Which gardener doesn't know the lady's mantle. He is known for his undemanding and easy-care disposition. In order to enjoy it for a long time, it should be trimmed every now and then. But why and how does it work?
When and how should you cut lady's mantle?
You should harvest lady's mantle during the flowering period, cut it back before winter and carry out a cleaning cut in spring. To extend the flowering period, cut off spent inflorescences so that new flowers can form.
Cut for harvest
If you want to benefit from the healing powers of lady's mantle, you should harvest the plant in good time. When the flowering period begins, the time to harvest it begins. Both the leaves and stems as well as the flowers are cut off.
The harvested herb can be dried after harvesting to make it last longer. When drying the lady's mantle, be careful not to expose it to excessive heat or direct sunlight. This would cause the plant parts to turn brownish and lose their active ingredients.
Later you can do all sorts of things with the dried herb. It is suitable, for example, for making tea, compresses, ointments and mouthwashes. Among others it works:
- promotes milk flow when breastfeeding
- relaxing the uterus
- anti-inflammatory
- calming
- pain relieving
- blood purifying
- promotes blood circulation
Prune before the onset of winter and afterwards
Another cut is carried out every year before the onset of winter. Here the lady's mantle is subjected to a severe pruning. In autumn, cut off the long and wilted flower stalks down to the ground.
If necessary, you can also remove old leaves. But be careful: leave some leaves on the plant. It acts as a natural frost protection in winter. It protects the plant's clumps from winter moisture, snow and ice.
After winter has passed and the warmer days of spring are knocking, you can continue with the clean-up pruning. Begin as soon as the lady's mantle begins to grow vigorously again. Cut off any parts of the plant that are disruptive and unsightly.
Cut to extend the flowering period
Another reason to cut lady's mantle is to extend its flowering period. The herb usually blooms for several weeks in June. If the old inflorescences are cut off after the flowers have withered, new flower heads will appear shortly afterwards and the flowering will last until September. The flower stems are simply cut off close to the ground.
This cut after flowering has the additional effect of preventing the plant from self-seeding. In addition, it does not lose too much strength by forming its seed heads and the leaves maintain their he althy appearance.
Pruning is also worthwhile during the flowering period. You can cut off the freshly bloomed inflorescences and create a bouquet with them, for example. These cut flowers last a long time in the vase compared to other cut flowers.
Tips & Tricks
To cut, use either sharp scissors or secateurs (€14.00 on Amazon). Clean the tool beforehand so that there is no risk of diseases from previous cuts being transferred to the lady's mantle.