Article by DavidMarks
Our main Hypericum article can be found here. But sometimes our readers askspecific questions which are not covered in the main article. This page liststheir comments, questions and answers. At the end of this page there is also a formfor you to submit any new question or comment you have.
COMMENTS / QUESTIONS LEFT BY OUR READERS
| Date: 16 May 2021 |
From: Judith |
| QUESTION: I have cut down my hypericum, how do I kill the roots, I am puttingshingle in its place?
ANSWER: I have been asked this question a couple of times and although I have never tried it,others report great difficulty in stopping the roots of hypericum from regrowing.
I would think your only option is to lay down a very strong weed suppressant membrane which has been doubledup to two layers. I still think you will need to keep an eye on the area for a year or so and cut away anygrowth that pushes through the membrane as soon as you see it. |
| Date: 13 March 2021 |
From: Anon |
| QUESTION: My hypericum has brown leaves all over but I can seenew growth on the stems of the brown leaves . Do I just leave them to see what happens?
ANSWER: Hypericum are very hardy shrubs and almost impossible to kill. If you see green shootsthe shrub is alive and will revive very quickly. Nothing need to be done. The old leaves will drop off naturally. |
| Date: 21 January 2021 |
From: Paul H |
| QUESTION: Some months ago I grew many plants from seed in my home. I put them in my cold frame about three months ago.
Can I now move them into my garden?
ANSWER: I’ve never grown Hypericum from seed before so I am not expert at this.
Although established hypericum are as tough as old boots, I’m not so sure about them in pots and also so young.Personally I would give them another couple of months in the cold frame. |
| Date: 21 May 2020 |
From: Not Given |
| QUESTION: My hypericum is in bud at the moment and ready to flower. If I prune it now willit still flower this summer?
ANSWER: I think it’s too late to prune it now and still have flowers. Certainly if it does flower there will be far less. |
| Date: 04 August 2019 |
From: Fiona |
| QUESTION: I have a well established, well loved hypericum. I am redesigning my gardenand want to move my beloved hypericum, but would like to know the best time to move it, please?
ANSWER: I would prune it back hard now and then move it in mid September. The soil will still be warm and at the sametime natural rainfall in autumn should keep it well watered |
| Date: 30 July 2019 |
From: Edward |
| QUESTION: Do hypericum need dead heading?
ANSWER: No, the flowers are produced all at once and dead heading will not encourage more to form. |
| Date: 28 January 2019 |
From: Josephine |
| QUESTION: I want to grow a hypericum hedge up a sunny but chalky bank.Will the plant tolerate the chalk?
ANSWER: Hypericum prefer a neutral soil (neither acidic or alkaline) but they tolerate well variationson this well. But if your soil is truly chalky I would choose another shrub. |
| Date: 28 January 2019 |
From: Marian |
| QUESTION: We have a Hypericum hedge alongside our house and ourneighbour told us that whilst we were away last March we had a frost to -15C. All the leaves were dead and over summer2018 leggy shoots of new growth appeared from the base.
The hedge has a skeleton about 4′ high of dead wood, some of thetwigs actually pull out of the ground as they have rotted. Should I cut the dead wood back completely and leave it as aframe for new growth? Or should I cut everything back to ground level and live with an unsightly mess until Spring when itshoots again?
ANSWER: I would cut the lot back to about 25cm / 10in in mid to late March. Try to cut back to groundlevel / remove any dead wood at the same time. If you cut it back now and there is a warm spell followed by hard frost,there is a danger that the new growth may be damaged again. |
| Date: 01 August 2018 |
From: Mary G |
| QUESTION: Can hypericum be divided?
ANSWER: I’ve never tried to propagate hypericum from division because taking cuttings is far easier.However, yes hypericums can be divided, the best time to do that is early autumn. |
| Date: 15 July 2018 |
From: Rosina H |
| QUESTION: My hypericum (planted last year) looks very healthy andhas had plenty of flowers. However, these are now almost over and it’s only mid-July. Others in our village are still floweringprofusely. Any ideas?
ANSWER: I had many questions earlier this year about hypericums being apparently damaged by thevery cold weather. Mine was certainly damaged.
