Question about cutting back perennials

Discussion in 'Flower Gardening' started by Cayuga Morning, Aug 3, 2018.

  1. Cayuga Morning

    Cayuga Morning Strong Ash Plants Contributor

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    About this time of year, my perennial garden always looks overgrown, almost like a jungle. I go after them & deadhead everything that is past bloom, but my question is: I can go further? Which perennials respond to a butch cut & which ones don't?

    Specifically I have a tradescantia (?trinity plant?) that is looking particularly weary.
    And my Stokesias have all just plopped.
    And how about nepeta (catmint)? I have cut it back 6 inches but it still looks a mess. Can I be ruthless with it?

    Advice would be appreciated.
     
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  3. marlingardener

    marlingardener Happy

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    Can't help with the stokesias, but the catmint responds well to a severe haircut. We aren't in New England, but here I cut it back to about 4-5" in late June, early July. The Tradescantia I just let go--it gets ugly but it is basically hidden by other perennials, and in the fall (October, early November) I cut it to the ground.
     
  4. Cayuga Morning

    Cayuga Morning Strong Ash Plants Contributor

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    Thanks @marlingardener
    It is already August, so I think I will hold off on the Nepeta.
     
  5. kate

    kate In Flower

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    I just chop away. Yesterday it was the Veronica. Roses don’t escape the chop either after last roses.

    K
     



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  6. Netty

    Netty Chaotic Gardener Plants Contributor

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    I cut a lot of ugly things back this time of year.
    Tradescantia (spider wort) I cut back to the ground as soon as it starts to yellow, and I am rewarded with some nice, fresh growth.
    Catmint I cut back a few times each season and it always comes back fresh and healthy.
    Anything that looks yellow or spotted doesn't escape the chop either.
     
  7. Cayuga Morning

    Cayuga Morning Strong Ash Plants Contributor

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    Thank you all. You guys are so good with advice & bucking me up!
     
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  8. purpleinopp

    purpleinopp Young Pine Plants Contributor

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    Which kind of Tradescantia do you have? A grassy spiderwort? If so, it can be mowed (or the equivalent thereof) without harm.
     
  9. Petronius

    Petronius Young Pine

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    Sometimes the Iris green leaves can be cut quite low. Also, remove all the dried leaves.
     
  10. Cayuga Morning

    Cayuga Morning Strong Ash Plants Contributor

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    Thanks @purpleinopp. I have now cut back the tradescantia & it looks a lot better.
    @Petronius I am in the process of removing the yellowed iris leaves. I dispose of them off the property in case they have iris borer.

    What about Japanese iris? The three foot tall ( 1 meter) leaves are splayed all over the place. A mess!
     
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  11. Petronius

    Petronius Young Pine

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    @Cayuga Morning, Cut small sections of the Japanese iris leaves at a time.
     
  12. Cayuga Morning

    Cayuga Morning Strong Ash Plants Contributor

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  13. Sjoerd

    Sjoerd Mighty Oak

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    Hello there Cayu,
    I can give you my take on "cutting back". I do a variety of cutting back manoeuvres, or not in some cases.
    First I will comment upon the plants that you mentioned:
    Tradiscantia--I do not cut these back. I just let the dead leaves remain and offer some protection during the winter.

    Stokesia-- I also just let the dead foliage stay over the winter for the same reason.

    Nepeta-- Excuse me...I have to go. I will come back and finish this later.
    Right then--Nepeta. Nepeta is one of those plants that you can cut off down to the ground and it often comes and blooms for a second time towards the end of the season. In the case of these plants you give water liberally after their haircut...and if it rains that's even better. I do this cutting back business with several plants if I am growing them. Geraniums is another.

    Other plants--Most of the blooming perennials I cut back at the end of the gardening season, and pile the debris up on my veggie plots as a mulch. I make the mulch as thick as I can. Before piling the cut off plant debris on the plots, I min-til the ground and add cow manure.

    So then: If I want a second blooming then you cut off the green and leafy stems....but the other cutting off I do I wait until it is obviously dead (some shade of brown). Usually, but not always. You have no doubt seen how I mulch for the winters, right?

    If you feel a bit insecure about doing this just PM me and we can take your garden plant for plant and discuss what and when to cut, oké?

     
    Last edited: Aug 9, 2018
  14. Cayuga Morning

    Cayuga Morning Strong Ash Plants Contributor

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    @Sjoerd, busy man!

    I follow a website, Margaret Roach's A Way to Garden (I love her by the way). And she talks about doing a seasonal thinning this time of year when the gardens are looking spent and a mess. She culls out multiple wheel barrows full of stuff (she has a large garden). I wish I could do that to get everything more ship shape, but I don't know what to thin.

    I do suppose I could trim back those perennials that are encroaching on their neighbors too much. I have multiples of those.
     
  15. Sjoerd

    Sjoerd Mighty Oak

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    Hey there Cayu--I finished my response on the comment that I started above.
    I am going to look up Miz Roach and see what she writes about. If she makes such a good impression upon you, then she must be good. Thanks for the tip.

    You know, Cayu....I am just now focusing upon your word usage. You mention "thinning". In my mind this is a completely different exercise than cutting off dead perennial stems. Thinning means to me that a stand of a particular plant sort actually gets reduced in size...like removing half of the root ball, with the purpose of making an out of hand plant smaller to fit in a plot better.
    This type of thinning I do in the middle of October or sometimes in the middle of March. any other time I find risky.

    Let me hear how you get along please.
     
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  16. Petronius

    Petronius Young Pine

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    When I mentioned to cut so much at a time, I meant you could do this in one day. However, it is easier to cut some amounts so no damage is done to other plants.
     

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