Blanket flowers (Gaillardia) are popular garden plants known for their vibrant, daisy-like blooms in warm shades of red, orange, and yellow. Native to North America, they are heat and drought tolerant, making them a resilient choice for many gardens. Deadheading involves removing spent or faded flowers from the plant.
Benefits of Deadheading Blanket Flowers
Regularly removing spent blanket flower blooms offers several advantages for plant health and appearance. Deadheading encourages the plant to produce more flowers, extending the blooming season from early summer into fall. By preventing the plant from expending energy on seed production, this practice redirects resources into developing new buds and maintaining plant vigor. This keeps plants looking tidier and fuller, and prevents unwanted self-seeding that can lead to overcrowding or leggy growth.
Techniques for Deadheading Blanket Flowers
To deadhead blanket flowers, identify blooms that are wilted, browning, or fatigued. Deadhead regularly throughout the blooming season, before the plant forms seed heads.
For individual spent flowers, make a clean cut using sharp pruners, garden scissors, or snips. Cut just below the faded flower, above a leaf node or new developing bud. This encourages new growth and subsequent blooms.
If a stem has multiple faded blooms, or the plant appears leggy, cut the entire spent flower stalk back to the basal foliage at the plant’s base. This method reinvigorates the plant, especially during mid-summer heat, promoting a fresh flush of growth and a strong fall bloom. Always ensure your cutting tools are clean to prevent the transmission of diseases.
Caring for Blanket Flowers After Deadheading
After deadheading, proper care helps blanket flowers continue to thrive and produce abundant blooms. Established blanket flowers are drought-tolerant but benefit from occasional deep watering during extended dry periods. Newly planted blanket flowers require consistent moisture to establish a root system; check the soil frequently. Allow the soil to dry out between waterings to prevent root rot, as they prefer well-drained conditions.
Blanket flowers do not require heavy fertilization and perform well in poor, well-draining soil. Over-fertilizing can lead to excessive foliage growth at the expense of flowers. If your soil is very poor, a light application of a low-nitrogen, slow-release fertilizer in spring may be applied, but often, no additional feeding is needed for established plants.
As the season nears its end in late fall, cease deadheading to allow seed heads to form, which can provide food for birds and allow for self-seeding. Cutting back the entire plant to a few inches above the ground in late winter or early spring promotes healthy new growth for the next season.