Can 10 year old Hebe albicans be cut back hard with a good chance of
reasonably rapid regrowth at this time of year?

--
rbel

On 08/04/2010 19:07, rbel wrote:

Can 10 year old Hebe albicans be cut back hard with a good chance of
reasonably rapid regrowth at this time of year?



Younger plants would certainly be okay but, if this plant is at all
precious to you, take a few cuttings as an insurance policy. They are
very easy: just take a handful of healthy cuttings and put them around
the edges of a pot of moist but gritty compost. Shade from sun. I
often take Hebe cuttings with a 90-100 per cent success rate.

Once you've cut back the parent plant, remember to feed and water it to
encourage it to grow.

--
Spider
from high ground in SE London
gardening on clay

On Fri, 09 Apr 2010 13:00:56 +0200, Spider wrote:

On 08/04/2010 19:07, rbel wrote:

Can 10 year old Hebe albicans be cut back hard with a good chance of
reasonably rapid regrowth at this time of year?



Younger plants would certainly be okay but, if this plant is at all
precious to you, take a few cuttings as an insurance policy. They are
very easy: just take a handful of healthy cuttings and put them around
the edges of a pot of moist but gritty compost. Shade from sun. I
often take Hebe cuttings with a 90-100 per cent success rate.

Once you've cut back the parent plant, remember to feed and water it to
encourage it to grow.


Many thanks. The hebes in question, about a dozen of them, border a
pathway and they have spread to the degree that the highways authority
want them cut back, which is fair enough, but if they were likely to look
grim for months I was prepared to replace them.
--
rbel