Too early for Liatris and Buddleia. I don't even have buddleia showing new growth here in zone 7! The liatris is just now popping up.

Natives like amsonia take even longer.

So it just sounds like patience is needed here 😉

Should I have cut back Amsonia or Liatris? I know to leave the Buddleia alone til mid June from what I read.

debra

If you mean cut off last year's dead stalks, yes.

Thanks! I could not find a clear answer on that.

debra

Depending on your location, most herbaceous perennials can or should be cut back in late fall or in early spring before they push new growth. Buddleia is not a herbaceous perennial - it is a woody based shrub and is always pruned in spring.

Thanks gg, you can tell I am trying to learn about all of these plants! I assume the Elderberry is also an herbaceous shrub. That one is already budding out.

debra

Elderberry isn't herbaceous, it is a woody shrub. They leaf out very early so don't judge other plants by them.

Herbaceous means it dies back to the ground in winter and then reappears from the root crown again in spring. Since woody shrubs have a permanent, above ground framework and rarely die back to the root crown, they are not referred to as herbaceous but either deciduous (lose their leaves in winter) or evergreen (hold onto their leaves or needles through winter).

Elderberry is a deciduous shrub :))

Debra, hummingbird mint is hit or miss this far north, though today I spied some still green foliage of last year at the base of one plant and another having pushed up a mass of fresh small new leaves, they survived! ... wish I could say the same of my fancy echinacea, gggrrrr, lol.

Thank you all for educating me on the terminology. As I said, I am still learning.

debra

You can cut back the Buddleia now in your zone--June is much too late.

Spring doesn't go by zone. It goes by latitude. If I had buddleia, I wouldn't even be looking at it yet.