The path in front of my rhododendrons looks more worn, and I’m the reason.
You see, I walked around for a month waiting for the rhododendrons to open into full bloom.
We had a particularly wet and very cold spring this year, so these pretty shrubs had their mild weather. It wasn’t until mid-May that the flowers really started to open. As I write this article at the end of June, they are already dating.
When the long wait is finally rewarded. But I have one job left now that the rhododendrons have finished flowering: I have to make skulls for them. Let’s see why it’s so important at this time of year.
Do I Have Deadhead Rhododendrons?
Yes you should. But not for the main reason we usually kill other perennials.
The most common understanding of deadheading is to remove spent flowers to encourage the plant to bloom again.
The rhododendron flowers are the result of the care we put into them last year. Rhododendrons have no chance of blooming again. These evergreen shrubs put on their beautiful spring buds last summer. So no amount of dead flowers in the spring will produce more flowers this year.
However, rhododendrons that die this year after they finish blooming will improve flower production for next year.
Why deadhead rhododendrons?
When we kill rody bushes, we are essentially removing the pods that the plant is trying to reproduce. By doing this we are telling the plant that it does not need to expend its limited energy to produce seeds. Instead, the rhododendron will redirect this energy to new growth, both flower buds and leaf buds. It is this new growth that forms the basis of next year’s flowers.
New growth and seed production compete for the plant’s energy.So we’re heading into a rather distant future, at least in “garden time”. We die for next year.
What happens if I don’t make dead rhododendrons?
If you choose not to deadhead this year to harvest mature seeds, nothing bad will happen. But next year’s flower production might not be so showy. You will get smaller flowers and maybe less.
Deadhead rhododendrons also keep the evergreen growing neat during the summer months, as the seed pods can take a few months to dry out and drop off on their own.
When should I top rhododendrons?
The pollinators have duly done their job, so the plant is starting to set seed. It depends on your tolerance for sad-looking dying flowers. You can start directing once the flowers look like the photo below. The bushes have already had their best life in the sun; the pollinators have duly done their job; so now it’s just a matter of withering the flowers and exposing the budding seed pods.
Once the flowers start to dry, you can think about pruning them. In my garden, it took about three weeks for the rhododendron flowers to go from full bloom to full bloom. But it varies from year to year, even in the same garden, depending on temperature and rainfall.
In general, it is better to die sooner than later for two reasons. First of all, the plant does not expend energy to put the seeds. And second, the longer you leave it on, the bigger the new shoots will get, so the more likely they are to get in the way while you cut off the old shoots.
Time for a cleaning.It’s good, but I left too late. Can I still top the rhododendrons?
Yes, you can still direct Rhodies even though the seed heads are all brown and shriveled. Be careful not to remove the new growth.
You can wait for the flowers to turn brown, but that’s not necessary. How to make dead rhododendrons?
Start by first identifying the end of the flower cluster.
Flower clusters, also called clusters, end in a sort of ring where they connect to the main stem. Take a look at the photo below. This is where the beams should come out.
First find the circles. Here you are removing faded flowers. Once you have identified this ring, you have two options.
Option 1: Kill your rhododendron by hand.
This is really the most satisfying part for me. Simply grab the armor near the circle and gently twist it until it breaks in your hand. Your other hand holds the main shaft to keep it from spinning.
pinch…The drier the seed head, the easier it will come off. Doing this manually makes it easier for me to feel the right place where it will break. It’s also easier for me to protect new growth, unlike when I’m working with pruners.
…then turn!The downside to doing it by hand, however, is the sticky, syrupy sap the rhododendron secretes, both from its seed pods and from where you break them. So be sure to wear gardening gloves when killing your rhododendrons.
All those sap beads invariably end up on your hands, so be sure to wear gardening gloves. And keep in mind that you may need to wash the gloves as soon as you’re done, especially if you’re killing a large shrub or several plants in a row.
Here is a short video showing the process of cutting rhododendrons.
Option 2: Kill your rhododendron with a pair of scissors.
We use the same principle as above, but instead of breaking off the seed heads by hand, we cut them off with a small pruner.
Again, you cut around the growth circles. The advantage of using pruners is that you can cut more precisely. But I have found it more difficult for me to be as delicate when cutting the bunches. I accidentally pinched the new buds with my scissors several times and felt really bad about it.
I still have juice on the scissors, so there must be something that needs a good cleaning anyway.
I love a good “After” photo. Will my rhododendron self-seed if I don’t kill it?
Oh, we should be so lucky! No, the rhododendron does not self-sow like most perennials. It takes a long time (I’m talking about years) and only the GOOD conditions for growing a new rhododendron from seed to flowering bush.
If you want more rhododendrons from your mature bushes, the easiest way to propagate them is to take cuttings from semi-hardwoods. (Stay tuned for a tutorial on taking rhododendron cuttings later this summer.)
It is not worth propagating rhododendrons from seed. I remember being very nervous the first time I killed my rhododendrons. I had no idea what I was doing and didn’t want to damage my vibrating bushes. Especially since the damage takes months to appear. Luckily, once I removed a few seed heads, it turned out to be a fairly easy (albeit tricky) job. As with most first-time gardening scenarios, confidence only came after you started the job.