you may think i'm dumb, but can somebody please tell me exactly how to dead head? My first year growing much of anything (new house) did all my planters with spring bulbs, they didnt last very long, then saw on tv bout dead heading to make them last longer (bit late for spring flowers mind you) which part do you actually take off? have some summer bulbs in so want a longer show for them.
Hard to be exact, but generally speaking you remove the dead flower back to where it connects to the plant, as long as you are not removing any unflowered buds in the process. Dead-heading only works on plants which produce a succession of flowers. For example a rose (yuck) will produce more new growth and thus more flowers if you remove the spent blooms.Ditto Sweet peas. A tulip on the other hand only produces the one flower. Dead-heading also is done to stop the plant wasting energy in producing seeds. Most bulbs fall into this category.
palustris. you've been a mind of knowledge for me today! :D any ideas on my melon question over on edible plants? ;)
No, sorry, never grown them, loathe the taste too!
ERIC is a mind of information for us all, he is like a headmaster he knows almost everthing. :D :D
No, like most teachers I have the answer book! Or in my case 16 metres of answer books!
Don't like melons! :o
I certainly don't htink you're dumb, Littlegem, I have always wondered if I've been doing this right ever since pottering around my parents' garden as a kid. Even now I'm not always entirely sure!
Thanks for clearing it up for us Palustris, and Littlegem - watch this space for some of the idioticly simple and obvious questions I'll no doubt be posting all over here soon!!! ;)