Hebe Haircut

For a few years I've had a couple of potted Hebe 'Bronzy Baby' on either side of the stone bench on the patio. Their domed foliage tends towards yellow in the summer and colours to bronze in the autumn, making a plant of year-round interest and a good foil to my surrounding seasonally planted pots. I've been taking advantage of the warm weather this week to take my coffee breaks outside and as a result I spotted they'd become rather leggy and uninteresting. My first thought was to ditch them so I would have a plant buying opportunity - Franks Plants will be starting its Spring sales soon after all - but on looking a wee bit closer I spotted there was lots of fresh growth coming out of the base of each plant. Snip, snip, snip and hey presto! A couple of haircuts and two fresh new looking plants in ten minutes flat :)

Comments

  1. Helen/patientgardener19 March 2009 at 10:01

    Look much better but be wary of frost. I remember a while ago there was something on the GW message boards that Chris Beardshaw had recommended pruning Hebe and then people had lost them when there was a ground frost.

    ReplyDelete
  2. VP19 March 2009 at 10:10

    Good point PG! Luckily this pair are on a south facing patio and (fingers crossed) should be safe by now. After all the self-sown Lobelia nearby lasted well into December last year! 'Bronzy Baby' is also one of the hardier Hebes.

    Arabella Sock might have something to say on the subject of CB and Hebe pruning of course!

    ReplyDelete
  3. CanadianGardenJoy19 March 2009 at 11:41

    VP .. I have always loved seeing the Hebe on BBC garden shows .. wished we could grow them in my zone .. it is rather satisfying giving a plant a haircut isn't it ? .. maybe we are secretly stylists ?? LOL

    ReplyDelete
  4. petoskystone19 March 2009 at 12:07

    a good haircut makes all the difference for quite a few species.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Monica the Garden Faerie19 March 2009 at 12:19

    Hebe looks like a sweet plant and so much nicer with the haircut. Which reminds me, the last time I had my own hair cut was back in early June last year. It looks a little scraggly, too, but I'm waiting until May so I'll still look tidy for the Chicago Spring Fling (yes, I'm weird about haircuts!). :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Nutty Gnome19 March 2009 at 12:20

    I love hebes (and Chris Beardshaw!) but have never been brave enough to give one a trim ....perhaps I'll go and check them out!

    ReplyDelete
  7. VP19 March 2009 at 13:29

    Joy - yes it is, but hairdressing's not usually my forte!

    Petoskystone - it's key haircutting time here in the garden at the moment - just before everything sprouts into leaf.

    Monica - yikes! I've got short hair, so not having it cut would make a huge difference!

    Nutty Gnome - I thinks it's only the ones where you can see definite new growth lower down the stems that can take it. And don't forget PG's warning about ground frost damage!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anna19 March 2009 at 21:54

    I wish that I looked that good after a haircut :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. HappyMouffetard20 March 2009 at 18:58

    Oooh - don't get Arabella Sock going on Hebes and haircuts!

    ReplyDelete
  10. VP23 March 2009 at 11:47

    Anna - thanks, but I don't think I'll take it up as a career ;)

    HM - she's been surprisingly quiet about it!

    ReplyDelete

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