I would, because I don't particularly wish to see a bunch of spindly plants lying on their side...also, have just chopped back an ancient 'Garnet;' garden hybrid. Couldn't swear they would improve...or even survive because I am a bit reckless. Still, if I had 28 (!), I might hedge my bets and leave a few and cut back the others. I know there is a general consensus regarding pruning newly transplanted woodies (don't) but personally, when I have interfered (?) with herbaceous plants, I have usually been handy with the shears.

Wow, I have Penstemon that has been in one area, maybe that long. I had no thought that there were 25 plants in there....lol. I just dug the whole thing up and potted it. I think that is a LOT of work. And I don't have a place to plant 25-50 penstemon plants.

They reseed a little more than I can accomodate. They are easy to get rid of, but I made the mistake of letting the seedlings all grow. Now they are large and I have to dig out a lot and some I am going to toss. I have enough very small first year seedlings in the bed that I could pot those up, get rid of all the older plants and start over. That might be easier for me, in my circumstances.

Ho yeah, Prairie...have been having a little penstemon thing for 2,3 years now, collecting seeds and growing species. Had only ever grown those garden hybrids which, tbh, don't really set my heart alight...but O, mensarum, watsonii, strictus, cobaea...be still, my beating heart, I just adore them. Cos I am starting from scratch and they are not really easy to find in UK nurseries, it has been seed all the way for me, but back in the day, I mostly took cuttings, which were quick, easy and reliable. Once the various penstemons are growing well, I will be going down the cutting route again (I truly hate all that digging, hacking, 2forks/sharp knife business of division). I would definitely be potting up and growing on self-sown ones...although it is easy to get a bit overwhelmed with too many plants and no space. I have desisted from dividing my primulas for a few years because I just don't know what to do with all the extras...

Rosaprimula, The penstemon I started with was a hybrid. ‘Dark Towers’ I believe, which I really enjoy. It reseeds a lot and the seedlings are rarely dark like the original. I do enjoy the different versions of it though and really love any that are dark. I love the seedheads and the color of the foliage in the fall and winter.

I don’t know how you hold so much detail in your head...and how you’ve become so familiar with so many species or where you get your seed.

I definitely understand the preference for cuttings over division and all that digging. I’ve just not cultivated the skills to raise new plants from cuttings and I find it challenging to find the time to grow everything from seed. And something about division is satisfying to me. But the older I get the harder it is to do a lot of the digging. My problem is my priority is always keeping the property looking the way it should, according to me…lol. And I rarely am able to keep up with all the maintenance to do that. I can honestly say, I haven’t done that in any one season since I started gardening. So seed starting and propagating are lower priorities that I never get to. I did do Winter Sowing for 3 years and that was a lot of fun, but I was just starting out with perennials and needed a lot of plants.

I go to a local plant sale each spring and it is a collection of gardeners who prepare divisions or raise seedlings for the sale. They do make some money in one weekend, that I’m sure helps support their gardening. I wish I had the time and energy to do that. It’s called the 3 sisters sale, because 3 sisters who had established gardens and didn’t know what to do with all the divisions etc. started selling them on Mother’s Day weekend every spring. I think it’s been over 15 years now they’ve been doing it.

Is that something you might consider doing? You sound like a really great candidate for it. If we lived near each other, I’d buy some of your seedlings and plants.

If you’re unsure, maybe prune half and leave the other half alone?

re seedlings: My Dakota Burgundy leaves are just as dark as their parent. They will bloom for the first time this year, it will be interesting to see if the flowers are the same color too!

Mazerolm, That’s interesting that your self sown seedlings are just as dark as the parent. A small percentage of mine are on Dark Towers. Most of them have green foliage and are taller, with larger flowers which I assume must be the traits of one of the parents.

I’d like to see what your seedlings look like when they bloom this year…

'I don't know how you hold so much detail in your head'

O Prairie - almost certainly because there is not much else going on (vague and confused).