I read in one of my gardening magazines (that i can't find again) that to keep my sedums from becoming leggy and falling over that i could cut them back in late april and that would help them to stand more upright in the fall once they bloom ...
has anyone done this? do i have the correct month? any suggestions how far to cut back?
...they are growing really large...not sure how to divide them either...they seem pretty tough...
cutting back autumn joy sedums
Hi awarhol, I am assuming you mean the tall 'Autumn Joy' type sedum? If so, yes, you can cut them back now if they are about a foot tall. I have them growing in several places. In the partly shade area, the plants are only about 3" tall and could be easily divided now, but don't need cutting back.
In the full sun area, the plants are a foot tall and IMHO are too big to divide now but are candidates for cutting back. If you want to do this, I would cut them back by about 1/2. My 'full sun' plants did well the last 2 years (it's a new garden site) without cutting back so I'm holding off on that. If you want/need to divide them and they are rather tall, I would cut them back by half when you divide too.
I say they would be easily divided in the first paragraph, but in thinking about it, I have never divided Autumn Joy. They are so easy to root from cuttings and my plants have never gotten so large, clump-wise, that they needed dividing.
Good luck. They're tough and I'm sure they'll be fine.
i will give try it this weekend...it's certainly worth a shot...i definitely know what happens already if i let them continue growing...i'll let you know how it goes...
thanks for the advice...
Do it. They are very forgiving....
Happy spring
Can you cut back any sedum or just certain ones? I have a plant growing in sun that is pretty tall and spreading wider with increasing space between stalks. Will cutting them back insure them being stronger? Thanks.
I don't have other sedums, but I would think it works the same.