Cutting lavender heather - this is how it's done

Lavender heather - cutting needs to be learned

Cut regularly but little

The lavender heather is growing at a leisurely pace. It grows very slowly compared to other plants. This can be advantageous, but it can also be disadvantageous. One consequence of its slow growth is that it should not be cut too radically. Otherwise she looks puny for a long time. The cut should be done regularly but easily.

Remove sick and pest-infested parts quickly

In the event of a disease or pest infestation (e.g. by the Andromeda net bug), the infected parts should be cut off immediately so that further spread is prevented. In the case of the Andromeda net bug, the cut must even be made by the end of April at the latest, so that the larvae cannot hatch from the eggs and infect other parts of the plant.

When are healthy lavender heather pruned?

Healthy plants are pruned right after flowering (usually in early summer). This cut is important and should not be done in autumn or spring. If you don't cut until autumn or spring, you will remove the flower buds that will develop in autumn for the coming flowering season. The result of pruning: a strong shoot and a denser growth.

A good side effect: win cuttings

Propagation can go hand in hand with cutting:

Period: June to July
Cut 10 cm long shoot diagonally (below a knot)
remove lower leaves
leave upper leaves
Prepare the pot with potting soil
Put the cutting in the ground
when the first new leaves have formed, repot or plant out

A hedge plant that is well tolerated by pruning

Overall, the shadow bell is easy to cut. That, their slow growth, their evergreen foliage, their winter hardiness and their unpretentiousness make them the ideal hedge plant (cut hedge, privacy hedge). In order to maintain this hedge, all shoots should be shortened slightly after flowering.