But they all seem to have recovered. Those which were damaged the worst, mine included, started to flower the latest of all and are only now beginning to stop flowering. Others who were affected, but not so badly, begun flowering a week or two earlier.
They also stopped flowering a week or two earlier. The position of thehypericum seems to be crucial to how it was affected. Those subject to high winds suffered most.
So, it all seems to be down to the unusually cold winter. Normal flower production will hopefully resume in 2019. |
| Date: 9 June 2018 |
From: Kroare |
| QUESTION: Can they be grown in large pots?
ANSWER: Almost any plant can be grown in a container but hypericum would prove very difficult. |
| Date: 11 May 2018 |
From: Michael |
| QUESTION: Almost every publication I can find says HypericumHidcote grows to a maximum of around 1 metre. Yet my neighbour has a hedge of what looks very much like it at 2metres. Which I want to copy. CAN they grow higher if allowed, or have I mis-identified my neighbour’s?
ANSWER: This website says above “They grow to a maximum height of 1.5m / 5ft and a slightlylarger spread.”.
If I look out of my front window I can see three hypericums, one of them mine. They are all very well established andall at almost exactly the same height of 1.5m. I think that 1.5m is about as tall as they grow, maybe slightly higher ifyou don’t prune the top and just prune the sides. |
| Date: 5 May 2018 |
From: Cathy |
| QUESTION: My hypericum is 40 yrs old. I always pruned inautumn but this year left til April. It looks in bad state now. Few leaves. Is it time to dig out and start again?
ANSWER: My advice is to look at the hypericum closely. Froma distance it may appear to be nearly dead after the harsh winter but if you cansee small green shoots when you are close up it will almost certainly recover.
I would then prune it, either now or in early autumn to remove dead branches. |
| Date: 13 March 2017 |
From: Joy |
| QUESTION: My hypericum bush is 4-5foot tall. I normally trimit early March, but last year there was a lot of seemingly dead branches, especially in the centre parts of it.This year I am not sure if I should try to remove all this ‘dead’ wood. If I did, there would not be much left.I’d appreciate your advice.
ANSWER: Hypericum are
very strong growing shrubs, especially after they have been pruned. As long asyou are sure the wood is dead then I would prune it all away.
The problem of identifying dead wood is one reason why I always prune mineimmediately after flowering. |
| Date: 02 March 2017 |
From: Stephen |
| QUESTION: Most sites recommend pruning Hypericum Hidcote in spring. Is this the right timeto prune or after flowering? I would like to reduce height from six to five feet. If i can prune now, do i need towait until there is no frost? Will it still produce flowers in July?
ANSWER: After flowering is the best time to prune hypericumin my experience although many do recommend spring.
If you prune hypericum in mid-spring you stand a chance of removing some of theforming flower buds. Much depends on which area of the UK you live in.
I would also recommend that you prune ithard. Once hypericum reach 6 ft high they grow astonishingly quickly after pruning.
No joke, I would recommend pruning it back by a half. I say that from past experience over many years with theone I have in my garden. Prune yours by half after flowering this year and I can almost guarantee it will be5 foot tall and wide next year. |
| Date: 15 August 2016 |
From: Little Nu |
| Other sites recommend pruning in spring. Has anyone pruned in August and did the plant flower well next year? |
| Date: 7 August 2016 |
From: John |
| Can hypericum be trimmed to make a low formal hedge and if so how far apart should I plant it?
ANSWER: Yes they can, and they make ideal low hedges. If youwant to keep them well trimmed the height will be about 1 metre.
Planting distance depends on how long you want to wait for a dense hedge.Plant them at 3 per metre for a quick growing hedge, down to about 1 per metreif you can wait a year longer. |
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COMMENTS / QUESTIONS LEFT BY OUR READERS
ANSWER: I have been asked this question a couple of times and although I have never tried it,others report great difficulty in stopping the roots of hypericum from regrowing.
I would think your only option is to lay down a very strong weed suppressant membrane which has been doubledup to two layers. I still think you will need to keep an eye on the area for a year or so and cut away anygrowth that pushes through the membrane as soon as you see it.
