AND if he didn't already say, buddleia (butterfly bush) is VERY easy to root/propagate in early spring. Snip 3-4 inch piece, strip bottom leaves leaving 2 top leaves and pinch out the tip. Put in water for a couple of days then plant in potting soil. SO EASY! They grow very quickly.
ABSOLUTELY the best video I've seen on this subject. You hear all kinds of "methods", but simply put, this nails it. I west of Charlotte in the country and will be following this protocol from now on.
I take some of the cuttings and stick them right in the ground where I want more butterfly bushes and I seem to always get some to take root. Crape myrtles, hibiscus, gardenias and lots of other things do too!
I have an enormous 🦋 bush that needs a serious haircut! I am so glad I saw this video bc I’m going to tame her for sure as soon as the snow melts. Thanks a bunch!
The swallowtails love mine as well. My two were volunteers that I ground elsewhere in the yard and I just moved them. I’ll be cutting mine back again shortly.
My experience with hard trimming butterfly bushes is that the new growth is very fragile. Even though the new branches grow fast, they are so tender that even a mild wind can break them off. Here in zone 7A, lots of old timers never trim their butterflies and they do just fine. So it’s a quandary!
I have several butterfly bushes and have even trained a couple as standards, where I heavy prune the top in late winter, leaving the main trunk about 3-4 ft. That way I can under plant and get good screening from the neighbours during the summer months.
Zone 8 here in Oregon. I have a well established B.Bush with woody shoots up to 6ft that I let go up to 12-15 feet bi-annually. It's been through a couple horrible ice storms with mild breakage. I attribute that to how thick and compact its woody base supports it's long shoots. I only give it a good pruning every two years as it's really quite resilient. I shape it about two times a year to clear new low shoots that are unsupported as they tend to break from their own weight. I've got a handful of clipping starters going this year for myself and neighbors. It's really one of the best low maintenance medium shade covers I have.
👍 I planted one last year and it was pretty and I deadheaded it and trimmed it back in the fall. I hope I didn't kill it. Thanks for this information for the future.
I have a black knight and a white profusion butterfly bush. I had no clue just how huge they can be lol. Thanks for this video I am going to have to chop them back a bit this year.
Thanks, Jim. I'm in zone 8. Weather is supposed to clear tomorrow. It will be a good day to cut back my butterfly bushes. I don't have problems with them being invasive here in Alabama either.
Great video!!! Thank You!!! I had a Nanho purple butterfly bush at my old house that got 8-10 ft and I didn't know how to prune it properly. I bought a new variety that is shorter for my current home. Never saw short varieties until this past year. Excited they are available now and that your video taught me how to prune correctly. :)
Timely video on pruning butterfly bushes. I just pruned some leggy azaleas to prevent squirrels from using them to steal suet. Yes, I know I pruned some blooms. I practice permaculture and I stuck the pruned pieces in a pot of good old soil I feed with kitchen scraps. Well guess what, not a one has had transplant shock and come late Spring I will have six more azaleas bushes to plant. Just found your channel and have subscribed.
Perfect...I am where they can be invasive (actually it is illegal to buy non-sterile in some states) and have put off buying one until I could find sterile and now I needed to know how to prune it...did not know they bloomed on new wood!
Ohhh man! Mine is big and beautiful this is gonna hurt... But I trust you Jim!!!! Thank you for this video I wouldn’t have cut it back bc I just didn’t know I needed to!!!
First, I really do enjoy all the info you share in your videos that said, where is the other dog? If he's in the house how do you keep him from barking and wanting to be outside with you and Holly? I used to have two dogs and I'd never get away with one staying inside while I'm out in the garden with the other. Just curious how you make it happen.
thank you. appreciate how easy you made the process. Also if we live in a more northern area (Rochester, NY) when do you recommend the pruning? Does it have to do with frost dates? :)
Excellent video! My bushes are three years old and this season really came into their own. Right now they are about 5 feet tall. Butterflies visiting all day long. I live in Reno Nevada and we definitely have four seasons here. When would be the best time to prune them? Thank you!
Jim, could you stick some of those buddleia trimmings into a large pot of soil & sand to root rather than composting them? Or would it be better to wait until later in the winter to prune if you want to try to propagate the cuttings? I have done this with dormant cuttings from my panicle hydrangeas when I trim off the brown flowers in late winter and met with some luck. It seems like an easy way to increase a favorite shrub and plant new ones around the garden.
