hi newbie here got a few questions

hi i'm tracey and new to the board
am also very new to gardening got bitten by the gardening bug late april last year, but have lots and lots to learn, i have a few questions to ask people if thats ok with you all, have looked for answers on the net but can't seem to find them.
1) with lupins and foxgloves when there at the end of the year and the leaves are all brown and dying back are you suppose to cut them completly back to the soil or leave them alone?
2) i am also growing some lupins from seed, when you repot them on, do you put the first leafs that appeared under soil level and just leave the normal lupin like leaves above?
last one for now promise
3) i have some hyacinths in pots the the flowers are now looking worse for wear,, do i cut the flower stems out and leave the foilage to dye down on its own before i plant them out later in the year?

sorry i know all the questions sound really dumb but am totally new at this and don't have anyone to ask.

hope you guys can help, thanks in advance
tracey

 

Hi Tracey,

The gardening bugs gets to us all.

The answer to your questions are.

1) Cut the old top growth down. Some people do this in the autumn when the foliage turns brown while others leave them on through winter to protect the crowns. The two plants that you mentioned however are very hardy to English weather so this is no problem. I suggest that you cut them down now but be careful because due to the warm January they may have started to form new soft green growth at the base.

2) No. Always hold the seedlings by the two lower seed leaves and when you re-pot leave these just above the surface of the compost.

3) You can cut the flower stems down and let the foliage die down before planting out in March or April. If the hyacinths have been forced by the growers then the flowers will be smaller next year and may not even flower but they should settle down soon after that.

I hope that this helps.


Good luck!

 

Hi Russ
Thanks very much for the answers, really appreciated.
Just can't wait for everything to start blooming now, like everyone i'm sure. Its so exciting waiting for everything to come up isn't it and it took me 33 yrs to realise it LOL.
thanks again
Tracey