Perennial Flowering Bushes
If you are looking for tips on how to care for flowering bushes, you’ll be able to garner quite a few important tips here.
The first tip is how to care for your perennial flowers when they are dormant. One thing you must remember is that they have to be pruned when they are not flowering.
Pruning has several positive results including the shaping of your flowering bushes, important for aesthetics if you want a formal look to your garden.
Pruning also ensures the health of the plant if you prune away dead branches – it grows new shoots and leaves and allows air to reach healthy branches.
Generally speaking, pruning of dead branches should be done at a minimum of once a year. The added advantage of pruning is that as it is done in the dormant season, it can encourage new growth so that by the time the flowering season comes round, the bush is full and healthy, and grows the maximum number of flowers.
The right time to prune of course differs from one plant to another, but generally depends on when a plant goes dormant and the climatic zone.
Pruning Perennial Flowering Bushes
When pruning your perennial flowering bushes there are certain precautions that should generally be taken.
Be very careful when pruning so you do not damage the plant.
Remember that if you make a serious mistake, it can be difficult or impossible to correct it later.
Start from the base of the bush, and as you prune, make sure you keep the final shape in mind.
Use tools that have been properly sharpened so you make clean cuts. Garden Tools and Supplies
Ensure that the individual cuts are just about a quarter of an inch above a bud, and make sure the bud faces outwards.
When you cut, make the cut at an angle of forty five degrees. Cut cleanly, and leave no ragged edges.
Remember to seal the cuts with an appropriate pruning sealant – if you do not seal the cut, boring insects may attack the plant.
Try to open up areas in the centre of the perennial flowering bushes to ensure air is properly circulated all through the bush, making your plant healthier, as I explained earlier.
Another aspect of pruning is to strengthen the plant through a system of ‘survival of the fittest’ where you remove weak and sickly branches so that the stronger and healthier ones have the space to grow better.
Pruning is of little use unless you also ensure the plant is given plenty of nourishment when flowering time comes around – this includes not only organic fertilizers, but also the right amount of water and light – remember that the flowering period is a time when plants need plenty of resources.
Choosing Perennial Flowering Bushes
There are lots of species of perennial flowering bushes, but you can choose one of the following:
- Rose bush
- Butterfly bush
- Dogwood bush
- Annabelle Hydrangea
Blue Flowering Bush Perennial – Syrxhyac Asessippi Lilac lavender
It has single, pale lilac-lavender, fragrant blossoms that are produced prolifically in May on a well-shaped bush. This early blooming lilac is excellent as a cut flower.
Although tolerant of a little bit of shade, it prefers to be in full sun with adequate drainage.
Plant with space around for circulation of air and although you should water it regularly, don’t overdo the amount of water you give because it won’t like it.
Butterflies, birds, and bees do like Syrxhyac Asessippi Lilac lavender so it is particularly good for attracting wildlife to your garden.
It can grow to approximately ten or twelve feet in height and be extremely fragrant.
Uses include; an informal type of screening or hedging and as a perennial border shrub.