Breathe new life into your forsythias
Pruning will prompt new shoots to grow
Dear Helen: I have a forsythia that has grown tall and rangy, with the flowers mainly on the upper portion of the plant. Is there a way of reshaping the shrub into a more compact and pleasing shape?
H.P. You can begin a rejuvenation of your forsythia as soon as flowering has finished. First, remove all dead or damaged wood. Then you can cut away at ground level up to half the stems. Choose the oldest (thickest) ones to remove. The remaining stems can be cut back by up to a half, provided there is a growth bud or healthy shoot to make the cut above. The shoot should be facing outward from the shrub’s centre.
This initial pruning should prompt new shoots growing from below cut stems. Thin the new growth out as it develops, enough to prevent congestion.
In the following year, remove half the remaining old stems at ground level and shorten other stems as needed to attain the shape and compactness desired.
The next year, cut down to ground level the last of the old stems.
After that, follow a routine of thinning crowded growth at the shrub’s centre and shortening older stems to vigorous side shoots. Cutting away one or two of the oldest stems at ground level each year is a useful way to maintain youth and vigour in shrubs, such as forsythia, that produce multiple shoots from ground level. Prune spring flowering shrubs after flowering. Dear Helen: By early winter my Epiphyllum (orchid cactus) plants had developed black, rotted looking spots. I was following the practice of several friends who told me that they keep their Epiphyllums outdoors. My plants eventually collapsed into mush. L.S.
Are you certain that your plant and those of your friends were Epiphyllum? This is not a hardy plant, but a forest cactus whose native habitats are in the jungles of Central and South America. They are sprawly plants with thick, scalloped leaves that are actually flattened stems.
Epiphyllums do not tolerate temperatures below 5 C. During the plants’ winter rest period in a cool room with good natural light, ideal temperatures are 10 to 15 C. Common winter locations are at a basement window, or in a sun porch or spare bedroom.
A dryish soil and long nights during the rest period bring on flower buds, which signal it’s time to bring the plants into slightly warmer temperatures and to resume watering. Flowering is in May and June. A summer outdoors in diffuse light benefits the plants, which need to be brought back indoors in the fall, with decreased watering, before the weather cools.
GARDEN EVENTS
View Royal meeting. The View Royal Garden Club will meet at 7:30 tonight in Esquimalt United Church, 500 Admirals Rd. Herb grower Jessy Delleman will discuss healing plants that can be grown easily in home gardens in “Growing a Medicine Garden.” The meeting will also feature a judged mini show, and a sales table with plants and garden items. Visitors and new members are welcome. Nonmember drop-in fee is $5. Sooke meeting. The Sooke Garden Club will meet from 7 to 8:30 tonight in St. Rose of Lima Church, 2191 Townsend Rd. Paula McCormick will discuss “Planning and Improving Your Veggie Garden.” Drop-in fee $5. Membership $15. Chrysanthemum sale. The Victoria Chrysanthemum Society will hold its annual plant sale from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturday at St. Matthias Church, 600 Richmond Ave. Individual plants will sell for $3.50. A starter pack of 12 plants, with a mix of sprays and dis-buds, will sell for $30. Spring sale. The Mid Island Rose Society will hold a spring sale of annuals and perennials on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 5128 Parton Dr. in Nanaimo. Profits go to local charities. HCP workshops. The Horticulture Centre of the Pacific, 505 Quayle Rd. in Saanich, is offering the following workshops. To register phone 250-479-6162. Details at hcp.ca. • Fill Your Boots with Succulents, Sat. May 6, 1 to 2:30 pm. Bring an old pair of boots to fill with a creative arrangement of succulent plants. Plants and soil provided. HCP members $30, others $45. • Willow Club, Sun. May 7, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Make and take home a classic willow club chair. Tools and materials provided. Members $225, others $250.