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Fri, Sep 20, 13 at 14:09
| I have a dense bed of lily of the valley planted in the narrow space between by home and the home next door. They have probably been there at least 30 or 40 years. They're gorgeous most of the summer, but by late summer are looking ragged with brown streaks. Can I cut these down without harming them in late summer? |
Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by SunnyBorders 5A (My Page) on Fri, Sep 20, 13 at 17:27
| I've spent 20 years fighting lily-of-the-valley, but it sounds like you've got it wedged in, which makes its use feasible. My experience in cutting it down (in my case, being unable to pull it out of evergreen shrubs) is that cutting it down (ragged/ratty or not) never diminishes its love of life (survivability). |
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- Posted by gardenweed_z6a N CT (My Page) on Fri, Sep 20, 13 at 19:40
| There was a dense area of it growing here 8 years ago when I moved to this house. I asked a neighbor to come with his backhoe & dig it out for me, then he dumped it in a remote wooded corner of the property. I spread a thick layer of mulch over corrugated cardboard where it was growing and every season I still get LOTV. In my experience at least, it's virtually indestructible. It was also growing in full shade on the north side of my house--I dug it out but it still manages to send up a few plants every season. |
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| Cut to your heart's content. You cannot hurt Lily of the Valley, no natter how you try. |
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- Posted by Highlandboy none (My Page) on Mon, Sep 23, 13 at 8:52
| Wow. I never realized they were so tough! Thanks everyone for your comments. Next year I'll be mowing them off when they start looking bad. I guess I'm really lucky to have them where they are completely contained. In the spring breezes they perfume the air with memories of childhood at my grandma's house. |
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