Dianthus are some of the most gorgeous flowers to plant in your yard or garden. Commonly known as ‘pinks’ due to their ruffled petal tips, they often have a superb spicy fragrance.
Don’t expect Dianthus to be the color pink, either, as they come in red, white, and bicolor hues, too. In fact, the common name ‘pink’ refers to the edges of petals appearing as if they have been cut with pinking shears.
Historically, the ancient Greek meaning of Dianthus is “heavenly flower,” taken from the Greek words ‘Dios,’ meaning ‘god,’ and ‘Anthos,’ meaning “flower.”
As part of a large genus of plants, including annuals, biennials, and evergreen perennials, read on to learn more about caring for and deadheading Dianthus – the flower of the gods!
Do You Have To Deadhead Dianthus?
The simple answer is yes if you want more flowers.
Deadheading dianthus is essential to encourage the plant to produce more flowers. Removing the spent flowers will stop the plant from producing seeds and help it to conserve energy. It is also a good time to tidy up the plant by removing any dead or straggly growth.
When deadheading your Dianthus, take the opportunity to deadhead other flowering plants.
Flowers that benefit from removing spent blooms are Marigold’s Deadheadings.
Another vital reason for regularly deadheading dianthus is that spent flowers can retain moisture and become soggy. This is especially true in prolonged periods of wet weather. If left, it is possible that it will provide the perfect conditions for fungal growth to develop.
However, if left, some varieties of annual or biennial Dianthus can self-seed in your garden, which is one way of increasing stock. The best time to allow self-seeding is towards the end of summer. Simply allow a few flowers on each plant to set seed.
Then, snip the flowerheads containing the seed just before the seeds drop. Sprinkle the seed into a tray of seed compost and grow undercover, ready for the following year.
Alternatively, allow them to self-seed where they fall. You won’t always be guaranteed success, but finding new seedlings in spring that have survived the winter months is always a lovely surprise.
Note that new plants from seedlings are not guaranteed to be perfect copies of the parent plant. The only way to ensure this is to purchase seed from a reliable source or to take cuttings.
Signs You Need to Deadhead Dianthus
These are the obvious signs you need to deadhead dianthus:
- Flower Fade: The most obvious sign is when the blooms begin to fade in color. Instead of the vibrant pinks, reds, or whites, the flowers may look washed out and have turned brown. These are similar signs to look for when lavender deadheading, too.
- Petal Drop: When the petals of your dianthus flowers start dropping, or the flower heads are wilting and drooping, the flower is spent and is ready to be removed.
- Seed Formation: After flowering and the spent petals have dropped, you will notice a swelling where the flower was. This is the seed pod and a clear sign that it must be removed. The plant will have used a lot of energy to get to this point. Ideally, it is best to deadhead before this happens.
How Do I Deadhead Dianthus In The Garden?
Deadheading dianthus is a simple process that is quite therapeutic, too, as explained here in more detail.
Step-by-Step Guide to Deadheading Dianthus
- Choose the Right Time: Begin deadheading in late spring or early summer when the first flush of blooms fades.
- Gather Your Tools: Use clean, sharp scissors or pruning shears. Clean tools are essential to prevent the spread of disease between plants.
Tip: To clean and sterilize the cutting blades, wipe them with a cloth dipped in alcohol.
- Identify Spent Flowers: Look for the flowers that are wilting, fading, or have already lost their petals. These are the flowers that you will want to remove. Carefully remove the spent flowers only for varieties with multiple blooms on one stem. The healthy ones left will continue to bloom in their own time.
- Make the Cut: Cut the flower stem just above the first set of healthy leaves and below the spent flower. If the stem has finished blooming, cut it back to the base or to where new foliage is emerging. Don’t cut into any healthy part of the plant with new buds.
- Continuous Care: Deadheading is an ideal time to check the plant’s health. Remove any dead or diseased foliage, and cut back any invasive neighboring plants. This will ensure the plant isn’t overcrowded and will improve air circulation.
- Water and Feed: After pruning and deadheading, it’s a good time to fertilize your dianthus. When watering, use a higher potassium liquid feed at 70% of the recommended strength to encourage more flowers. Note that dianthus can be sensitive to the overuse of chemical fertilizers.
Additional Tips
- Be Gentle: Dianthus stems are quite thin and can easily break if not handled carefully. Always try to hold the stem close to the base when cutting to avoid bending or breaking.
- Regular Inspections: Regularly inspecting your dianthus plants will keep you on top of deadheading. It won’t be a chore but more an opportunity to enjoy their wonderful fragrance.
- Disposal: Dispose of the spent blooms and any other removed plant material away from your garden to help prevent any potential spread of diseases.
How To Deadhead Dianthus In Pots?
Deadheading dianthus in pots is more or less the same process as deadheading those planted directly in the ground.
Step-by-Step Guide to Deadheading Dianthus in Pots
- Prepare Your Tools: Ensure you have sterile, sharp scissors or pruning shears. Sterilizing your tools with rubbing alcohol or a similar disinfectant can help prevent the spread of diseases between plants.
TIP: An alternative to alcohol is a mild solution of bleach diluted in water.
- Assess the Plant: Check for fading, wilting, or spent blooms and poor straggly growth. All of these can be pruned away at the same time.
- Proper Cutting Technique: Using sharp scissors or small pruning shears, snip off the spent flower and stem to just above a leaf node or a set of leaves. If the entire stem lacks other flower buds, you can cut it back to the base or where it meets fresh foliage. Making clean cuts is essential so the plant can quickly heal that area.
- Focus on Air Circulation: Potted plants sometimes have limited airflow because there is less room for the plants to expand. For this reason, it is essential to remove all unhealthy growth and spent blooms.
- Regular Care: After deadheading, check the soil moisture and overall health of the plant. Potted plants generally require more frequent watering than those in the ground, especially in warmer weather and especially in clay pots. Soil should be a good quality all-purpose potting mix with added horticulture grit to improve the drainage. Dianthus do not like soggy soil.
- Fertilize Appropriately: After deadheading, giving your dianthus a light feed with a potassium-rich liquid fertilizer will promote further growth and more flowers. Be careful not to over-fertilize and only mix to 70% strength of the product guidelines.
- Refresh the Soil Annually: At the start of each growing season, it’s a good idea to refresh the top layer of soil in the pot with a fresh, high-quality potting mix. This is the best way to feed dianthus and improve the soil’s structure.
Additional Tips
- Regular Inspection: Fortunately, with modern breeding programs, most varieties of dianthus are not as susceptible to pests and diseases as they once were. Aphids and carnation flies are two common pests. Either remove by hand where possible or use Neem oil. Too much moisture from either hand watering or excessive rain can cause powdery mildew or root rot. In this case, ease of watering and applying a fungicide. Also, incorporate horticulture grit and organic matter into the soil. This will help with aerating the soil and improve drainage.
- Light Placement: Ensure you place the pots where your dianthus can receive plenty of sunlight, ideally around 6-8 hours daily. This will enable the plants to convert energy from the sun, crucial for successful growth and continued flowering.
- Watering Practices: Water your dianthus at the base to avoid wetting the foliage. This will lessen the risk of fungal diseases. Also, allow the soil to dry slightly before watering again.
Final Words
Deadheading dianthus will extend the blooming period and reward you with exceptional beauty and fragrance flowers. They will also play a highly beneficial role in enhancing biodiversity in your garden by producing an abundance of flowers that attract pollinating insects.
Whether grown in flower borders, rockery gardens, or pots, these enchanting flowers will be the highlight of your summer garden.
