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Chelsea Chop

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  • rosemummyrosemummy Posts: 2,010

    could I chop all my hardy geraniums? It would be perfect timing to give some of my sweet peas more sun

  • rosemummyrosemummy Posts: 2,010

    Have just seen botticelliwomans saying she would chop geraniums that she'd divided, does that make a difference? Sorry for being thick,I've never Chelsea chopped anything before, I have a vey few phlox, ( the upright, is that  paniculata?) should I chops those too? Seen them mentioned, wish I had someone here to hold my hand and give me advice, don't seem to be learning fast!

  • I never thought of pinching back!image  Oh dear. And I thought I was a gardener...;)

    At the risk of appearing stupid, which plants benefit from pinching back? Can you do it with roses and clematis?

  • YviestevieYviestevie Posts: 7,066

    I've chopped back one of my geranium because it was really tall.  I've trimmed back a a few stems on two rambling roses that were getting a bit wild.  I've took a couple of stems out of some delphiniums that were already very tall.  That's about it. Everything else seems fine.

    Hi from Kingswinford in the West Midlands
  • rosemummyrosemummy Posts: 2,010

    thanks, i was hoping i could chop geraniums earlier, will move for next year, i will cut back after first flowers

  • ERICS MUMERICS MUM Posts: 627

    I pinch back fuchsias, this means flowering is delayed a few weeks but you end up with more flowering shoots and therefore more flowers.  I pinch back the odd shoot when deadheading too, but not all at once because that would slow down flowering.

    My sister used to trim her penstemons with the Chelsea Chop but this year she's trimmed them all back to the soil level growing point and they've come back lovely - good strong straight shoots rather than whippy stalks that kink.

     

    At the mo I'm trimming my unruly shrubs every couple of weeks.  I started by cutting back to a growing point. When new growth was doing well I trimmed them again which caused more new growth further down.  So far I've reduced big shrubs by 6-8 inches and got more luxuriant growth.  This is an experiment, I did it only on shrubs that were destined for the compost bin.  

  • Victoria SpongeVictoria Sponge Posts: 3,502

    I've trimmed back some sedums this year for the first time, varying amounts depending on the size of the plant. A bit of guesswork tbhimage

    A couple flopped about in an irritating fashion last year, only the fancy ones, not the bog standard one whatever it's called. I'd like them to flower later too, I always thought they were a late summer flowerimage Hopefully they will still flower - not the longest growing season up here.

    Wearside, England.
  • LoxleyLoxley Posts: 5,698
    Will Thalictrums take a Chelsea chop? The small flower spikes on my recently planted ones are a bit deformed from being on the bottom shelf at the GC.



    By the way, I heard the late summer version of the Chelsea chop referred to as the 'Hampton hack'image
    "What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbour". 
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