Table of contents
- When to cut the blue diamond?
- Why not prune after flowering?
- Why cut the blue diamond?
- Suitable pruning type
- Which scissors to use for the pruning?
- Cut back blue diamond guide
- What to do with the cut stems?
- You should avoid these mistakes when pruning the blue diamond
- Cut off flowering branches
With a blue diamond, a southern ambience moves into the garden during the summer high season. Numerous bees, hoverflies and butterflies cavort on the intensely fragrant ears of violet-blue flowers. From October this glory is unfortunately over again. Should you cut the shoots right after flowering, or is there a better time?
When to cut the blue diamond?
For the plant, which can grow up to one meter tall, there is only one season that is suitable for pruning: early spring. Another date is out of the question. When exactly, the weather decides. In some years there is still severe frost in March, which is why the days after are more suitable. Otherwise, late February or early March are considered ideal times for pruning. If, contrary to expectations, an icy cold phase occurs after pruning, the plant no longer needs it even for reasonable A warm cover, for example fir branches, autumn leaves, sackcloth, plant fleece or, if necessary, a piece of fleece can provide winter protection cardboard box.
Why not prune after flowering?
Here are the reasons why blue diamonds should never be pruned in autumn:
- Plant origin: Steppes of the Middle East
- Climate in home ranges: warm temperate to subtropical
- does not tolerate severe frost
- Hardiness zone Z7: -12 to -17° C
- increased risk of freezing when pruned in autumn
- withered leaves protect from the cold
- additional winter cover needed in harsh areas
Why cut the blue diamond?
There are several names for the multi-shoot plant. The scientific term for the plant from the mint family is Perovskia atriplicifolia, while some gardeners know the plant by the following names:
- silver bush
- Russian sage
- Feather-cut Perovskie
- Silver Perovsky
It is a typical semi-shrub, to a certain extent a type of plant somewhere between a perennial and a bushy woody plant. The flowers are basically only formed on one-year shoots. Subshrubs, which also include rosemary, sage and thyme, become woody quickly if the trimming is neglected. Shooting parts near the ground gradually become thicker and develop a firm bark over time. Neither leaves nor flowers grow here, while the new shoots take place above and die back after each flowering season. Only strong pruning protects subshrubs from bare in the lower area. As for the silverbush, annual pruning causes the canes to produce silver-grey leaves and purple flowers from base to shoot tips.
Suitable pruning type
Only one pruning variant meets the requirements for the silver bush to retain a compact appearance over the long term: a rigorous rejuvenation pruning that includes all shoots. The scissors start close to the base so that only stubs of a maximum of 10 cm remain after cutting back. It is very likely that the non-lignified shoots have already frozen over the course of the winter. This cold damage is eliminated in a single step when cutting is carried out in the spring.
Which scissors to use for the pruning?
You have the choice. You can cut back the blue diamond either with pruning shears, also known as rose or pruning shears, or with shrub shears. When using pruning shears, pruning takes a little more time, because this cutting tool only allows you to cut a single rod at a time. When using a mechanical shrub shear that is used with both hands, the work progresses more quickly. Several stalks fall over with each cut made with the scissors with the longer blades. Motorized hedge trimmers are less suitable for the silver bush.
A notice:
To sharpen pruning shears, you can use a water stone instead of a traditional whetstone. The sharpening method that is usually used for kitchen knives also makes pruning shears nice and sharp again.
Cut back blue diamond guide
You need:
- Secateurs or hedge shears
- garden gloves
- Basket, bin or sack for rubbish
- if necessary, knee pads or knee pads
Step-by-step instructions:
- choose a rain and frost free day
- Sharpen the secateurs blades if necessary
- Provide a container for the cutting waste
- maybe spread out a pad for your knees on the floor
- Hold each stem in one hand and cut off the bottom with the other
- or use shrub shears to trim several tendrils at once
- only leave woody shoots up to a height of 10 cm
- Collect separated plant stems in the container
- Dispose of clippings (compost bin or green waste place)
Tip:
A kneeling position when doing ground-level gardening is easy on the back and relieves the joints. Using a knee pad keeps your knees or pants clean.
What to do with the cut stems?
The clippings of the blue diamond are far too good for the garbage can. After all, this waste consists exclusively of organic substances. Under the influence of oxygen, heat and moisture, the biomass matures into nutrient-rich fertilizer and soil-improving humus soil. If you do your own composting, you certainly don't have to think long about what to do with the cut stems.
Because the stems of the blue rhombus are relatively thick, we recommend shredding them beforehand. If the stalks remain as they are, it will take them a long time to break down into fine crumbs in the compost. If you don't have a shredder, you should at least cut the clippings into smaller pieces with scissors so that the decomposition in the composter doesn't take too long. If you do not have the opportunity to produce your own humus, green waste areas are ideal buyers for clippings.
You should avoid these mistakes when pruning the blue diamond
- cut already in autumn after flowering (missing heat protection in winter)
- generally pruning too early, followed by a period of frost
- Rainy weather favors rot
- Break or kink branches instead of cutting them
- leave stalks for too long (risk of balding)
Cut off flowering branches
The long, mostly straight inflorescences with laterally sprouting panicles result in beautiful bouquets that exude a pleasant fragrance. Blue rue blossoms stay in the vase for a long time. With creative ideas and a bit of skill, pretty wreaths or other bouquets can otherwise be created. However, when cutting flowering tendrils, you should be careful not to completely remove the top parts of the plant. Limit yourself to individual branches that you remove from different places so that sufficient winter protection remains. The plant also no longer looks attractive if it has large gaps during the flowering season or no flowers at all.
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