Pruning avens
Advice for October in the Netherlands
Avens often retains a low green clump beneath its flower stalks. With perennial border cultivars, mainly cut faded stalks; the leaves do not need routine low cutting. Months are a guide for the Netherlands and Belgium; follow actual growth and flowering.
Avens — October
Check this first
Retain healthy green avens leaves. Outside flowering, no fixed cut is needed; tidy only dead leaves or old empty flower stalks.
Pay attention to this
- Do not remove unopened buds on branched flower stalks.
- Spare green winter foliage and young central leaves.
- A hard cut is not a remedy for a wet, rotting crown.
Frequently asked questions
- Must I cut avens right down?
- No. With border Geum, retain the green rosette and remove old flower stalks and poor leaves individually.
- Does deadheading prolong flowering in every avens?
- Not equally. Many border cultivars respond, but short-flowering species or those with decorative seed plumes call for a different choice.
- Can I leave the seed heads?
- Yes. That is an ornamental choice, especially with species bearing showy plumes. Do not expect the same effect as continuous deadheading.