Bellflowers are real perennial favorites when it comes to flowering: many species bloom continuously from early summer to late autumn and develop dense, colorful carpets of flowers. To keep it that way, you should regularly cut down any faded flowers.
How do I cut bluebells correctly?
In order to extend the flowering period of bluebells, you should regularly cut down any faded flowers. Continuously removing spent parts promotes the formation of new flowers, while cleaning out diseased or overgrown parts of the plant ensures he althy growth.
Extend the flowering time of perennials
Bluebells are perennials which, according to the general definition, are long-lived, herbaceous plants that overwinter with the help of their underground organs and whose foliage and flowers develop from them every year. This means that flower buds are set again and again during the current season, so that the plant can practically be made to bloom for months. To promote such continuous flowering, you should always cut back everything that has faded.
Seed formation in bluebells
However, if the spent inflorescences remain on the plant and are pollinated, the plant produces seeds and essentially uses its energy for this purpose. On the one hand, this is at the expense of further flower formation, but on the other hand, you can harvest seeds in this way or leave the seed heads standing and wait for the bellflower to sow itself. However, if seed formation is hindered by continually removing the withered parts, the plant will continue to produce new flowers over a longer period of time.
Clean the bellflower regularly
You should also clean the campanula, as the bellflower is also known in gardening language, regularly. This means you carefully remove not only the wilted flowers, but also
- all criss-cross growing shoots
- weak or diseased plant parts
- malformed plant parts
- and anything that grows too much.
It doesn't hurt if you cut the bellflower back to just above the ground. It will simply sprout again and bloom even more magnificently.
Cut only perennial bluebells
But before you grab the scissors, take a closer look at the variety label. Although most bellflowers are perennials that can be cut back heavily, other species are only one to two years old and would not survive such a procedure well.
Tips & Tricks
For a radical pruning, you can use scissors between March and around July / early August, as the bellflower often sprouts and blooms a second time in the same year. Otherwise, cutting off withered flowers and cleaning them out can be carried out throughout the entire growing season.
