Veronica/speedwell-I forgot to cut it back

11 years ago

am new to perennials. Just planted some Veronica/speedwell last summer. Forgot to cut it back in the fall after the frost.

can I cut it back now or did I kill it?

Thanks!

Kate

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Comments (5)

funnthsun z7A - Southern VA
11 years ago
You can cut it back now, it will be fine :-)
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
11 years ago
on ANY perennial.. just track down whats there .. and look for where it is budding out.. and snip back to one or two buds ...

if its dry and crackly.. just break it out ... its nature way ....

there is no mystery to cutting anything back.. once you look for buds ... and if they haven't formed yet.. you are out there too early ...

and in my world.. warped as it is ... two very healthy buds is enough.. i want all the root power going to them ... instead of say 10 buds.. up a stick .. splitting all the energy .. and then eventually falling over in late summer because the thing grew twice as tall as last yer ...

this is a GENERAL RULE.. not specific to your plant ... and its intuitive.. you will never go wrong with such ... and all it takes.. is doing it.. rather than thinking there is some special rule for each specific plant..

have fun and good luck

ken

ps: i should probably turn this into a newbie post.. but i am too lazy today ...
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...so I rigged up a nice little drainage system. Can you describe what you did? 1. How can I help it revive? By revive, you mean for it to make more flowers? I know you're supposed to cut off the spent flowers, but I'm having trouble knowing where to cut, as the flowers are in little bunches. The bunches are called spikes. When the tip of each spike finishes blooming, you can remove the whole spike, but leave the leafy part of the stem below it. Veronica is a perennial. Perennials give the bonus of coming back next year, but the sacrifice is usually that the bloom period for most is much shorter than annuals. And should I pull off all the droopy leaves? No. If the plant is droopy and the soil is wet, it is being given too much water. If the leaves are droopy and the soil is dry, not enough water is being given. 2. Would it be bad to move it again, to a smaller pot? I wouldn't further bother any droopy plant unless I discovered an issue that required it. A droopy plant is a very unhappy one and further disruption right now might not be the best thing. Or, would it do any good to add another plant or two to the big pot? I would probably add some type of annual for continued flowers for the rest of this year, but without seeing a picture, it's hard to be more specific.
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kateydid29
Original Author
11 years ago
Thanks ken and funnthsun!

My veronica are dry and crumbly and I feared that meant they were dead!

We re-did the front yard last summer (took all old stuff out and put new stuff in)- very extensive project for us! Can't wait to see how it looks this summer!
ramazz
11 years ago
If it is the flower heads that are dry and crumbly, you should crush them and sprinkle them around - there are most likely some seed pods in there. That is how I get mine to spread.
kateydid29
Original Author
11 years ago
Thanks for the tip ramazz! I was just going to toss the clippings in my compost pile.

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Veronica/speedwell-I forgot to cut it back

Comments (5)

funnthsun z7A - Southern VA

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

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Veronica/speedwell-I forgot to cut it back

Comments (5)

funnthsun z7A - Southern VA

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

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ramazz

kateydid29Original Author

COMPANY

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