Perennials – varieties, planting, care and pruning

If you have loamy soil, it can make sense to incorporate sand or leaf compost when planting magnificent perennials. Both make the soil more permeable.

For rock garden or steppe perennials, especially loamy soils or the upper soil layer can be improved with coarse chippings, for example. Here you calculate about 10 to 20 liters of grit per square meter.
Perennial shrubs, for example, feel much better on soil that has been neglected and not fertilized for some time if you work in 100 g horn shavings and 100 g bedrock dust per square meter.

pour

Immediately after planting, perennials should be watered well and then watered regularly, especially in the first year after planting, especially during dry periods. During a hot period you should water once or twice a week and only in the early morning or evening hours.
An appropriate layer of mulch can help keep moisture in the soil for longer. The plants should only be watered below and the leaves should remain as dry as possible. This can prevent fungal infestation.

Fertilize

•  Perennials require a regular supply of nutrients.
• In the spring, a slow-release fertilizer or compost can be worked into the soil.
• In the case of varieties that sprout late, care must be taken not to injure them.
• In early summer, a smaller additional fertilization can be carried out if necessary.
• The fertilizer must be worked well into the soil.
• No fertilizer should get on the leaves to avoid burns.
• Do not fertilize from July, otherwise this would increase sensitivity to cold.

Propagation by seed

Many perennials will self-seed if the seeds are allowed to mature. Most of the time, however, self-sowing is not desired, since the plants sometimes spread very quickly. Such offspring are usually not identical to the mother plant. To prevent self-seeding, it is sufficient to completely remove the seed heads. An exception are short-lived perennials, here self-sowing is usually desirable.

Propagation via unwoody cuttings

This form of cuttings propagation is mainly used for evergreen perennials. To do this, about 7.5 – 10 cm long shoot tips of strong shoots with at least three leaf nodes below the lowest leaf node are cut off in summer or early autumn.

Then the two lowest leaves are removed and the cuttings are placed in a pot with potting soil so that the leaves of the cuttings remain above the substrate. The substrate should consist of one part each of coarse sand and peat. Then press the soil down with your fingers, water the whole thing well and cover with cling film, which you can attach to the pot with a rubber band. So that the cuttings do not press against the foil, you can, for example, bend a small frame made of floral wire and attach it in or on the pot.

The pot is then either placed in a propagation bed for about 3 weeks or in a cold frame for about 4-6 weeks. Once the cuttings have formed roots, the foil can be removed, the cuttings planted in small pots, placed in a shady cold frame and watered well. After about 1 week, the shoot tips are cut off to support root growth. The plants then remain in the closed cold frame throughout the winter and can be planted outdoors after the last frosts.

Propagation via non-lignified partial cuttings

This form of propagation is suitable for perennials with bulbous roots such as delphiniums, lupins or thrifts. To do this, 7.5 – 10 cm long basal, young shoots are cut off at the base. These are then placed in small pots in a peat-sand mixture or in the cold frame. Then they are sprayed with water and the cold frame is always kept closed.

When the cuttings begin to sprout, they need to be ventilated more and more frequently. After about 6 weeks they can then be planted in pots of about 9 cm and outside in autumn.
propagation by division

A division is particularly advisable when the perennials’ willingness to flower decreases or they become bare from the inside and for perennials. Perennials that bloom in summer and autumn should be divided in spring before or when they begin to sprout. Division in autumn is better for spring-flowering plants such as delphiniums, astilbe, tickseed or coneflowers.

With the exception of Bleeding Heart, Peony, Columbine and Turkish Poppy, most perennials are suitable for division. These should be dug up carefully to damage the roots as little as possible. Then shake off the soil or hose down the roots with water and divide the plant into two or more sections.

Some perennials can be pulled apart with your hands, others need to be separated with a sharp knife. The sections should be about the size of a fist and have several leaves or buds. Injured or torn root parts must be recut or removed with a knife. Plant the plants immediately after dividing, press down the soil well and water sufficiently.

To cut

remount cut

Remount pruning refers to a radial pruning that is carried out after the first flowering. As a result, the perennial blooms again this year. Delphiniums, phlox, daylilies, musk mallow or lupins are suitable for this.

post bloom pruning

A radical post-flowering cut is also carried out after flowering, even with perennials that will not flower again. It is cut back to a hand’s breadth above the ground. The perennials then quickly form new foliage again. This prevents self-seeding and prevents fungal diseases. Tall phlox, oriental poppy, loosestrife, Caucasus forget-me-not, coneflower and Indian nettle are suitable, among others.

pre-flowering pruning

For better branching and bushier growth, pruning in early summer is a good idea as soon as the first flower buds appear. The shoot tips are shortened by about 10-15 cm. As a result, the flower is shifted, but many new side buds are formed. This pruning can be carried out on tall phlox, tall coneflowers, autumn chrysanthemums and tall asters, among others.

hibernate

• Perennials overwinter in the form of rhizomes, depending on the species.
• Rhizomes are the rootstocks or shoot parts such as bulbs, tubers or offshoots.
• Perennials are generally hardy.
• More sensitive perennials such as palm lily, pampas grass or torch lily should receive winter protection.
• Brushwood, leaves, fir branches or fleece are suitable for this.

Evergreen perennials

While the majority of perennials retreat into the ground in winter, evergreen ones also provide small splashes of color in the garden in winter and only gradually lose their foliage with the new shoots. Most of these perennials prefer shady locations, but exceptions confirm the rule here too, because there are also wintergreen perennials suitable for sunny locations.

However, some perennials can suffer from the winter sun as even in winter they evaporate water through their foliage but they cannot reabsorb water due to the frozen soil. In order to reduce evaporation, appropriate shading with fleece or brushwood can be helpful in the event of severe frosts. Otherwise, it has to be watered from time to time on frost-free days.

Suitable for sunny locations are, among others, the carnation, cushion gold lacquer, garden bamboo ‘Deichstrasse’, cranesbill, candytuft, cushion phlox and the palm lily. For shady locations, for example, brown spleenwort, palm leaf snow rose, golden nettle, lily cluster, several types of elfflower, dwarf bamboo, porcelain flower, foam flower and periwinkle are suitable.

pests

Under unfavorable conditions, it can sometimes lead to an infestation with powdery mildew, gray mold or rust fungi. To prevent this, you should regularly remove damaged and diseased shoots.

Powdery Mildew – This fungus can be recognized by a white to brown coating initially on the leaves and later on the whole plant. The cause is usually a wrong location or too much moisture. A strong pruning can help, as well as various systemic remedies from the specialist trade.

Gray Mold – This fungus can be identified by a dense gray mold on the leaves, flowers, and stems of weakened plants. Reason for an infestation are usually low temperatures together with a very high humidity.

Infested plant parts should be removed and disposed of as soon as possible and then treated with an appropriate fungicide against gray mold.

Rust fungus – The rust fungus manifests itself as red to dark brown pustules on leaves and stems. Infested parts of the plant must be removed and treated with fungicides at appropriate intervals. To prevent an infestation, the leaves must not get wet when watering.

Beautiful varieties

• African African African Lily – This 70-90cm tall deciduous perennial displays its magnificent blue or white flowers from July to September. Winter protection is required.
• Daylily ‘Green Flutter’ – This classic with its small, striking yellow-green flowers blooms from June to July and provides a great play of colors in the perennial border. It grows about 75 cm high.
• Turk’s Cap Lily – An impressive 100-120cm tall perennial with purple, turban-like flowers that appear from May to June.
• Masterwort ‘Venice’ – A new breed of the popular masterwort with oversized deep ruby ​​red flowers. It flowers from May-June and is about 50-60 cm high.