I Killed 3 Before Anyone Told Me — Stop Cutting Back These 8 Perennials in Fall!, by Green Haven Yards on YouTube. 33 min 48 s.
- Video length
- 33 min 48 s
- Time to do it
- 30 minutes
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Steps
- 10
What you need
Steps
Check the plant before you cut. If stems are green and healthy, leave them standing. Only remove growth that was diseased, damaged or dead all summer.
Leave coneflowers standing. The dried seed heads feed birds and hold snow off the crown. Cut them back in early spring instead.
Do not cut ornamental grasses in fall. Tie the stems loosely or leave them. Cut them to about 6 inches in late winter or early spring.
Keep Autumn Joy sedum seed heads on the plant. They add winter interest and shelter. Cut the stems down in spring as new shoots appear.
Leave coral bells alone. Their evergreen leaves protect the crown. Remove only mushy or damaged leaves in spring.
Plant garden mums in the ground early and skip fall pruning. A light trim after flowering is fine, but leave the stems for winter cover.
Do not cut hellebores in fall. The buds for next spring are already forming. Remove old leaves in late winter, before the flowers open.
Leave butterfly weed stems standing so seed pods open and the crown stays protected. Cut back in spring once new growth shows.
Prune lavender lightly in early autumn, right after flowering. Trim only the soft green growth and stop above the woody stems. Never cut into old wood.
Cut down disease-prone perennials such as peonies, bee balm and phlox in fall. Bag the clippings rather than composting them.
Tips and common mistakes
Cutting lavender into old woody stems often kills the plant, so stay in the soft green growth.
Timing shifts with your climate, so watch the plant rather than the calendar.
Leave seed heads and stems until spring to trap snow and shed winter rain off the crown.
Clean your pruners between plants to avoid spreading disease.
Questions
Can I cut lavender back hard in autumn?
No. Cutting into the old woody base can kill lavender. Trim only the soft green stems, and leave the woody framework alone.
When should I cut back perennials I left standing?
Wait until early spring, once new growth starts and the worst frosts have passed. Then cut the old stems down to just above the new shoots.
Why did my garden mums not come back?
They may have been cut back too hard or planted too late to root. Leave the stems over winter and plant mums in the ground in early autumn.
This guide was drafted from the video's details and general task knowledge. It has not been checked against the full video. Check the video and relevant product instructions before following a procedure. Report a correction.
