PERENNIALS > DIANTHUS > DEADHEADING

IN THIS GUIDE

DIANTHUS GUIDES

red dianthus flowering in a large container

Container GrowingDeadheadingGrowing From SeedPropagationVarietiesWatering

Dianthus is a varied genus of flowering plants which includes many garden favourites .

The most popular Dianthus to grow in the UK are those known as ‘ garden pinks ’ .

carnations growing in a large container inside a greenhouse

They are love as pinks not for their chromaticity , but rather for the serrate edge which make the flowers look as though they have been trimmed with pinking shears .

There are a huge assortment of pink to choose from – and you might also grow other democratic Dianthus , such as florist ’s carnations , and Sweet William .

Many pinko and other Dianthus ( excepting some old - fashioned varietals ) can be inveigle into a second bang of flower by deadheading .

a pair of black and yellow secateurs

To deadhead Dianthus :

Below you will chance a more elaborated verbal description of this unproblematic mental process :

1) Wait For Dianthus Blooms To Die Back

Dianthus are often used for cut flowers .

If you are harvesting your bloom to use in your household , then deadheading may not be necessary .

However , if you have enjoyed the blooms in the garden rather than slue them , then you should wait for the first flowers to go bad back before you deadhead .

secateurs shown in front of a potted dianthus

Of naturally , the exact timing for this occupation will depend on the specific type of Dianthus and the variety that you have chosen to grow , and when it will be expect to flower .

2) Examine Stems For New Buds

On some types of Dianthus , buds may already be present on the stems when the first flowers fade .

So before you deadhead to remove the spend efflorescence , you should take a honorable look at the stem to ensure that you do not cut off any buds and impoverish yourself of these future flowers .

3) Remove Spent Flowers

Where bud are present , cut back to just above a bud .

Where there are no bud , switch off back to just below the first set of farewell .

“ The good dick I have find for work out with Dianthus is Micro Snips , ” portion out Horticulturist Dan Ori .

secateurs being used to deadhead spent dianthus blooms

“ The whole tool is about 10 centimeter long at most so they are less likely   to damage other flower bud while you are working on the flora . ”

4) Feed Your Deadheaded Dianthus

This next step is really the most important one .

to encourage the plant to bloom with a second ( and sometimes even a third ) flush of peak , it is important to give it to keep it in the best possible health .

After deadheading , it is the near idea to prey the industrial plant with an organic liquid plant provender .

hand shown holding a bottle of fertiliser in front of a large garden

This should be alike to the type of liquid provender used for tomato plant – a provender which is eminent in potassium , which should encourage unspoiled flower formation .

Deadhead once more after the 2d flush of bloom at the end of the season in fall , also removing any leaf which look straggly .

Lightly trim the foliage so as to encourage sassy increment and to slow the process of the plants sprawling and becoming woody at the groundwork .

red dianthus in bloom inside a greenhouse

Dianthus tend not to live all that long – but worry for them correctly and they should flower over five or six years or so .