Should I cut the flowers off

9 years ago

I have bee balm that has bloomed and is looking a bit ragged. Should I cut the blooms off now. I'm in southeast Michigan? Please help.

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Comments (5)

dbarron
9 years ago
It always prevents teh plant from wasting energy making seed, so yes...unless you're tryiing to grow seeds.
mnwsgal
9 years ago
There is often a second smaller bloom later when my monarda are deadheaded.
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patchouli
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It's a tender perennial and can last several years if you grow it in pots and bring it indoors (to a humid room with cool nights) for the winter. As with any small shrub, deadheading is a good idea, as is pruning if it gets leggy, which it tends to do.
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I agree with all that was said above and have firsthand experience dividing 50+ year old peony clumps! Dividing the massive clumps was the best thing I ever did for the peonies that came with my house. I carefully divided them as recommended above, and from one huge peony mound I got about 7 medium sized clusters with about 4 eyes each. I made an entirely new herbaceous hedge on the south lawn, between the house and the springhouse. Then I waited. The first year I got my typical 6-8 blooms on the remaining undisturbed peonies. As for the new clusters, I got NOTHING. Not even a bud. Year two was very much the same. By year three I was becoming frustrated but decided to give them one last chance since I was seeing plenty of foliage but no flowering. For me, 3 years was the magic number. My newly formed hedge burst forth with hundreds of buds and much to my delight, every single one of them bloomed. Something curious happened with my original clump of peonies. Out from what I thought was the just two heirloom varities, Festiva Maxima and Karl Rosenfeld came two more varities that had simply gone into hibernation because they were overcrowded. I was rewarded with Paeonia 'Rare Carving' and what I believe to be 'Red Monarch' but need to confirm. This year will be the year I divide AGAIN. It's been 4 years since I last divided anything. It's well worth the effort, particularly if you have heirloom peonies that have gone into hiding. Here is a link that might be useful: Transplanting and Dividing Peonies
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Comments (5)
Abby, before you bring out the snipper, you might want to wait for the seed pods to mature. I've recently posted a thread on propagating Echeveria seeds, this post by Ryan will probably help you too. You have been pre-warned though, Echeveria seeds are one of the toughest to sow in the succulent world due to their extreme minute scale in size. I believe your dominant plant is a Perle Von Numberg. I can't ID the dying sister, perhaps like breathnez suggest, it's time to behead it after you have collected the seeds. A tutorial posted by Andy on beheading his Oplina might help you. Happy Growing! - Bernard
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cecily
9 years ago
my rapberry wine monarda blooms continually from June until November without deadheading -- so I don't think you need to be religious about deadheading yours in order to get more flowers. But if its in a prominent location and the appearance is bothering you then you certainly can trim off the old blooms without harming the plant. Remember that monarda needs LOTS of water and give it a good drink also.
vasue VA
9 years ago
Coral Reef acts the same as Cecily's Raspberry Wine here. Bees still visit the spent flowers after the petals fall, so usually don't deadhead, and doesn't seem to slow down blooming. Consider it optional & the spent heads are still decorative. Finches love the seeds & I love watching their swaying sideways antics, so no seedlings in the several years it's been here. Looks like yours is sending up new buds, Sparky. Remember the variety? Totally agree with LOTS of water even in this muggy climate, to sidestep mildew & stimulate growth & flowering.
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
9 years ago
get rid of the crabgrass .. MIs july harvest.. lol .. i am in adrian ...

i am hoping there is not landscape fabric under the mulch ... which might mean a watering issue

snip off flowers.. and see what happens ...

sometime new plants.. dont quite perform to standard... but there is always next year ... as it looks happy enough ....

straight down pic are tough ... how tall is it??? are the new green shoots significantly outgrowing the old part of the plant... that might indicate its finally getting ESTABLISHED ... as you know.. we had a very extended cold spring in MI .. i have plants that were 4 to 6 weeks late .... and perhaps.. on some level.. yours is also behind the normal curve ...

it otherwise looks happy.. just keep it properly watered in july/august ...

ken

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Should I cut the flowers off

Comments (5)

dbarron

mnwsgal

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cecily

vasue VA

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

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