Ornamental sage, with its decorative flower candles, is an eye-catcher in the garden. Once these have faded, pruning the plant can lead to a second flowering period. Targeted cutting is one of the general care measures that, if carried out correctly, have a positive effect on the growth of ornamental sage.

After flowering, the inflorescences should be removed from the ornamental sage

Preparations for pruning

Before you tackle the plant with knives or scissors, you should make sure that you have the right tools. Of course, it depends on the strength of the stems to be cut, whether a knife is sufficient or whether it is better to use rose scissors.
In any case, the scissors or knives must be very sharp so that the cut surfaces are smooth and the plant stems are not crushed. Before the first cut, the blades should be disinfected. This prevents the spread of diseases.

Select the cutting measure

There are two options when pruning ornamental sage:

  • Remove faded inflorescences for a second flowering
  • the radical cut

Cut the inflorescences

If the flower candles have faded and are already a bit dry, you can easily cut them out. This measure results in a second flowering in autumn.
Cutting after the first flowering period prevents seed formation. On the one hand, this protects the strength of the plant and, on the other hand, it prevents the ornamental sage from spreading uncontrollably. If you want the plant to grow wild in certain areas of the garden, one or two inflorescences can be left for seed ripening.

Radical blending

With this measure, all shoots are shortened to about 15 cm. Woody shoots should not be pruned, or only a little, because the sage does not tolerate a pruning into the “old wood” so well. Such a radical intervention is best carried out in the spring and gives the plant the opportunity for a strong new shoot.

When is the best pruning time for ornamental sage?

As a rule, ornamental sage tolerates pruning all year round. However, larger pruning measures should be carried out at a specific time.
The withered inflorescences are cut in summer, i.e. after the first flowering, so that a second flowering phase can take place in autumn. Here, too, pruning is done after flowering if you want to prevent seed formation.

A radical cut, however, is best done in early spring so that the plant can sprout well. With hardy sage plants, the old, withered shoots are the best protection against the cold in winter.

Category:

Indoor plants