Pruning the garden?

I know nothing about gardening - I spent a few months pottering around getting things looking perfect for my engagement party last month.

I don't want to all to go to waste now but I have no idea which plants I'm supposed to prune, or how much. Or which plants need their flowers or leaves cut off. Lol

We've had a very hot November and lots of my plants have brown leaves from the heat - we set up an irrigation system on the weekend in case they haven't been getting enough water.

Should I cut back any sad parts on the plants? Like dead or dying parts?

Are their any rules to pruning? I know my Nanna would prune her roses back to a tiny little stump that looked very dead lol

Any advice would be much appreciated :)


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If you have roses you have to prune them in july and yes to nearly a bare stump

If anything has dead or dying leaves or flowers always cut them off. That way the plant is not putting energy into that part of the plant. It will also promote new growth. I don't know much about gardening either, but I enjoy my little gardens. I pretty much give everything a prune after it has had a flower. I have not killed off anything yet from doing it. My daisey plants get a full pruning so they just look like stumps and everything else gets a light pruning to were I can see new growth starting. Hope I have helped a tiny bit:)

You both have - thanks so much!

Putting it in my diary now to prune roses in July :lol:


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Go to your local garden shop (not the huge ones like bunnings etc) and speak to them about when to prune things in the local area, they're also a great resource for what grows in the local area.

That's a great idea sopdet - I might pop into my local nursery this weekend for a chat.


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My DH likes to do things by the phases of the moon. You can google for more info but basically, if you don't want something to grow fast (ie the lawn), prune after the full moon, if you want lots of growth, prune before the full moon. This also works for fertiliser - add before the full moon for best results.

Gardening Australia is a great magazine to get and if you catch the show on ABC there is always something good to learn on it. The Yates garden guide is also helpful!

I prune my roses back hard once a year in June, but also give them a light prune as the flowers die off. They will bloom again if you don't let the flowers develop into rosehips (seed) although you can make tea from them if you like. Also get rid of any spotty leaves and give them a spray with pest oil so the buds don't get ruined by aphids :)

Pruning dead flowers off so the plant doesn't put energy into making them go to seed is wise, but at this time of year when it's about to get really hot, it's often better to leave dead leaves on because they do help protect the plant from sun scorch. But it depends a bit on what actual plants you have and your own micro-climate in your garden. Agreed though that roses are pruned July at the latest usually, but you can dead-head the rest of the year. November is the worst month for gardens in SE Qld so don't be too disheartened if things are looking crispy. This time of year it's hot, dry and windy and plants tend to look peaky, but it's just a seasonal thing. Lots of things will look better once the wet season starts. Different plants have different pruning requirements, so if you know what the plants are, you can google them individually. For example I have some perennial salvias that if I prune hard when it's hot, the plant will die, but when it's cool I can butcher them and they're fine! So if in doubt, look up the plant online and what kind of pruning it likes and when!