When to Cut Homestead Verbena

First-Year Pruning

• When you're growing "Homestead Purple" as an annual or as a first-year perennial, the plant's trailing stems can need pruning by the middle of summer to keep it from looking straggly. Plant stems can reach 3 feet long and form mats up to 1 foot high and flowers form only at the tip of new growth. Trimming them back, from one-fourth their length to as far as 3 to 4 inches from the crown, rejuvenates the plant to keep it blooming through fall.

Fall Care

• Trim the plants only lightly in the fall -- just to neaten their appearance if you think it's necessary. Otherwise leave them alone until spring. Some mulch over the crown of the plant can help verbena make it through the winter in the lower end of its range, other wise the old vegetation helps protect the crown of the plant from the cold.

Early Spring Pruning

• Cut "Homestead Purple" back to healthy foliage in early spring, or to about 3 inches tall. Established plantings die out in the center, with new growth coming from points where the spreading stems rooted in open soil. Cut through the mats of stems at several points as well, to create separate plants and new growing points.

Consideratations

• Verbena is a herbaceous perennial that doesn't develop woody stems. Shears, or even scissors, are sufficient for pruning. They should be sharp, and sterile, however. Household antiseptic cleaner removes lingering plant disease and fungus from plants previously pruned. A handful of a complete fertilizer, like a 16-4-8, after cutting back can help return a pruned verbena to bloom in two to three weeks.