Hi Donna, You haven’t seen any leaf buds at all? You do NOT want to prune after they have started to leaf out since they only flower on the new growth. If you prune after they bud, you’re cutting off the new flowers.
Pruning isn’t essential unless your bush is getting too large or out of control. We only prune to encourage new growth and lots of blooms.If your butterfly bush isn’t leafing out by early May, it may have died. Do the 鈥渟cratch test.鈥 Scratch the bark near the base of the plant. Do you see green or brown? If you see green, it’s alive. If it’s not green, start higher up. Work your way down the bush until you find signs of life and prune to that point.
And, yes, butterfly bushes can be pruned severely; they love it.
Hi Donna, You haven’t seen any leaf buds at all? You do NOT want to prune after they have started to leaf out since they only flower on the new growth. If you prune after they bud, you’re cutting off the new flowers.
Pruning isn’t essential unless your bush is getting too large or out of control. We only prune to encourage new growth and lots of blooms.If your butterfly bush isn’t leafing out by early May, it may have died. Do the 鈥渟cratch test.鈥 Scratch the bark near the base of the plant. Do you see green or brown? If you see green, it’s alive. If it’s not green, start higher up. Work your way down the bush until you find signs of life and prune to that point.
And, yes, butterfly bushes can be pruned severely; they love it.