If you are wondering whether you should prune your coneflower (Echinacea), the answer is: yes! This is an important part of a healthy care routine as it rejuvenates the plant. If done right, pruning can provide a fresh start, lush regrowth, and even more blooms. Below you will find more information about when and how to prune coneflowers. Follow the tips and get ready for more blooms.
When to cut coneflowers
When is the best time to prune coneflowers? The answer to this question depends on your gardening goals and your pruning approach. Below are some seasonal guidelines to get a better idea of what time of year you should use the scissors. Remember that you can also do a little pruning during the growing season and when the plants are dormant.
Autumn/winter pruning
If you want to have a tidy garden in the winter, you can prune your coneflowers after they go dormant in late fall or early winter. Cutting back the dormant stems and seed heads in the fall will also reduce the chance that the plant will naturalize or spread. If you have a small garden that you like to keep tidy, fall pruning is for you.
Pruning in spring
On the other hand, some gardeners recommend waiting until spring to prune Echinacea for various reasons. First of all, these flowers provide important food for your local bird population during the fall and winter months. If your garden is large enough to support native plants like coneflowers, you'll be doing the local wildlife a favor by leaving the seeds. And while some people see plant proliferation as a disadvantage, others see it as a benefit – hey, free plants! Finally, seed heads are also visually interesting in winter, when most plants in your landscape are dormant.
Whether you prune your plants in fall or spring depends entirely on you and what you want for your garden. And if you have a lot of coneflowers in your garden, you can cut some back in the fall and save others for the spring.
Summer pruning
Pruning coneflower flowers can also be done in summer! However, the cut in summer does not look the same as in spring or autumn. Pruning is often done to keep the plant tidy, prevent seeds from spreading, and to encourage more flowers.
How to cut coneflowers
Now we come to the even more important question: “How to cut coneflowers correctly?” The good news is that echinaceas are hardy. So it is unlikely that a mistake in pruning will lead to an unfortunate death of the plant. However, it is important to know how to prune correctly so that you can enjoy more flowers and healthy growth every year. Follow the steps below when cutting your coneflower.
- Choose the season you prefer for pruning: Read above why you should prune your plants in fall or spring. Removing the flower heads and deadheading the flowers in the summer is also an option.
- Use sharp, clean pruning shears to cut: Make sure you have sharp and clean scissors for trimming and cutting back your coneflower flowers.
- Cut growth between 3 and 10 cm above the ground: How far you prune your coneflower depends on the variety you have and how established it is. For example, a large, established purple coneflower can be cut back to 10cm and will then be back in great shape. A smaller variety can be cut back to 3 cm. Newer plants are also easier to prune closer to the ground. When defoliating your plants, cut off the spent flowers a half inch above the new flowers on the same stem. Or cut the entire stem to within 3cm of the ground when it stops flowering.
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When to cut echinacea – conclusion
- Cut off spent flowers to keep the plant tidy, encourage new flowers and reduce seed spread.
- When you cut off the flowers for bouquets, you encourage the formation of new flowers.
- Cut back coneflowers in the fall to keep the garden tidy and reduce seed spread OR cut the plants back in the spring to help them naturalize, feed local birds and add some visual interest to your winter garden.
- Depending on the species and level of maturity, cut the plants back to 3 to 10 cm above the ground.
- Use the cuttings in your compost to feed your coneflower flowers in the spring.
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