Creeping phlox

This article is about how to prune creeping phlox. When planted correctly and in the proper location, Phlox paniculata, also known as creeping phlox, moss phlox, mountain phlox, moss pinks, or thrift, is a very easy plant to grow.

These lovely carpet-forming plants, which grow 2 to 5 inches tall and 24 inches wide, are perfect for use as a low edger or mass planting in landscaping and perennial borders, home foundation plantings, embankments, slopes, and hillsides, or to delicately drape over stone walls. Its compact size makes it ideal for use as a soil cover in container gardens or small garden settings. This is a wonderful addition to any rock garden. In the spring and summer, flowering bulbs will poke through it.

Phlox subulata, or creeping phlox, is a gorgeous low-growing perennial bloom in late April and May, creating a magnificent carpet of 5-petaled blossoms in vibrant hues of reds purples, blues, pinks, and whites. It’s an excellent choice for a ground cover because it only grows to a height of 6 inches and spreads to 2 feet. On the other hand, this peculiar plant may necessitate some specialized trimming.

These perennials should be cut back after they’ve finished blooming to help keep the shape you want, encourage lush growth, and decrease pest problems.

Care for Creeping Phlox

Pruning your creeping phlox is an important aspect of its care. Creeping phlox is a low-maintenance plant that will provide fragrance and charm to your landscape while also serving as a ground cover.

According to the Old Farmer’s Almanac, moss phlox thrives in full light. Part shade is ideal for Phlox stolonifera, which has oval-shaped leaves. Both plants demand well-drained soil, but they can thrive in sand or gravel-rich soils. According to Wilson Bros Gardens, Phlox stolonifera loves more acidic soil, while Phlox subulata thrives in moderately acidic to slightly alkaline soil with a pH of 6.0 to 8.0.

Read Also: Staghorn Fern

When Should You Trim Your creeping Phlox After It Has Bloomed?

Phlox comes in two varieties: creeping phlox and tall garden cultivars. Once their flowering cycles are finished, both benefit from trimming. The blooming and pruning times of the two cultivars differ, and some varieties may require several cuts because they flower many times.

Trimming’s Advantages

After flowering, phlox blooms begin to produce seeds. Seed production depletes the plant’s energy, making it impossible for some types to flower again. Dead flower heads are extremely unsightly and can attract pests to the plant. Phlox plants benefit from after-bloom trimmings in terms of vigor and aesthetics.

Creeping phlox

Creeping phlox is a ground cover plant with flowers that grow in a low mound on top of the foliage. The plants bloom lavishly in the spring, but most of the flowers disappear as the summer temperatures rise. Once the flowering cycle is through in early summer, trim back the wasted flower heads and overgrown stalks. You can prune till late summer, but the foliage gets lusher immediately after blooming, and the plants appear less cluttered.

Garden Phlox

Tall phlox variants bloom in bunches on tall stalks for six weeks, early to midsummer. Once most of the blooms on the cluster have withered immediately after flowering, remove the old flower heads. This phlox cultivar produces seedlings that look nothing like the parent plant. Trimming the plant right away may result in the second set of flowers. Trim them again once flowering stops if your variety blooms again in late summer. Let’s discuss how to prune creeping phlox.

How to prune creeping phlox?

Phlox only has to be trimmed in the fall in locations with little winter snowfall. Because creeping phlox is evergreen, it doesn’t need to be trimmed in the fall. Cut back tall phlox types after they die back naturally in late fall or early winter in places without significant winter snows. Trim the plants back to just a few inches above the ground level. Wait until late winter to prune back the plants in locations with heavy snowfall since the dead plant material shields the phlox crowns from snow damage. This is all about how to prune creeping phlox.