July Top Tip – #deadheading

What is deadheading?

Deadheading is a gardening task that should be done regularly throughout growing seasons. Deadheading is simply the removal of dead flowers from where living plants are. It’s good for your plants and increases growth.

Why July?

July is an ideal time to keep deadheading to promote repeat flowering. When a plant flowers and goes to seed it has completed its work for the year and therefore will stop producing new blooms.

How will this help?

If you cut off spent flower heads once they have gone over, plants will flower for longer and foliage will stay fresher too. Roses are a priority for deadheading unless you want them to produce hips.

What else you can do

It can also be a good time to snap off old flower clusters of rhododendrons to allow the buds below to develop for the following year.