Friday, March 31, 2006

Cutting Back Last Year's Perennials

Being outside yesterday was heavenly. I ate my "diet" pizza out on the deck steps looking at my used-to-be garden. At the end of the fall I dumped some of my potted plant dirt in clumps all over my garden thinking the snow would take care of it and decompose and smooth it out. It didn't happen. Now I have a garden full of pot-shaped clumps.

After studying it during my pizza lunch, I came to the conclusion that it was too much work to do at the time. I'll just enjoy the weather and contemplate what is ahead. There is a lot ahead.

I have a garden full of dead hollyhocks and ornamental grasses. I'm not sure what to do with them. Was I suppose to cut them down in the fall? Will those dead-looking stalks come back to life? Do you leave the bleached-out or dead ornamental grasses alone or do you cut them back to the ground? I hadn't even thought about how to take care of them until now.

I'll probably spend the next few days researching for the answers...or not.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

I had to work yesterday, darn.
As for the clumps of potted soil just spread it out when you till the soil some.
Perenials are best cut back in the spring so now is a good time to do that. Cut back both the hollyhocks and ornamental grasses. Figures it's raining today when I have off.