On 5/21/2014 4:07 PM, Higgs Boson wrote:
On Wednesday, May 21, 2014 2:40:23 PM UTC-7, David E. Ross wrote:
On 5/21/2014 2:01 PM, Higgs Boson wrote:

Sorry if I'm asking something I "should" know, but all these many years of gardening, I've never understood whether it's OK to cut part-way off leaves that are dried and ugly from the tips half-way down.



Does it upset the plant (Clivia is what I'm on about at the moment) if I "clean up" the look of the flower bed? Will the remaining part of the leaf continue to feed the plant?



Or does cutting off part of a leaf degrade its function?



TIA



HB





I generally leave a small margin of dead leaf, about 1/2 inch. I think

the remaining leaf cannot be affected since anything in the dead area

already stopped contributing any substances produced during the dying.

On the other hand, cutting into the live or currently dying portion of a

leaf might promote further dying.

Yikes!!! I DID cut into live portion!!! Over-zealous tidying up?
Anybody have solid info about whether that "might promote further dying" ?References?

TIA

HB


If I cut away the dead part of a large leaf and remove some of the live,
green part, a further dead area will appear. I have observed this but
have not a seen a documented source.

I especially see this with bearded iris. When I divide a clump of iris,
I trim the roots to eliminate any torn or broken roots. I then trim the
fan of leaves to reduce the demand for moisture from traumatized roots.
The leaves develop dead areas 1/4 to 1/2 inch at the cuts.

I also see this in such house plants as Aloe vera, Dracaena, Cordyline,
and a bromeliad. I also see this in my outdoor Cymbidium orchid and
daylilies.

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean, see
http://www.rossde.com/garden/climate.html
Gardening diary at http://www.rossde.com/garden/diary