole .. and drag that bat turd to the new hole.. refill half way.. fill the hole with water 2 or 3 times ... refill the rest .. and be done with it ... and if it dies.. and i doubt it ... so be it.. i hated it anyway .. lol ...

i would do it on a nice crisp fall day in mid to late summer ...... just because i dont work that hard in the heat of summer ....

i would leave it alone next year.. but for watering it once in a while ... and i would start repruning it to shape the year after ...

btw.. always include your location in every post ...

ken

Thanks. The burning bush isn't invasive. It's my autumn curb appeal pride and joy that's being poked at by the weigela. This used to be a shade bed before the city took down the street tree in front of the house.
Cutting the weigela back before moving would be a good idea. It's going to tricky to extract without damaging the stuff around it. The whole bed is crowded but I think will work without that extra shrub in there, and by thinning out the hostas in the Spring.

Chris, invasive refers to a plant's ability to spread into surrounding areas and to displace native flora. It doesn't refer to whether a plant spreads in your gardens. We don't know where you live but Burning Bush is listed as an invasive species in much of the US.

Weigela is very tough and easy to grow from cuttings if you want to make new shrubs for a new spot.

Canada zone 5b. I have three burning bushes on my property and they're well behaved. I've found two seedlings in the past seven years from them, one of which I've kept. So, not terribly invasive in these parts.
The weigela next to the one in question is forcing it to grow unevenly, so, since I like the burning bush better, out it goes :)

The whole bed needs a major overhaul.

You don't say where you are in Canada but Burning Bush is certainly invasive in some parts of the country. Invasiveness of BB. It isn't possible to judge invasiveness from a plant's behaviour in ones own garden.

I'd take out the Euonymus altogether, shape up the Weigela a bit then let it fill the space alone.

How invasive a plant is in your area and how prolifically it self-seeds in your own garden are two different things.

I'll have to ask around. I've been gardening for many years here (central Ontario) and no one has ever mentioned this as being an invasive. It's sold not only at the box stores but also in very reputable nurseries that wouldn't touch horrors like Buckthorn or Trumpet Vine or goutweed (shudder).

It is on the radar as being invasive, at least in southern Ontario: Ontario's Invading Species - Winged Euonymus.

btw, most nurseries will continue to sell invasive plants species while folks continue to purchase them or until they are banned from sale.