Pink daisy question...

[lesa]

I have a large clump of pretty pink daisies. I don't remember where I got them- or what they are called...They bloom late in the summer (unlike my white daisies, which are very early.) They grow super tall- so by the time they are ready to flower they have fallen over and look awful. My question is, could I cut them back in July and still hope for blooms in August. I am thinking of how I would handle mums, in that way. If I can't neaten them up, I am going to dig them up.

 

[digitS']

Echinacea (coneflower) blooms after the Shasta daisies. Is that the upsy-daisy, Lesa?

I have one or two in the yard but only imagine that you would just delay the bloom season by a cut-back early. Should work.

I'll be putting up my temporary pickets for the perennial poppies, probably today. They just get too much shade. I think that is 30" and the poppies grow in a bed only 2' wide so that stands them up fairly well. I had threatened to take them out before I started moving that fence out for them a few years ago.

I made the fence out of 1 by 2's and painted it white.

Steve

 

[Nyboy]

Lesa don't know about cutting back, but have you tried peony rings or tomatoe cages to suport them?

 

[Lavender2]

I pinch my painted daisies in Spring when they are about 6". They bloom in late July for me.
The other later blooming - Clara Curtis can be pinched back any time before July 4 and still bloom in early fall for me . If I don't pinch Clara back at least once, yeah, she flops. Could be one of those?

 

[lesa]

Steve, I do have echinacea- not a very big bunch, but they stand up nicely. Lavender- they are in fact Clara Curtis. I had no idea, thanks for that! I will try cutting them, and see how that works. I was thinking about cages, NYboy- but it is a big patch...maybe I will do both. Thanks!

 

[thistlebloom]

Lesa, I second what Lavender said about cutting back. Here, I do any cutting back by mid June so the plants flower well before our early frosts. I think you probably have a longer fall though, so do what works for Lavender.

One thing I do for my customers every year to support the floppy blooms of peonies is surround them with a wire cage, which I also top with a wire "lid" so as the peonies grow up and through, the bloom stalks are held in place by the grid of wire.

I buy black fencing that is 4' tall, and the wire openings are 2"x2".
Then I just adjust the height and circumference to each plants eventual size. Some need the full 4' height, but most are shorter. As the plant grows the leaves push through the wire and the cage is completely hidden. They stay in place until fall cleanup.

 

[lesa]

I have used a little cage around my peonies for years. Once they start growing, I forget it is even there! This patch of daisies is a little large for a cage...Maybe 4 foot by 3 foot! What can I tell you, they spread! As soon as I notice them getting tall, off with them. We'll see how it goes....

 

[Lavender2]

I have used a little cage around my peonies for years. Once they start growing, I forget it is even there! This patch of daisies is a little large for a cage...Maybe 4 foot by 3 foot! What can I tell you, they spread! As soon as I notice them getting tall, off with them. We'll see how it goes....

I was going to ask if they spread a lot, yep, Clara! I cleaned out my rock garden today and I think Clara has been crawling around all winter.
Like mums, when they are about 5 or 6" tall I just snip the tops off with a scissors. They quickly start to branch and get bushy. Sometimes I top them again later but usually I forget. They are quite pretty when they're not flopped on the ground.

 

[lesa]

I can't believe how much crawling mine have been doing! I am really looking forward to having attractive blooms, instead of a tangled mess, on the ground! Thanks for your help, Lavender!

 

[Jared77]

What about some stock fencing parallel to the ground? Just placed up high enough on posts to support the plants. I'm envisioning a big peony cage with lots of openings idea here.