Foxglove is a wild, native plant but also used in perennial displays in the landscape. The tall flower spikes bloom from the bottom up and produce prolific seeds. Should you get rid of foxgloves’ spent flowers? Yes, if you don’t want foxgloves to take over your garden. Deadheading foxglove plants can minimize their spread, but it has added benefits as well. Details on how to remove spent blooms follow.
Foxgloves are a classic garden flower that can put on a gorgeous display in early to mid summer. Their tall spikes of tubular flowers come in shades of purple, pink, white, yellow and red. Foxgloves self-seed freely around the garden and make a great addition to cottage garden schemes. However, what should you do when those beautiful blooms are gone? Keep reading for advice on how to take care of foxgloves after they bloom.
When the stalks of those towering tubular foxglove blooms start to fade, it’s time to get the pruners out! Deadheading means cutting off the spent flowers just below the faded bloom. This gardening ritual encourages more blooms and keeps plants looking fresh.
When it comes to biennial foxgloves, cutting off the dead flowers after the first round is important for getting a second round of flowers later in the summer on shorter stalks. Trust me, it’s worth the effort for more of those gorgeous bell-shaped blossoms!.
Start deadheading foxgloves as soon as flowers fade or look unsightly. Don’t wait until the last bloom fades. Patrol your garden bed regularly and snip off individual finished flower stalks.
Roses are universally loved for their beauty, fragrance and elegance. But did you know that pairing roses with tiny white flowers can make them even more stunning? The simplicity and delicacy of little white blooms helps roses stand out and pop. Let’s explore some of the top choices for miniature white flowers to use with roses.
Babies Breath – The Most Popular Complement
By far the most common tiny white flower featured with roses is babies breath, also known as Gypsophila Its airy clouds of minuscule blossoms provide the perfect lightweight filler and texture contrast to the larger, showier rose blooms The neutral white color of babies breath also lets the rose be the star.
Babies breath is affordable and easy to find, making it a go-to option. It’s one of the few flowers available year-round as well. The dainty blooms evoke a romantic, whimsical feeling perfect for weddings and celebrations. Taller spray babies breath works well in centerpiece vases while the short bouquet type is ideal for handheld bouquets and boutonnieres.
When using babies breath with roses, create full billowy bunches for maximum impact. Babies breath can also soften the edges of rose arrangements. Intermingle it freely throughout or use it as a frothy base layer under the roses.
Queen Anne’s Lace – Vintage Appeal
With its clusters oftiny white florets and lacy, flat-topped shape, Queen Anne’s Lacehas an old-fashioned charm that pairs wonderfully with roses. It brings a bit ofcottage garden ambiance. The flat umbels also contrast beautifully with therounded rose form.
Queen Anne’s Lace grows wild so it has a lovely natural, wispy look. For an organic effect, blend it in loosely with roses in a casual, just-picked style. Or showcase the laciness by using it as a border or outer edge. Its soft tulle-like layers make roses really pop at the center.
This humble wildflower dries well too. Dried Queen Anne’s Lace offers a more textured, vintage feel with roses.
Lisianthus – Elegant and Refined
Lisianthus has delicate, cup-shaped blooms with a velvety appearance. The upfacing blossoms add structure and sophistication with roses. The white varieties provide perfect neutral counterpoints.
Lisianthus has exceptional vase life, lasting up to three weeks. Its sturdy stems won’t droop or wilt quickly like some other flowers. Lisianthus can form both focal points and frothy fillers. Use it as accents within rose bouquets or allow it to trail gracefully from the edges.
For contemporary styling, pair single lisianthus stems with roses. The juxtaposition of the round, ruffled roses with upright lisianthus is strikingly elegant.
Astilbe – Feathery and Soft
The feathery plumes of astilbe resemble tiny white fireworks bursting open. These fluffy flower panicles make airy accents to rose arrangements. The froufrou shape contrasts beautifully with the classic rose silhouette.
