pruning Plants respond to several
different pruning techniques before
flowering either to reduce height, to
create smaller flowers and fuller
plants, or to stagger bloom. Reducing
the height may not be an objective as
the plants are lovely, 5- to 6-ft.-tall,
self-supporting specimens with
impressive, large (7- to 8-in.-diameter)
flower heads. Shorter, fuller plants
may be useful in certain situations,
however—such as to achieve proper
proportions for combination with
other shorter perennials. Pruning also
produces slightly smaller flower heads
(5 in. diameter), which can be more
useful in flower arranging. Pruning
may be desirable for plants grown in
too much shade or overly rich soil,
which produces larger plants with
weaker stems.
My preferred technique is to pinch
plants in early June, when they are
about 3 ft. tall. This causes 5 breaks to
emerge from the 1 pinched stem,
creating full plants with slightly
smaller 5-in.-diameter flowers. The
plant’s height normally is not notice-
ably reduced with this pruning, which
I like, nor is the flowering time delayed
significantly. A “have your cake and
eat it too” situation can be attained by
leaving several center stems
unpinched to get the usual larger
flower heads on unbranched stems,
and pinching the outer stems around
it for some fuller growth and smaller
heads.
Cutting back by 6 in. in early June
produces shorter plants, by about 1–1.5
ft., and flowers are delayed by about 1
week. Under certain situations the
flower heads may be reduced to about
4 in. × 2 in., which are not as ornamen-
tal as the flowers on pinched or
unpruned plants. This technique also
could be performed on only a few
stems of the plant.
Some gardeners in warmer areas,
where plants reach 6–10 ft., have had
success with cutting plants back by
half when 2 ft. tall to obtain 4-ft.-tall
flowering plants. I personally have not
had success with this method, getting
shorter plants (3 ft. tall compared to 6
ft.) that were weak and didn’t flower.
Variables such as climate, shade,
competition, and age of plant may be
responsible for the inconsistent
results. Definitely a plant with which
to play and experiment.
Deadheading is not necessary with
‘Gateway’ Joe Pye weed since it has
such a long bloom season without it.
The flowers fade from early October to
the first frost, and the fluffy seedheads
that develop further extend their
interest. Seeding is usually not a
problem. The old stems and seedheads
are attractive in the early winter
garden, but they tend to break under
heavy snow and wind. Even when
broken down, they make good cover
for the birds, and so should be left if
space is available. In a small garden
where this habit isn’t tolerable, cutting
down in the autumn may be the
pruning choice.
other maintenance Plants prefer
moist locations; provide supplemental
watering while establishing in the first
year. Once established, plants are
tough and tolerate short periods of
drought. It takes 2–3 years for the
plants to reach maturity. Division can
be done in the spring but is only
needed if plants get too big for their
garden spot. Full sun is best to keep
plants strongly upright.Eutrochium maculatum
‘Gateway’