I have a butterfly bush, after the winter and during spring it wouldn’t grow then a few months ago i realized I didn’t prune it, then once I did suddenly it bloomed into the most beautiful bush, i see tons of butterflies on it all day more and more!!!i got lucky and the flowers are so scattered so around it to!!! What i want to know is do you want to just prune it before spring comes around ?
Excellent video. I need to trim one back. Over 10 ft and relatively woody. I cut back to what you recommended. Would November be too early to trim? Zone 6 Massachusetts here. Or should I wait until late March/early April? Thank you. 😊
We need to relocate a butterfly bush that has not been pruned. It’s about 3 feet tall. Should we prune then replant or just replant? And I’m in Durham, north cackalacky!
I planted very small butterfly bushes 4 years ago and only ever pruned the dead flowers . They are huge now, well about 4’ tall and 3’ wide. one of them has no new growth this year, it was de-rooted by a storm in the fall which I’m afraid killed it. The other 2 have new growth but growing totally different this year - looks like all the new growth is coming from the ground or the base of the old stems so I have all this dead old bush everywhere and I don’t know how much to cut off.
Hello! Thank you so much for all this wonder information. I’m a faithful subscriber. I have two Miss Pearl butterfly bushes I planted last spring that I would like to transplant. When would be the best time to do that? I was thinking it might be best to prune them now and transplant in early spring? Or shld I try to transplant now before they break dormancy? I’m in zone 6B.
Hi there I'm in Canada. We often still have snow on the ground and cold nights until end of April.. I was always cutting it right down in fall. I then read that I shouldn't cut it right down and should be pruning in the spring. I don't really have much life on the old stocks. So any suggestions as to where to prune to. I have various heights on the plant. It hasn't really become much of a bush after approximately 8 years. Either because I kept pruning it back to the ground or maybe soil?????
Hi Jim, love your videos, thank you for sharing such wonderful knowledge. Do I still in the window to trim my butterfly bush...I am fairly close to you northern VA.. thank you
Help..i.have 2 6 ft butterfly bushes in front of my house. I want to prune them but I live in northeast PA and can't exactly prune from Dec thru March or so. What should I do?
I have seen conflicting info if I should prune in the late fall or early spring. I did not prune it back last fall. I am in Iowa it said I'd you cut back in fall it will rot from the rain and snow. So what should I do
My butterfly bush is about 8 feet and I like it that height as it's good screening. So maybe cutting to 24" would be too drastic? Should I just prune it down by half? Stems at 8 feet seem strong but I do know what you are saying about windstorms. My neighbor across the street has a butterfly bush she never prunes and it's at least 15 feet and branches snap off in storms. Thanks.
His last bush he trimmed was taller so he took its down by half & said he would let new growth show before pruning further so you don't cut off below new potential growth areas. Think cutting to 48" vs 24" is a good idea :)
I watched the video several times making sure I’m not missing anything. We moved into a new house that has 2 butterfly bushes that are terrible over grown. They are actually bent over. I left them alone for the summer since they were covered with butterflies. Now it’s time to fix them and I’m so afraid I’m going to do it wrong!
So I was told I could cut my butterfly bush all the way down the the ground. There is about 3-4inch of stem on top of the soil. Did I just murder this plant?
Jim, I am in zone 8. Just bought my first butterfly bush. Thank you for your video as always. Just want to confirm the best time to prune the plant. Is it early Spring before the new growth? Thank you very much!
Butterfly weed is indeed a weed. It is foreign and has no place in the US. There are so many NATIVE plants resources much prettier and useful to insects, it’s purely insane to pay for weeds. Sign of insanity.
AND if he didn't already say, buddleia (butterfly bush) is VERY easy to root/propagate in early spring. Snip 3-4 inch piece, strip bottom leaves leaving 2 top leaves and pinch out the tip. Put in water for a couple of days then plant in potting soil. SO EASY! They grow very quickly.
Не стоит переживать! Буддлея отрастет и порадует Вас пышным цветением!
That’s the first thing I thought when he cut that first one! 😹😹😹
I didn't know that, I'm going to have to start lots to plant
Thank you man very informational !
ABSOLUTELY the best video I've seen on this subject. You hear all kinds of "methods", but simply put, this nails it. I west of Charlotte in the country and will be following this protocol from now on.
I take some of the cuttings and stick them right in the ground where I want more butterfly bushes and I seem to always get some to take root. Crape myrtles, hibiscus, gardenias and lots of other things do too!
Wow I have gardenias I will try this! Thanks!