Astilbe symbolizes devoted love, making it extra meaningful in rose bouquets for weddings or anniversaries. It comes in white as well as pink, purple and red varieties that also complement roses nicely.
Cluster several astilbe stems low in a vase as a base for roses, or use individual stems poking out around roses for texture. The feathery fronds pair particularly beautifully with open cabbage style garden roses.
Limonium – Bold Statement Maker
With its large domed flower heads, limonium makes a bolder statement than many tiny white flowers. The sturdy, long lasting blooms add structural interest to rose bouquets.
Limonium, also known as “statice” or “sea lavender”, provides great definition and form. Use it sparingly for pops of textural contrast. Limonium is available year-round but looks especially nice paired with roses in autumn arrangements.
For a dramatic look, tuck limonium among dark colored roses like burgundy or deep red. The sea lavender domes popping out are eye catching.
Chrysanthemum Pompons – Playful and Festive
Also known as spider mums, these cute button-like pompons have a playful, poppable texture paired with roses. The pom flowers add a whimsical note to rose bouquets with their bursting starry form.
The pom poms are available in multiple colors but white is a perfect neutral. Tuck the mini spider mums throughout rose arrangements for added interest and texture. Let them peek out around roses for a charming, unexpected discovery.
For a casual fun look, bunch chrysanthemum pompons with garden style roses in a milk jar or other everyday container. The unexpected pairing is full of playful possibilities.
Sweet Alyssum – Subtle Beauty
This delicate annual bears clusters of tiny five-petaled white blossoms along gently trailing stems. Their subtle beauty works well juxtaposed with the showy richness of roses.
The tiny flowers have a light honey scent too, mingling nicely with rose fragrance. Allow sweet alyssum to drift dreamily around the edges of rose bouquets, or fill gaps gently between roses like beautiful confetti. They add ethereal charm with little effort or expense.
Glossary of Other Options
Beyond these most popular choices, there are so many other possibilities to complement your roses. Here is a quick glossary of additional tiny white blooms to consider:
-Snowflake flower – Unique three-petaled white blooms
-Baby Eucalyptus – Fluffy white confetti-like leaves
-Bells of Ireland – Green calyxes with dangling white blooms
-Feverfew – Tiny fresh daisies on lush foliage
-Hellebores – Downward facing blooms, often edged in plum
-Hydrangea – Popular wedding flower, clustered blooms
-Stephanotis – Waxy white star-shaped flowers, popular for weddings
-Stock – Spikes of itty bitty fragrant white flowers
-Sweet Peas – Beautifully ruffled and delicate blooms
Whatever tiny white flowers you choose, the combination with roses is sure to delight. Like icing flowers on a cake, the right little white blooms add the perfect final touch of refinement and beauty. Let them frame, accent and enhance your gorgeous roses for bouquets and arrangements with extra charm and romance.
How to Deadhead Foxgloves
Deadheading foxgloves is super easy:
- Use hand pruners or garden scissors/snips.
- Snip spent bloom stems just below the faded flower.
- Cut flower stalks down to the green leaves at the base.
- Remove all dead and damaged leaves at the base.
Be sure to sanitize your pruners with rubbing alcohol between plants to prevent disease spread!
Leaving Foliage Over Winter
In places where foxgloves are hardy and do well over the winter, you can leave the plant alone once the flowers are gone. Allow the foliage to die back naturally without cutting anything back. This provides shelter for beneficial insects who use the hollow stems for hibernation habitat.
The basal leaves remain to capture sunlight over winter. In the spring, cut back any growth that isn’t healthy and cover the crown with organic fertilizer or compost. New growth will soon emerge and blooms will follow in summer.
Mature foxglove clumps that have outgrown their space can be divided in fall after flowering. Dig up the whole clump and divide it into smaller sections using two forks back to back. Replant the divisions 18-24 inches apart.
Dividing overcrowded plants rejuvenates them and results in healthier, more prolific blooming plants. It also gives you more foxgloves from one original plant. Water the replanted divisions well until they establish.
Make super cute mini roses out of paper
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