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Category: Gardening Articles

When and how to prune passion flowers

When and how to prune passion flowers

Passion flowers are low maintenance when it comes to deadheading and pruning. Just a little attention in spring or after flowering is all that’s needed to prune passion flowers. For most people, just a light pruning after flowering in summer is all that is needed. I like like to lightly prune my passion flowers after flowering to within two shoots of last year’s foliage. You can learn more about this and hard pruning for rejuvinare passion flowers below. Deadheading passion flowers…

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Passiflora caerulea - Growing and caring for passion flowers (Passion flowers)

Passiflora caerulea - Growing and caring for passion flowers (Passion flowers)

Passion flowers (the most common being passiflora caerula) are usually grown as hardy border climbers or more tender conservatory plants for the less hardy varieties. Personally, I have always grown them as hardy plants outdoors in more sheltered positions. You can also grow the variety that produces the edible passion fruit although the taste is something most will not take a liking to. In my guide, I cover what you need to know when growing and caring for passion flowers…

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How to grow lupins from seed - step by step

How to grow lupins from seed - step by step

Propagating lupins from seeds and cuttings, along with dividing them, are the three ways to make the most of your lupin production. I cover taking cuttings in the article Propagating lupins by taking cuttings. I haven’t covered dividing lupins as it’s extremely difficult to do successfully due to the plant’s long tap root. Seeds are a great way to grow lupins from seeds you have collected, or you can purchase them from garden centres and nurseries. Read on to learn…

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What’s eating your lupins and how to stop them?

What’s eating your lupins and how to stop them?

I’ve been growing Lupins for over 20 years and, unfortunately, am no stranger to the pests that will take a liking to your Lupins. Generally, Lupins don’t seem to suffer too badly from pests and diseases. However, the two main culprits are slugs/snails (which I class as 1 pest), which usually take a liking to new foliage but will also attack older foliage as shown in my main picture above. The other pests that I tackle on a yearly basis…

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When and how to cut back and prune lupins?

When and how to cut back and prune lupins?

As well as pruning, deadheading lupins is an important key to keeping your plants successfully blooming over the summer. I generally deadhead as individual flowers finish flowering, and then once they stopped flowering well, I usually hard prune to ground level, which usually results in a second flush of flowers. I then usually prune back at the end of autumn to ground level to get my lupins ready for winter. Here’s how I personally deadhead and prune lupins in more…

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Why you shouldn’t divide and split lupins and what to do instead

Why you shouldn’t divide and split lupins and what to do instead

Like most perennials, one way to propagate lupins is to divide and split them. However, this is usually not at all successful due to their long and deep tap root. Lupins don’t like to be disturbed at all once they are established in the ground. They really don’t like to be transplanted. There is an exception to this, though; if your Lupin develops several crowns, you can divide these in early spring and they usually grow well. Just make sure they…

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Are lupins perennials or annuals?

Are lupins perennials or annuals?

Most varieties of lupins are perennials, however, there are some Lupins that are not as hardy and are usually treated as annuals. You will often see these sold in tray packs of 4 with bedding plants. So, for example, Annual lupins include the variety Lupin Avulune. The most common lupins, which include the Russell Hybrids Mixed varieties and the Band of Noble Series, are hardy perennial varieties. Most lupins grown in garden centres locally to you in single pots with…

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Lupin winter care - What to do with lupins in winter?

Lupin winter care - What to do with lupins in winter?

Lupins in winter in the ground Most Lupins are perennials which means they die back for winter and regrow every year in spring. Most lupins will survive the winter very well in the ground. That being said, there are a few lupins that are not as hardy so always check the label or plant description if buying online. Lupins are robust and tolerate sub-zero temperatures well as long as they’re in well-drained soil. The very long tap root travels deeply…

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Lupin pests and diseases

Lupin pests and diseases

Lupins are one of my favourite plants, and having grown Lupins for over 30 years, I’m no stranger to some of the many Lupin pests and diseases, and I recently talked about what was eating my lupins here. They are mainly the common ones that affect most perennials including aphids, as well as powdery mildew which is a Fungus, but there are a few more, so in this guide, I explain what they are and what to do about them….

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How to grow lupins and care guide

How to grow lupins and care guide

I’m a big fan of lupins as they are super easy to grow, the flower spikes look amazing, and they generally don’t require much care once established. As long as they’re in their preferred environment (sunny position in well-drained soil) they require little care. A little deadheading, watering if grown in pots and maybe feeding with a little potassium-rich fertiliser such as Vitax Q4 and they will do well. Here’s my guide on what you need to provide to grow…

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