Same here, I just stuck a twig from my brothers butterfly bush in maybe Sept-Oct, it's had new growth around Christmas. I'm in Maryland on the shore.
wowwww
👍🏼
I often try this with other plants, but usually I'm not successful. I will def try this with my butterfly bush. I'd like more. :D
I approve of your home's former owners foresight in planting a giant screening bush! That is the first time I've even noticed those guy wires.
I have an enormous 🦋 bush that needs a serious haircut! I am so glad I saw this video bc I’m going to tame her for sure as soon as the snow melts. Thanks a bunch!
Jim, thank you for mentioning host plants for the butterfly larva! I hope everyone listens because all gardens should have them!
Yes, I heard that and can’t wait to find something to plant in my yard. 🥰.
Agreed. One of my favorites is the Zebra Swallowtail butterfly. Where we live, Paw Paw trees are everywhere. So we added in some butterfly bushes.
@@bbandsue222I just discovered orange milkweed
The swallowtails love mine as well. My two were volunteers that I ground elsewhere in the yard and I just moved them. I’ll be cutting mine back again shortly.
Next time you’re in Texas, come by and do mine! Lol. Tfs. 👏🏻💕👏🏻
Happy to see your Fatshedera with purple tones on it. I thought mine was dying, until I looked more closely. It's very pretty with its purple blush.
My experience with hard trimming butterfly bushes is that the new growth is very fragile. Even though the new branches grow fast, they are so tender that even a mild wind can break them off. Here in zone 7A, lots of old timers never trim their butterflies and they do just fine. So it’s a quandary!
I'm in 7a too. I can't bear to cut my plants 😄
So, I have 3 new butterfly bushes just completing their first year of growth, without a plan. Now I have a plan. Thanks.
I have several butterfly bushes and have even trained a couple as standards, where I heavy prune the top in late winter, leaving the main trunk about 3-4 ft. That way I can under plant and get good screening from the neighbours during the summer months.
Ha ha! I literally just pruned my butterfly bushes on Sunday. Hopefully, I did not cut off all my potential for new growth!
It will likely come back from suckers no matter what. Thanks for watching 😊
Nice and simple, nothing fancy or complicated. Perfect. Thank you.
Zone 8 here in Oregon. I have a well established B.Bush with woody shoots up to 6ft that I let go up to 12-15 feet bi-annually. It's been through a couple horrible ice storms with mild breakage. I attribute that to how thick and compact its woody base supports it's long shoots. I only give it a good pruning every two years as it's really quite resilient. I shape it about two times a year to clear new low shoots that are unsupported as they tend to break from their own weight. I've got a handful of clipping starters going this year for myself and neighbors. It's really one of the best low maintenance medium shade covers I have.
👍 I planted one last year and it was pretty and I deadheaded it and trimmed it back in the fall. I hope I didn't kill it. Thanks for this information for the future.
It should be fine. Good luck with it
Thank you Jim, this is incredibly helpful and right on time.
Thanks for watching 😊
Thank you Jim, very helpful... Love the plant but now I know how to prune it.
Thanks Jim. I'll get out and give mine it's pruning tomorrow then
Your psychic!!! I just looking at my butterfly bush yesterday and was wondering when should I prune this 9foot butterfly bush!!! Thanks 😊
Hi, Hollie! 🐕
So happy you posted this. I've been looking at my butterfly bush wondering if I should prune! Thank you from zone 7b!
Thank you for doing this video! Very informative and you explained everything extremely well.
Relieved to know I can still prune mine!!! I'm in 9b and mine looks like yours-just starting to get buds.
Thanks so much for the suggestion about planting Host plants near my butterfly bushes!
Thank you Jim good information!
Thanks Jim. This is gonna be helpful
I live in Michigan. Can we trim your n the fall when doing leaf cleanup? Or will that hinder the spring growth?
I have a black knight and a white profusion butterfly bush. I had no clue just how huge they can be lol. Thanks for this video I am going to have to chop them back a bit this year.
Thanks for the video
Thank you! I’ve been waiting the this! I’ll cut mine this weekend! 🙏🏽
Thanks, Jim. I'm in zone 8. Weather is supposed to clear tomorrow. It will be a good day to cut back my butterfly bushes. I don't have problems with them being invasive here in Alabama either.
Great video!!! Thank You!!! I had a Nanho purple butterfly bush at my old house that got 8-10 ft and I didn't know how to prune it properly. I bought a new variety that is shorter for my current home. Never saw short varieties until this past year. Excited they are available now and that your video taught me how to prune correctly. :)
Timely video on pruning butterfly bushes. I just pruned some leggy azaleas to prevent squirrels from using them to steal suet. Yes, I know I pruned some blooms. I practice permaculture and I stuck the pruned pieces in a pot of good old soil I feed with kitchen scraps. Well guess what, not a one has had transplant shock and come late Spring I will have six more azaleas bushes to plant. Just found your channel and have subscribed.
oh man, all those cuttings to propagate!
