Helenium Cut Back Advice

Emmak202020

Hi All

I’m a novice gardener preparing my garden for the winter for the first time so taking lots of advice from books and Forums! One plant I keep finding conflicting advice on is Heleniums.

Can anyone tell me how best to prep them for winter? 

They are the Moreheim Beauty variant l, planted this summer. They are currently still flowering a little - I’ve deadheaded all spent blooms and cut back any dead stems to soil level. Is there anything more I should be doing to make sure they make it through winter and bloom well next year? 

Perki

Looks like you are doing everything fine . I started cutting all my heleniums back to the crown / base yesterday. Moerhium beauty is probably my favourite helenium I grow  . 

Fairygirl

That's all I do with them @Emmak202020. It's been so mild here that I still had some flowers a couple of weeks ago. I don't even cut back the spent stems, because it's in a place I don't see much over winter. 
M. Beauty is a very good doer. I had it in a couple of spots, but the divided bit I planted got annihilated by slugs/snails this spring. Not cold enough to keep them in smaller numbers unfortunately. Other than that, it's a great plant in a mixed border 

Emmak202020

Thanks both. Do you only cut back dead stems or everything? Some places seem to recommend cutting the whole plant back but I’m worried it’ll make it more exposed to frost? 

Fairygirl

I only take off spent flowers, and then the stems that becoming completely dead/slightly woody. The plant then dies back by itself.
Perhaps in milder areas the plants stay almost evergreen though. 

They're completely hardy @Emmak202020, so you don't need to worry. Frost would only affect new, soft growth - so if the plant is producing more at this time of year [as in those milder areas] it will get knocked back a bit. Won't affect it for next spring though. The frost would also have to be quite severe or prolonged - the above zero frosts wouldn't be a problem, or even minus 1 or 2, as that isn't very cold. 

Emmak202020

Amazing, think I’m winter ready then. 

Thanks, really appreciate the confirmation

Arthur1

Take care in spring that the slugs don't eat them as they emerge.

GardenerSuze

Yes agree you can get holes in the leaves early on . As the plant grows and the leaves thicken they are more likely to be left alone. I have never noticed problems later in the season and I wonder if more leaves develop but not sure.