Should I have cut this plant right back?
Should I have cut this plant right back?
Comment from Gilly Burgess
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When my plant finished last year I cut it right back - maybe too hard because now there is no sign of it! Have I made a big mistake and killed it off? Advice please? Thank you!
Posted: Sunday 19th of April 2015 08:22 AM
Re: Should I have cut this plant right back?
NicolaGood morning Gilly, can you add a photo of the plant? Reply to me and add up to 3 images. The images should be jpg and less than 4MB in size. Thanks NicolaReplied: Monday 20th of April 2015 05:14 AMRe: Re: Should I have cut this plant right back?
Kathy NHi, Gilly!
Just wondering what the winter was like where you live? And the soil?/ Cold, wet winters, especially heavy clay that holds water is pretty much a death sentence for Gaura. They are native to Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, etc in the US so are used to warmer, somewhat drier climes. In my experience, they tend to be relatively short-lived and I find the pink cultivars to be less able to withstand colder, wetter conditions. Only other thing to ask is what kind of spring are you having? Gauras can be slow to emerge so might be delayed if your spring is especially cold. Finally, it is best to cut back in spring as the stems/dead basal leaves can provide some winter protection for the roots. Do you have your Gaura in your 'Plants I Have' list? If so, you will have all pruning suggestions at your fingertips for next year :). Gaura lindheimeri 'Snowstorm' is a good example to check out if you have a minute.
Hope this has been helpful!
All the best,
Kathy CReplied: Thursday 23rd of April 2015 04:55 PMRe: Re: Re: Should I have cut this plant right back?
Gilly BurgessThanks for your advice Kathy - I do have this in my 'Plants I have' list but made the mistake of cutting it back after flowering and I think I may have cut it back too hard! The care instructions on this site advises to shear back in spring so this is probably where I've gone wrong. I'll wait and see for a while before taking advantage of that bit of extra space for something new! Thanks again, GillyReplied: Saturday 25th of April 2015 06:33 AMRe: Re: Should I have cut this plant right back?
Gilly BurgessThanks Nicola - Unfortunately I didn't take any photos of this one last year and there's still nothing showing as yet. I've decided it's a wait and see situation! I'll either get a nice surprise if something show up, or as a worse case scenario, I have some space for something else! GillyReplied: Saturday 25th of April 2015 06:24 AM