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Re: Bleeding hearts, pinching perennials

At 12:27 PM 7/7/97 -0400, you wrote:
>Can Dicentra spectablilis be cut back as it goes into dormancy? Every
>year I have to look at massive (3 foot by 4 foot) plants turning yellow
>and dying back in my perennial borders. I have never had the courage to
>cut, but I am feeling the urge...
>I also was away from home for an extended period of time this spring and
>did not get my perennials pinched back. I now have number of
>"fall-blooming" asters and sedums in bloom or budded. Not to mention the
>leggiest Buddleias, salvias, aesclepias, beebalms, etc. Do I just ignore
>and try to be better next year or can I do some cutting back now??
>                                      
>                                     Thanks in advance,
>                                            Jill
>                                            NC- Zone 7
>PS. I didn't mention heat, humidity and spider mites like never before..

Jill;
Your Salvias, Buddleias, Monarda can be cut back ad infinitum (although it
will delay blooming, always a dilemma). If you have problems with RSM,
sometimes cutting back the plants scombined with Safer's soap will solve
the problem. I would be reluctant to cut back the Asclepias, though, since
they tend to have one major flush of bloom and then set seed and senesce
(at least the wild ones do).

IMHO, I would leave the yellowing foliage of the Dicentra as is, maybe
think about growing next to plants that will over grow the dying foliage.
As with spring flowering bulbs, the nutrients that are present in the
greenleaf are broken down during senescence and stored for next years
growth (in the case of Dicentra, in rhizomes or tubers belowground). Unlike
bulbs, you probably don't sacrifice the plant by cutting back foliage after
flowering, but after years of this practice may reduce flowering. Dicentra
would probably regrow this year after cutting back, but in Zone 7 they are
probably better allowed to go dormant.

Gerry
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