Deadheading Technique #2: The Haircut

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We are still in the thick of summer deadheading- the constant attempt to tidy perennials, prolong their bloom or encourage a repeat bloom (depending on the perennial). If you like non-precise gardening tasks, this type of deadheading is for you! I call it ‘the haircut’ but it is also called shearing.

Remember our catmint (Nepeta) friends?

Well here are the three amigos again; one plant has already been sheared (a week prior to taking this photo), and two are still waiting in the foyer, reading their magazines, patiently waiting for the hairstylist (me)… who is taking her sweet time in completing the task!

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I am going to keep this super easy: this deadheading technique involves grabbing a handful of stems and cutting them shorter. If there is new growth emerging from the base of the plant, you will want to avoid cutting this growth- it will be responsible for rejuvenating your plant! Once everything has been cut back, you can shape the clump if you wish. It really doesn’t get simpler than that! You can use secateurs for this task or hedge shears. I find hedge shears make a much bigger mess that requires cleaning (unless a drop sheet is put down first… something that I am known to do). I also find that I have much less control over the finished product with hedge shears so secateurs are certainly my ‘go to’ for this type of work.

Back to the task at hand…

Here are a couple photos of the finished ‘catmint project’. If you are thinking that the newly sheared plants look horrible, you would be correct. With that said, all you have to do is look at the middle plant to see how much better the plants will look in one short week. Also note how the clumps have been shaped to be slightly ‘dome-shaped’. I do this because I find it looks tidier overall.

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Let’s do one more example of shearing… this time it is Geranium getting the haircut. In this case, the new growth coming up from the centre is left untouched- with this new growth, the plants will fill-in in no time!

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If this method of ‘whacking things back’ is a little too crude for your liking, you can always cut each stem individually to a point just above a leaf (also called a node). It is from this point that the plant will branch and send out new growth. I tend to do this for Salvia spp. so that I don’t end up with unsightly ‘chopped-up’ leaves that are left on the plant; for larger-leaved perennials like Salvia, I find that looks especially bad! This plant tends to reach a point in the growing season where the removal of spent flowers to lateral flower buds (next post!) starts to make the plant look funny. Taking down the stems helps provide a reset.

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Here are some common perennials that can be sheared:

  • Cranesbill (Geranium spp).- the ones that get long and sprawling after flowering; spreading/dwarf varieties do not get sheared. If your Geranium is rambling over-top of other perennials, it is eligible to be sheared!

  • Oriental poppy (Papaver orientalis)- cut to the ground including foliage

  • Thread-leaf tickseed (Coreopsis verticillata)- when there are more spent flowers clinging to the plant than nice ones, it is time to give the plant a light shearing

  • Spurge (Euphorbia spp.)- CAUTION! The milky sap that comes from the cut ends of this plant is an irritant to skin and eyes. Be sure to wear gloves, long sleeves, and eye protection. Euphorbias also harmful if eaten.

  • Lavender (Lavandula spp.)

  • Artemesia spp.

So there you have it! Quite possibly the simplest gardening task that can really clean-up the look of your perennials. Get out those hedge shears or secateurs and let the make-overs begin!