Cerinthe flopping over

I have a number of cerinthes that germinated in the garden last summer/autumn, after last year's plants set seed. They grew quite strongly over autumn/winter but a few have flopped over, those with thick woody stems a couple of feet long.

With this type of annual (or I suppose it's growing more like a biennial), is it OK to cut the flopped-over ones back to a few inches of stem? Or might they not regrow the same way as a cut-back perennial?

I've never had reason to drastically cut back an annual/biennial so I don't know how it will respond!

 

When I've grown them I sometimes see the stems of new plants limp in early Spring.
I found the cause to be frost.
Once it warmed up a bit they regained their rigidity, grew well and flowered well.

Maybe the same applies to yours.
I've not noticed anything else with new plants that have self-sown as they are very hardy plants.

 

Thanks @Pete8. I'll proceed cautiously then.

I'm thinking I might snip one or two back and leave the rest, to see if it makes a difference.

 

I agree with you they seem to be quite hardy, even though websites usually show them as half-hardy.

We've had an awful lot of frosts this winter (though rarely below -2 and never below -5) yet they seem fine. Only one or two out of a dozen or so are showing a few wilted/blackened leaves.

 

I've always found them to be a bit floppy/straggly.