My garden is in late-autumn-mode with lots of plants having brown stems, and
many with seed pods at the top. Normally I would cut all this off and feed
the compost (or the local container park, as we call it in .be). But I have
seen (on GW?) that some people leave it alone since it prevents the garden
looking so barren over the winter. If I do this what happens next spring
when new shoots try to grow? Is there a time that I MUST cut it all down?
Grateful for advice,
Robert

On Sun, 17 Nov 2002 20:59:37 +0100, "Robert Simpson"
wrote:

My garden is in late-autumn-mode with lots of plants having brown stems, and
many with seed pods at the top. Normally I would cut all this off and feed
the compost (or the local container park, as we call it in .be). But I have
seen (on GW?) that some people leave it alone since it prevents the garden
looking so barren over the winter. If I do this what happens next spring
when new shoots try to grow? Is there a time that I MUST cut it all down?
Grateful for advice,
Robert




Just a seasonal tip..... don't forget that the ladybirds etc. will be
looking for somewhere to overwinter ( if they haven't already found
lodgings ), and hollow stems are a particular favourite for this
helpful predator.
Seed pods may provide food for the birds in early winter.

I've never had many problems leaving old stems over winter - they
don't look that pretty when the weather is merely damp, but they catch
a frost a treat.
Come spring I tend to remove them only when the new shoots have put on
a few inches or so, by which time they can be pulled out with ease.
It's probably good practice to remove any stems that have toppled
over.

Regards,



--
Stephen Howard - Woodwind repairs & period restorations
http://www.shwoodwind.co.uk
Emails to: showard{who is at}shwoodwind{dot}co{dot}uk

On Sun, 17 Nov 2002 20:59:37 +0100, "Robert Simpson"
wrote:

My garden is in late-autumn-mode with lots of plants having brown stems, and
many with seed pods at the top. Normally I would cut all this off and feed
the compost (or the local container park, as we call it in .be). But I have
seen (on GW?) that some people leave it alone since it prevents the garden
looking so barren over the winter. If I do this what happens next spring
when new shoots try to grow? Is there a time that I MUST cut it all down?

There are three schools of thought about when to cut down dead
perennials, the Fall-Winter school, the Winter-Spring school, and
the nihilists in the No-Cutdown school.

If you think your garden looks better in winter with all the dead
growth intact, then by all means leave it until late winter or
early spring (but not so late that the new growth is starting to
emerge -- if you leave it that late, you are a nihilist).

Myself, I've never made my mind up. I'm mostly nihilist, but I
try to tidy the garden bit by bit during the winter by cutting
down the worst looking dead bits.

--
Rodger Whitlock
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

In article , Rodger Whitlock
writes
There are three schools of thought about when to cut down dead
perennials, the Fall-Winter school, the Winter-Spring school, and
the nihilists in the No-Cutdown school.

If you think your garden looks better in winter with all the dead
growth intact, then by all means leave it until late winter or
early spring (but not so late that the new growth is starting to
emerge -- if you leave it that late, you are a nihilist).

There is a school of thought that says that last years dead growth left
on will provide some frost protection for the crown over the winter!
--
Jane Ransom in Lancaster.
I won't respond to private emails that are on topic for urg
but if you need to email me for any other reason,
put jandg dot demon dot co dot uk where you see deadspam.com

Hello Robert. I usually leave it until February, and then burn it off.
Some say my asparagus roots benefit from leaving the ferns on until then,
others say I harbor pests and diseases. The burning adds needed nutriants
to the soil, kills seeds that might start unwanted plants. Of course you
have to be careful and able to control the burn.

Good luck. Dwayne


"Robert Simpson" wrote in message
...
My garden is in late-autumn-mode with lots of plants having brown stems,
and
many with seed pods at the top. Normally I would cut all this off and
feed
the compost (or the local container park, as we call it in .be). But I
have
seen (on GW?) that some people leave it alone since it prevents the garden
looking so barren over the winter. If I do this what happens next spring
when new shoots try to grow? Is there a time that I MUST cut it all down?
Grateful for advice,
Robert