Near the end of July, the landscape tends to become a bit seedy looking. A good way to freshen things up is to deadhead or remove all the faded flowers from spent perennials and to give leggy annuals such as petunias a quick haircut to revitalize them. Remove the spent stalk of delphiniums, cut back the Oriental poppies and shear off the faded blooms of Lady’s Mantle.
Give your roses some attention this week by cutting back long branches that have already bloomed. And when harvesting hybrid tea roses to bring indoors, make sure you follow the stem down to a point where there is a five-leaflet sprout emerging from the branch. This mid-summer pruning will encourage fresh new growth and even a second wave of blooms.
A. First, the bad news. Ribbon grass spreads from underground rhizomes, so cutting it back will not stop it from spreading as you have found out.
The good news is, we all need more exercise, so grab a shovel and dig in. Removing all the tuberous roots is the only way to get rid of this rather invasive ornamental grass which is also called Variegated Ribbon Grass. It can be grown in a container sunk into the ground if you want to enjoy the soft texture and variegated stripes amidst your flowers.
You can also plant variegated ribbon grass in patio pots and enjoy it year after year as a container plant. This grass loves shade and moist soil, but it will adapt to sun and dry soil. The less it has to drink, the more likely it will behave itself and stay in its own bed.
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