Perfect...I am where they can be invasive (actually it is illegal to buy non-sterile in some states) and have put off buying one until I could find sterile and now I needed to know how to prune it...did not know they bloomed on new wood!
I have one to cut back and move! I’ve waited to do this and now is the time! Mine just needs a little more sun.
Thanks, Jim!
Great video Jim.
Thanks Jim for the reminder- adding it to the weekend to-do list. What about Lantana and Salvia? When can they be cut back?
I usually wait later on both in my area. In warmer areas they could be cut hard now.
@@JimPutnam Thanks! I'm 8B so I give it to late Feb, early March.
Thank you! So helpful!
Ohhh man! Mine is big and beautiful this is gonna hurt... But I trust you Jim!!!! Thank you for this video I wouldn’t have cut it back bc I just didn’t know I needed to!!!
Thanks Jim
First, I really do enjoy all the info you share in your videos that said, where is the other dog? If he's in the house how do you keep him from barking and wanting to be outside with you and Holly? I used to have two dogs and I'd never get away with one staying inside while I'm out in the garden with the other. Just curious how you make it happen.
He is in the house while I film. He doesn't seem to mind, because we walk right before we shoot in the morning!!
I have old weigela bushes can these be pruned the same way?zone 5 central Indiana.
thank you. appreciate how easy you made the process. Also if we live in a more northern area (Rochester, NY) when do you recommend the pruning? Does it have to do with frost dates? :)
Excellent video! My bushes are three years old and this season really came into their own. Right now they are about 5 feet tall. Butterflies visiting all day long. I live in Reno Nevada and we definitely have four seasons here. When would be the best time to prune them? Thank you!
Jim, could you stick some of those buddleia trimmings into a large pot of soil & sand to root rather than composting them? Or would it be better to wait until later in the winter to prune if you want to try to propagate the cuttings? I have done this with dormant cuttings from my panicle hydrangeas when I trim off the brown flowers in late winter and met with some luck. It seems like an easy way to increase a favorite shrub and plant new ones around the garden.
Thank you for the advice…❤
Can you root those cuttings you are pruning?
I presume this same process will work with the miniature varieties?
I am in the group of " Cut them to the ground" group!
That’s what I do and I swear they grow even taller than before during the growing season.
Thank you, very informant. I just planted a black night butterfly bush in front my yard. It a babe. I need to know when & where to prune.
I have a butterfly bush, after the winter and during spring it wouldn’t grow then a few months ago i realized I didn’t prune it, then once I did suddenly it bloomed into the most beautiful bush, i see tons of butterflies on it all day more and more!!!i got lucky and the flowers are so scattered so around it to!!!
What i want to know is do you want to just prune it before spring comes around ?
Hi Jim...does the same hold true for the dwarf pugster variety in terms of pruning?
Yes, but it just needs a small haircut.
Excellent video. I need to trim one back. Over 10 ft and relatively woody. I cut back to what you recommended. Would November be too early to trim? Zone 6 Massachusetts here. Or should I wait until late March/early April? Thank you. 😊
Thanks Jim, so helpful. Wondering about the small Lo and behold would you prune them back too or just trim them up?
Just dead head them. They will branch more and bloom more
What is a “lo and behold”?
In California we have Milkweed that the Monarchs feed on, and my “Butterfly bush” is called Gaura.
We need to relocate a butterfly bush that has not been pruned. It’s about 3 feet tall. Should we prune then replant or just replant? And I’m in Durham, north cackalacky!
I planted very small butterfly bushes 4 years ago and only ever pruned the dead flowers . They are huge now, well about 4’ tall and 3’ wide. one of them has no new growth this year, it was de-rooted by a storm in the fall which I’m afraid killed it. The other 2 have new growth but growing totally different this year - looks like all the new growth is coming from the ground or the base of the old stems so I have all this dead old bush everywhere and I don’t know how much to cut off.
Hello! Thank you so much for all this wonder information. I’m a faithful subscriber. I have two Miss Pearl butterfly bushes I planted last spring that I would like to transplant. When would be the best time to do that? I was thinking it might be best to prune them now and transplant in early spring? Or shld I try to transplant now before they break dormancy? I’m in zone 6B.
I would move it anytime between now and April that is convenient. They transplant well.