ANSWER: Hypericum are very hardy shrubs and almost impossible to kill. If you see green shootsthe shrub is alive and will revive very quickly. Nothing need to be done. The old leaves will drop off naturally.
Can I now move them into my garden?
ANSWER: I’ve never grown Hypericum from seed before so I am not expert at this.
Although established hypericum are as tough as old boots, I’m not so sure about them in pots and also so young.Personally I would give them another couple of months in the cold frame.
ANSWER: I think it’s too late to prune it now and still have flowers. Certainly if it does flower there will be far less.
ANSWER: I would prune it back hard now and then move it in mid September. The soil will still be warm and at the sametime natural rainfall in autumn should keep it well watered
ANSWER: No, the flowers are produced all at once and dead heading will not encourage more to form.
ANSWER: Hypericum prefer a neutral soil (neither acidic or alkaline) but they tolerate well variationson this well. But if your soil is truly chalky I would choose another shrub.
The hedge has a skeleton about 4′ high of dead wood, some of thetwigs actually pull out of the ground as they have rotted. Should I cut the dead wood back completely and leave it as aframe for new growth? Or should I cut everything back to ground level and live with an unsightly mess until Spring when itshoots again?
ANSWER: I would cut the lot back to about 25cm / 10in in mid to late March. Try to cut back to groundlevel / remove any dead wood at the same time. If you cut it back now and there is a warm spell followed by hard frost,there is a danger that the new growth may be damaged again.
ANSWER: I’ve never tried to propagate hypericum from division because taking cuttings is far easier.However, yes hypericums can be divided, the best time to do that is early autumn.
ANSWER: I had many questions earlier this year about hypericums being apparently damaged by thevery cold weather. Mine was certainly damaged.
But they all seem to have recovered. Those which were damaged the worst, mine included, started to flower the latest of all and are only now beginning to stop flowering. Others who were affected, but not so badly, begun flowering a week or two earlier.
They also stopped flowering a week or two earlier. The position of thehypericum seems to be crucial to how it was affected. Those subject to high winds suffered most.
So, it all seems to be down to the unusually cold winter. Normal flower production will hopefully resume in 2019.
ANSWER: Almost any plant can be grown in a container but hypericum would prove very difficult.
ANSWER: This website says above “They grow to a maximum height of 1.5m / 5ft and a slightlylarger spread.”.
If I look out of my front window I can see three hypericums, one of them mine. They are all very well established andall at almost exactly the same height of 1.5m. I think that 1.5m is about as tall as they grow, maybe slightly higher ifyou don’t prune the top and just prune the sides.
ANSWER: My advice is to look at the hypericum closely. Froma distance it may appear to be nearly dead after the harsh winter but if you cansee small green shoots when you are close up it will almost certainly recover.
I would then prune it, either now or in early autumn to remove dead branches.
ANSWER: Hypericum are
very strong growing shrubs, especially after they have been pruned. As long asyou are sure the wood is dead then I would prune it all away.
The problem of identifying dead wood is one reason why I always prune mineimmediately after flowering.
ANSWER: After flowering is the best time to prune hypericumin my experience although many do recommend spring.
If you prune hypericum in mid-spring you stand a chance of removing some of theforming flower buds. Much depends on which area of the UK you live in.
I would also recommend that you prune ithard. Once hypericum reach 6 ft high they grow astonishingly quickly after pruning.
No joke, I would recommend pruning it back by a half. I say that from past experience over many years with theone I have in my garden. Prune yours by half after flowering this year and I can almost guarantee it will be5 foot tall and wide next year.
ANSWER: Yes they can, and they make ideal low hedges. If youwant to keep them well trimmed the height will be about 1 metre.
Planting distance depends on how long you want to wait for a dense hedge.Plant them at 3 per metre for a quick growing hedge, down to about 1 per metreif you can wait a year longer.
WHY NOT LEAVE YOUR QUESTION / COMMENTS ABOUT THIS PAGE?
ENTER THEM BELOW. EMAIL ADDRESS IS OPTIONAL.
YOUR COMMENTS WILL BE ADDED ABOVE WITHIN A FEW HOURS.
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