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Penstemons
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Posted by mexican_cottage z3 WA (My Page) on Wed, Apr 21, 04 at 4:47
| I have planted 8 penstemons in the last 2 years as they seem to thrive in my very dry, unshaded,windy corner of Fremantle.[Shade trees are growing..slowly]Over summer a lot of the foliage browns off in the centre of the stems but new growth continues from the base and the tips.Do I cut them back ignoring the tip growth or will I lose the next flush of flowers?They all seem to flower at odd times throughout summer with most in late spring though as I speak [April]two of them are budding.I hand water daily in hot weather. |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Penstemons
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| I continually "dead-head" ... as flowering stems brown off I snip them back hard. There is only very few flowers at the moment and I'm in fact wondering if I shouldn't cut all right closer to the ground now ......or wait till late Winter. I'm just not sure if there'll be another flush of flowers through Autumn or not. They certainly are a good value plant though. |
RE: Penstemons
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I dead head continually, however I leave a few long stems so that I can take the new side growths for striking new plants. I have found that after a few years the original plant becomes stragley. I rip them out and replace with the new cuttings that have been potted on.
They are wonderful plants and very tough. I use three colors only, a dark purple, white with lilac edges and white with pink edges. They look great alternated in the beds with liliums growing thru them. |
RE: Penstemons
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- Posted by woori Vic Aust (My Page) on
Sun, Nov 21, 04 at 18:28
| There is another penstemon.. the mauve/blue which is delightful. Slightly finer that the average but very prolific. I have found that you can cut them back to the ground twice in a season and still have a great flush of flowers, or simply give a light prune after the first major flush. They keep on keeping on regardless so just deadheading works. Probably best to divide after three years as the plant becomes monstrously large. |
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