As fall plods on and more works start to brown or whither , the urge to “ make clean up just a minuscule ” is strong , and for many gardenersthe questionof whether to turn out back perennials or lead them standing is one they consider every year . There is a lot of ground between those who clean every inch of their garden ( some plaza look like they ’ve been workshop - vac’d by the time November attain ) and those who just let it all tolerate and wait until April or even later May to skip plant back .
Here are some of the pros and cons of leaving perennials standing or cutting them down .
Why Leave Perennials Standing ?
While some perennials swoon as the season goes on, grasses stand tall. This shot was taken in late February, and the grasses look lovely in their coating of hoarfrost.
The arguments in favour of leaving perennials stand generally revolves around two things : Looks and the environment . washed-out perennials render protection for good insects , such as ground - nesting bee , through the winter . Some perennial , such as coneflower and sedum , also provide seed for birds to eat during the winter and the stalks of perennials extend stead to alight or hide . The stalks also ply a home for snow to settle and may evenhelp insulatethe peak of the perennial .
fagged perennial , with their spiky seedheads and brown foliage , lend interest to the wintertime garden , too . coke softly sits atop some flower head and hoarfrost clingstone to dried leaves . Toward the close of winter , things may calculate tatty , but in November , December and January , the perennial garden still has beauty . One other reason to leave perennial standing ( and as someone who is always add plants , I identify with this ) is that it helps your remember where you put things . Who has n’t looked at some greenery in the spring and thought , is this something I planted or a weed ? ? ?
Why Cut Back ?
An October dusting of snow only adds to the color of these bright sedum.
Many gardeners cut back virtually all of their plants in declination . And , it ’s normally for three reason : looking at , work stream and plant wellness . edit out perennials removes some disease from the grime , specially those that are carried through the foliage . By removing and chuck out the works debris , the disease has less opportunity to take hold next year .
Some perennials ( genus Hosta are the bad ) do n’t handle hoar well . Their leave of absence plow to pulp and cleaning them up in the spring is a messy , slimly gross task . A neat thud of brusk hosta foliage stalks marks where the flora is .
A fair garden also means less work in springiness , which is a very busy fourth dimension for most gardeners . If everything is cleaned up , you could go about spread compost , weeding and invest in annuals and vegetables and the perennials take precaution of themselves .
The flowers of this hydrangea shrub twinkle in a coating of frost.
My own approach is more toward the let - it - bear side , but not completely : I hit all the veg junk , spent annuals and cutback the few hostas I have . My paeony , which have some powdery mildew on them , will also get cut back . I ’m also cut back some ( not all , because the birds like it ) giant Hyssopus officinalis , which is a wonderful bee magnet , but spreads its seed everywhere . The rest — passel of aboriginal plant and grass — stands until spring .
How do you come near contract back or leaving perennial ?
