Have you ever woke up one day and decided to do the Chelsea chop? Me too!
Well at least my modified version if it. Named the “Chelsea Chop” because it usually coincides with the Chelsea flower show timing. It is a summer chop of perennials to clean them up and encourage sturdier plants and bloom.
Ok —So my version is more like deadheading –but I like the word chop!
The catmint (Nepeta ‘Walker’s Low’) was simply telling me it’s time. The long flower stems were aged & starting to lay over. In the center of the plants is a flush of beautiful new growth.
Plants in the mint family like this Nepeta
that have a first flush of heavy bloom – respond well to a early summer chop. All the front lawn – Walker’s Low Catmint and Salvia Caradonna received a tidy haircut and will have a second flush of bloom later in the summer.
Try it on herbs like spearmint to encourage a second flush of leaves. The new leaves are much more flavorful than the old leaves on woody stems!
#gardening #chelseachop #perennials
The Herb Lover's Garden 