Well, we are finally into the summer month of 2008. I really do feel like it has been a long time coming—I must say though that most of my plants are just beautiful.

I did get an heirloom tomato plant at the herb festival in April and got it planted—it is not looking too great yet. With the scare going around about tomatoes it makes a person want to grow their own.

I have really been busy just trying to keep up with the deadheading. I am going to go over some of these details for helping to make your plants bloom more for you. By applying a handful of special pruning techniques at the right time and to the right plant, will increase the number or size of the blooms your perennials produce. Many perennials benefit from a combination of pruning methods.

When delphiniums are in bloom, for example, deadheading, or removing faded blossoms, prolongs the display. When flowering stops, cutting back the stalks to the rosette of leaves at the base of each plant makes the plant look neater and often stimulates a second flowering. Removing individual flowers or flower clusters as they begin to droop and fade is an important chore, and not for appearance alone. This is called deadheading spent flowers.

Not all perennials require deadheading—the blossoms of linums, geraniums, and penstemons, for instance, fall by themselves. Others, such as Rudbeckia and "Autumn Joy" sedum, have ornamental seed heads that enliven a garden in the fall and winter. Some perennials, such as pincushion flower and Stokes' aster, may stop blooming if they aren't attended to promptly, and a hybrid perennial allowed to go to seed may in time be crowed out by its inferior offspring.

For perennials with flowers at the tips of leafy stems, cut just below the fading flowers to stimulate new buds. For plants with leafy flower stems and a rosette of leaves at the base of the plant, cut back to just above the topmost unopened bud. If there are no buds, cut the stem off just above the foliage rosette. For perennials with bare stems, cut off close to the ground to encourage new growth.

Pinching is another technique that is needed to maintain your flowers. Perennials that bloom in mid-summer or later benefit from having their stem tips pinched back early in the growing season. In response to pinching, a stem produces several branches that together may yield double or even triple the number of blooms on an unpinched stem. The procedure also makes plants shorter and more compact—and thus less likely to need staking. Pinching carried out early in the growing season has little or no effect on a plant's blooming schedule. If, however, you want to delay a plant's flowering, pinching in mid-summer is desirable. The technique is not appropriate for spring perennials because they don't have enough time to form new flower buds before their blooming season ends. Using your fingers, pinch off emergent stem tips just above the topmost unfurled leaves. The net result will be three or four new branches, smaller but more plentiful flowers, and a stockier plant. This technique works well with plants that can develop numerous stems and buds, and that look attractive when bushy.

Chrysanthemums can and should be pinched two or three times, up until the flower buds develop. Some young perennials that should also be pinched are: Artemisia, aster, cornflower, Shasta daisy, heliopsis, catmint, Russia sage, summer phlox, and physostegia (false dragonhead).

Cutting back may be performed at two different times in a perennial's growing cycle, and for different reasons. In both cases, all of the stems should be reduced in height by one-third to one-half. Performed early in the growing season, cutting back results in shorter plants that bloom later than usual. Carried out later in the season, as soon as a plants stops flowering, the shearing stimulates fresh new foliage and, in the case of catmint, bellflowers, and many other perennials, a second wave of bloom.

Some other perennials that do well by cutting back are; common yarrow, chamomile, centranthus, coreopsis, phlox, Stokes' aster and veronica.

GARDEN QUESTIONS FOR CENTRAL ILLINOIS

Q) My roses have black and yellow circles on the leaves and some of the leaves are turning yellow and falling off. What's wrong with them and what can I do? A:Your roses have black spot--one of the major fungi that affect roses. Affected leaves have black circles with yellow edges. When the plant is heavily infected, it can lose all of its leaves and become weak and subject to other problems. Black spot is spread by water that remains on the leaves of the plant so be sure to water the root zone carefully to avoid splashing water up on the leaves. Also, provide roses with air circulation—keep them well-spaced and away from, walls and building.

Q) Is insecticidal soap the same thing as dish soap? A: NO! Insecticidal soap is a commercial product that was developed to kill certain insects while not harming beneficial ones. It is biodegradable, breaks down within a couple of weeks, and is safe to use with pets and people. In order to be effective, insects must come in direct contact with the soap.

Q: How can a birdbath help me solve my insect problem? A: Birds are a natural predator of many garden insect pests. In luring birds to your garden for bath time, you can entice them to stay for lunch, dinner and breakfast the following day.

Q) My beautiful spirea bushes appear to be dying back—some of the leaves and twigs are dying and look like they've been burnt. What can I do? A: Unfortunately, not too much. Your spirea has fallen prey to fire blight—a disease transferred by rain and insects. Caused by bacteria, the blight causes leaves on affected shoots to die and drop. Dying branches look scorched. You can prune below the affected areas and hope it will pass or apply an antibiotic. In the future, try not to over fertilize your spirea as this makes them more susceptible to fire blight.

Q: Is it a good idea to mulch the root area of woody ornamentals? A: It is a general rule to mulch the root area, but do not allow the main stem or trunk to become covered. This leads to rodent damage and disease of the plant. Two plants are exceptions to this rule, the rhododendron and the rose, which must have their crowns or trunks protected in order to prevent winter damage. Depth of mulch depends on the type mulch and the plants being mulched.

If you have any horticulture questions, call the U of I Extension office 345-7034. Volunteer

Master Gardeners are in the office on: Monday—2 to 4 p.m.; Wednesday and Friday—9-11 a.m.

This column is based on information and materials at the University of Illinois Extension office, located at 707 Windsor Road, Suite A., Charleston, 61920; phone 345-7034; or web site: www.extension.uiuc.edu/coles/