T O P I C R E V I E W |
Violets | I don't know how to prune...anything. I don't even know how or if I should prune my old lemon balm and oregano after the stems dry up. They sort of jut up out of the ground throughout the winter, and I'm not familiar enough with the plants to know if I should snip the old stems, or if they come back to life like a rose bush does? We also have a couple of small maple trees in the back yard, and they're getting a little unruly. Any suggestions? I can look it up online, but figured I would post here first. |
Randall | Me either. I'm scared I'll hurt the plants. |
Violets | Yeah, same here. And I also don't always know whether something actually *needs* to be pruned or not. I did do a very haphazard job of pruning the indigenous bushes along our fence line, though...but I apologized to the bushes (and...truth be stated, I felt that they were being rather difficult, and told them so, haha...but I let them know that I wasn't *trying* to hurt them). I often wonder what the percentage is of people who talk to plants like they would animals or other people, compared to those who don't. I think that I must have made my own conclusions long ago that surely everyone talks to plants, hahaha. |
Randall | Clive Baxter proved that plants "listen." |
Violets | quote: Originally posted by Randall: Clive Baxter proved that plants "listen."
I sincerely believe that. |
Randall | |
Randall | I just don't want to hurt them. |
PlutoSurvivor | I don't even want to mow my lawn anymore because I hear the grass cry. I need to live in the country with a meadow in my front yard. You know, you shouldnt have to worry about pruning. Your plants will like the care and attention. They long for human interaction. When plants are pruned properly, with love and thoughtful attention, they smile. Ask your plants what they need and they will let you know. --- As a general rule, do not trim until after the season that it flowers. For instance if you have a shrub that flowers in the spring, cut it back right after it flowers and it will have all summer to grow new buds for next year. If you have a plant that blooms in the summer you can trim it in the fall or early spring so it has time for new growth before it blooms. |
PlutoSurvivor | lemon balm? That grows like a weed. It is in invincible, ha!
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PlutoSurvivor | Oregano? Greek oregano is a favorite of mine. I would just trim to harvest the leaves at the dnd of the season leaving the big leaves at the base. Then in the spring i would trim off the woody stems as the new growth comes in. An herbalist coul probably give you better instructions. |
Ellynlvx | The Lemon Balm won't come up from the stalk, you can trim it. It's had it's day. It will come up from the roots. They are so sweet! I think oregano is the same way, but can't remember for sure. I'm not much of a vegetable gardener, I'm more Herbally inclined. If it's kitchen, I get bored, I only like medicinal. |
Violets | Excellent advice PS and Ellyn! Thank you! You're right about the lemon balm and oregano, I can already see them starting to come up from the ground, not the old wooden stems. Yep, I love the way that both herbs have taken over pretty much an entire section of my flower garden! I think that my neighbor has mint, and I'm going to ask her for some to plant so that it will take over as well. She gave us raspberry canes in the fall, and they seem to have taken root and are doing well. |
Violets | Side note... I love the way my little boy loves dandelions so much... When it's nice enough to go work outside, we spend time looking for them, and it's like an Easter egg hunt. Then I remind him to say "Thank you" to the flowers and the Earth, and he says it so sweetly (and then adds "Thank you Saturn, thank you Neptune, thank you Uranus"). |
Randall | Awww... |
PlutoSurvivor | Here's a great activity. I don't know how old your son is, though. Give him a ball of yarn and have him connect the dots with the dandlion flowers to make an image, by stringing the yarn from flower to flower. He can wind it up when he is done and start over again. You can take photos of his art and guess what he created, kind of like looking at clouds in the sky and imagining what the shapes are. |
Violets | I'll try that, PS! What a neat idea! |
Randall | |