Opinions differ on whether you need to cut back gentian or whether pruning is superfluous. What is certain is that by pruning in autumn, you better protect the gentian from frost. However, you should never prune the blue gentian during the flowering period.

It makes sense to cut back the gentian after flowering

When is it necessary to cut gentian perennials?

  • Remove faded and dried up
  • Topiary after flowering
  • Pruning before hibernation

Cut faded flowers

Seed pods form in the faded flowers, in which countless seeds ripen.

If you want to use the seed for propagation or if you want the gentian to sow itself, you must not cut the flowers, even if that doesn't look very pretty.

If propagation is not desired, it is better to cut off faded flowers. The ripening of the seeds costs the perennial unnecessarily strength.

The shape cut

Blue gentian tends to spread erratically. If you want to keep the perennial in shape, prune it back after flowering.

All side shoots and the shoots that protrude particularly strongly at the top are removed.

But be careful not to cut back too much. This may prevent the gentian from flowering for the second time in autumn. You are on the safe side if you only cut the gentian into shape in autumn.

Cut back for overwintering

After the autumn bloom, you can use scissors to trim the gentian in the pot or in the garden. The perennial then needs less water and saves energy for the next season.

Cut out any parts of the plant that have faded or dried up.

Then cover the gentian plants in the bed with brushwood or cover the pot with foil.

How to properly cut gentians!

You can cut off whole shoots or just the tips of the shoots. Whole shoots are cut as close to the ground as possible.

Because gentian is non-toxic, you don't need to take any special precautions, such as wearing gloves, when cutting.

tips and tricks

Cutting back the gentian is of little use if the perennial hardly blooms. It is then better to dig them up and share them. The plants rejuvenated in this way recover quickly and produce many flowers.

Category:

Vegetable garden