Thanks helpful video.
Off the subject but I want to prune my older Rose of Sharon back it's a little overgrown I live in southern Michigan
Rose of Sharon also bloom on new wood and can be pruned anytime between flowering and leafing out in the spring
@@JimPutnam Thankyou Jim
thanks for the info on pruning Rose of Sharon!
Should I fertilize it and if so with what? ❤
I have one and was wondering if it’s too soon to prune it now? Thank you! 😁
You can cut it down that far?
Hi Iam in Zone 8b Ga.. so did you prune in spring or can you prune in fall because I want to transplant mine.. when is the best time to do that?
Hi there I'm in Canada. We often still have snow on the ground and cold nights until end of April.. I was always cutting it right down in fall. I then read that I shouldn't cut it right down and should be pruning in the spring. I don't really have much life on the old stocks. So any suggestions as to where to prune to. I have various heights on the plant. It hasn't really become much of a bush after approximately 8 years. Either because I kept pruning it back to the ground or maybe soil?????
I have a dwarf butterfly bush(pugster) that is only about 18 inches tall. It is very dense. Should I prune it back to six inches or leave it alone?
Does this pruning method apply to the Lo and Behold series as well?
All mine still have leaves too. Are they not dormant in 7b winters?
Hi Jim, love your videos, thank you for sharing such wonderful knowledge. Do I still in the window to trim my butterfly bush...I am fairly close to you northern VA.. thank you
Definitely. You can prune tyem anytime spring or through mid summer. I usually cut mine in half again around July 1st.
@@JimPutnam
Thank you so much...
Help..i.have 2 6 ft butterfly bushes in front of my house. I want to prune them but I live in northeast PA and can't exactly prune from Dec thru March or so. What should I do?
I have seen conflicting info if I should prune in the late fall or early spring. I did not prune it back last fall. I am in Iowa it said I'd you cut back in fall it will rot from the rain and snow. So what should I do
My butterfly bush is about 8 feet and I like it that height as it's good screening. So maybe cutting to 24" would be too drastic? Should I just prune it down by half? Stems at 8 feet seem strong but I do know what you are saying about windstorms. My neighbor across the street has a butterfly bush she never prunes and it's at least 15 feet and branches snap off in storms. Thanks.
His last bush he trimmed was taller so he took its down by half & said he would let new growth show before pruning further so you don't cut off below new potential growth areas. Think cutting to 48" vs 24" is a good idea :)
Is January good to prune in zone 6b or can I prune sooner?
I am gone wait a bit longer still to cold now, then mine is gone get the same treatment
I watched the video several times making sure I’m not missing anything. We moved into a new house that has 2 butterfly bushes that are terrible over grown. They are actually bent over. I left them alone for the summer since they were covered with butterflies. Now it’s time to fix them and I’m so afraid I’m going to do it wrong!
Should you prune a butterfly bush in its first season, or wait until it’s more established?
What about your Grand Cascade? Cut back to 18 inches too?
That was the first one I cut in the video actually.
So I was told I could cut my butterfly bush all the way down the the ground. There is about 3-4inch of stem on top of the soil. Did I just murder this plant?
No, lots of people cut them all the way down. I just like to see where it is going to leaf back out. I have more control of the shape this way.
Phew 🙂
Jim, I am in zone 8. Just bought my first butterfly bush. Thank you for your video as always. Just want to confirm the best time to prune the plant. Is it early Spring before the new growth? Thank you very much!
In the US , butterfly bush is invasive. Please plant a native like butterfly weed, milkweed , purple coneflower, etc if possible.
I planted my bushes last summer. Should I still prune them, both about 24 inches high
Just a small haircut!!
Would you prune butterfly bushes this far back in Michigan???
I have a 13ft Butterfly Bush. 😁
I pruned mine this morning. 🤣
DOGGO ALERT @ 4:20
🐶 🐶 🐶 🐶 🐶 🐶
Oh no. So I should have pruned them before this storm we’re about to get?! 😭
Thank you. If I didn't watch your video, I would have been hacking my poor bush to death because I have no idea what I'm doing....but now I do 👍
I like to keep mine shaped like a ball tree
👍❤️😊
👋😄
Butterfly weed is indeed a weed. It is foreign and has no place in the US. There are so many NATIVE plants resources much prettier and useful to insects, it’s purely insane to pay for weeds. Sign of insanity.
You need CrossFit, veganism, or Jesus in your life so you have an extra thing or two to preach about. Go away now.
Oh mine is brown & no green right now should I prune now or wait till I see some green leaves ?