Renowned gardening expert Monty Don has shared his invaluable advice for the month of May, emphasizing the significance of the ‘Chelsea Chop’ in maximizing floral abundance in your garden.
As gardening enthusiasts prepare for a weekend of botanical delights this bank holiday, they’re urged to mark their calendars for a pivotal gardening task later in the month. Contrary to its name, the Chelsea Chop isn’t a fashionable hairstyle; rather, it’s a strategic pruning technique named after the prestigious Chelsea Flower Show, scheduled from May 21 to 24.
This method is strategically timed to align with the show, traditionally held in the third week of May.
Monty Don, the esteemed presenter of Gardeners’ World, took to his blog to illuminate the Chelsea Chop and its advantages. By employing this method, gardeners can extend the flowering period of late-flowering herbaceous perennials like heleniums, sedums, lysimachia, and solidago (Golden Rod).
In his comprehensive instructions, Monty outlines the steps to achieve a prolonged floral display. For those tending to multiple clumps of these plants, he recommends cutting one clump “about halfway up the existing growth”.
For larger clumps, he advises reducing them by a third to optimize flowering.