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| Kolwitzia |
Thursday, 18 August 2011
Cut and Slash
The time has come in the gardening year to get brutal. To start cutting back, chopping out and raising to the ground. Pruning, one of my favourite gardening rituals, is upon us. Shrubs that have outgrown their space, got leggy or died back, all get the treatment. The Kolwitzia pictured above is a prime example. All the flowers were at the top of the plant, it stands about 10 feet tall and creates a lot of shade beneath. So yesterday evening I began the mammoth task of getting it under control. Unfortunately, it means that it won't flower next year but something has to be sacrificed in the name of a bit of order. I am half way through the job but will continue bit by bit until all the woody stems have been removed - it could take some time!
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It's a lot of hard work but it will be for the better. You might sacrifice the flowers next year but the new growth down below will be worth watching it come in.
ReplyDeleteCher Sunray Gardens
You go, girl! Sometimes you just have to get brutal!
ReplyDeleteI hate pruning, and tend just to hack back. Most survive! x
ReplyDeleteThose are not the most fun jobs in the garden...but need to be done. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteTough love!
ReplyDeletePruning rank lower than weeding in my job list. I'm good at procrastinating here but you are right, it needs to be done in order to get a nice garden. I often treat pruning like giving my plants a hair-cut, only that here, mistakes made are often not real disasters ;>)
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