May kill DH

[ClaudiaNaughton]

He has just "deadheaded" young rhododendron including all new growth and last year's set of leaves. Will it ever recover? Will I? Will he?

[shovetheholly]

They are generally very, very tough, so it should bounce back. I'd still make him do the washing up for weeks, though!!

[shovetheholly]

PS I did not speak to my DH for a day when he trod on and killed my meconopsis. So I know your pain.

[ClaudiaNaughton]

He's spent a very hot afternoon doing a mega weed.

[shovetheholly]

[shovetheholly]

Oooh, I am wrong. Just heard a question about this on GardenersQuestion Time. Apparently it depends on the variety. Pruning the wrong sort will kill them, others are fine. There were some instructions as to how to find out which yours are. It involved feeling the stems for bumps. Might be worth a listen.

I think deadheading will be ok though!

[shovetheholly]

Even if it is bad, you have time to propagate new plants!!

[FuckYouChrisAndThatHorse]

Could you send him round here? I have one I've been trying to kill that just won't die!

[ThumbWitchesAbroad]

Argh, sort of thing my DH would do. He's a real Mr Hackit when it comes to "pruning". He massacred my plumbago with a chainsaw ffs! Luckily it grew back but I had no flowers that year while it recovered from the shock. He's not allowed near certain trees/plants now.

[MissPenelopeLumawoo2]

We never speak of the rosemary bush my DH 'pruned' . Poor thing was reduced to a stump. Never recovered. He is banned from doing anything in the garden without my permission now. I hope your 'dendron recovers.

[ClaudiaNaughton]

It has got tiny bumps on stems. It was particularly annoying as I've had it for five years and this was the first year it had flowered. Shall listen to GQT when I feel strong enough.

[Tapasfairy]

I trimmed one years ago, then I read you don't.

The next year I got an amazing display of flowers. Don't panic.

My husband took his chainsaw to several established shrubs. He got screamed at, now he's only allowed to cut grass. ( Idiot.)

[MyNightWithMaud]

There's a message here about men with chainsaws (or even secateurs) unsupervised in the garden, methinks.

[AuntieStella]

"Even if it is bad, you have time to propagate new plants!!"

Which may flourish, if you put his well rotted corpse in the planting trench

[lunar1]

Dh is banned from sharp objects in the garden. Claims to hate gardening but if he gets anywhere near the sheers then he's like a mass murdering loon and just hacks of any branches he sees.

[MyNightWithMaud]

Arf at if you put his well rotted corpse in the planting trench!

Even some garden professionals get carried away with the shears. I had a truly beautiful cistus ladanifer and had read that they don't take kindly to pruning. I turned my back for ten minutes and Gary the Gardener (who was supposed to be doing other things) had reduced it by two thirds. It died.

[ClaudiaNaughton]

Oh it's such a comfort to know it's not just me this happens to. The pain of these events is exacerbated as you can't jump up and down screaming in the garden like a madwoman.

[shovetheholly]

at this thread.

I have to say, though, I've done the worst damage in our house. Was a few years back now but I was planting in a beautiful magnolia stellata which I had lovingly saved from my former house. It's a long story, but due to a mad ex, I lost most of my belongings in a massive flood so saving this tree (and a baking tray) counted as a defiance of sorts. Anyway, I was trying to get it out of the pot, and it was refusing to budge. So I got impatient and turned it upside down, and it fell on its trunk, which then snapped in half.

I cried, dear friends. And I planted it anyway.

And it is still alive!! Only looking a bit more horizontal than they usually do.

[shovetheholly]

Here is a picture. Magnolia at the back on the right. Ignore my hedge, which desperately needs a trim.

[LetThereBeCupcakes]

My DH once "pruned" my clematis. To the ground. I It never recovered.

DH refused to apologise as he was "helping".

We didn't speak for 4 days.

MIL was staying with us at the time.

It was all a bit uncomfortable.

[Hardtoknow]

I almost think this should be nominated for classics! I feel your rage. DH is also banned from using anything sharp in the garden. I am not sure whether his previous efforts at "helping" were a cunning plan with this ban in mind. He has pointed out a couple of times that I chop loads of things down but the difference is that I know what I'm doing and the only things I chop are ones that benefit from a hard prune, not anything & everything!
FWIW, I think your rhododendron will be fine although it may get a bit confused when to flower for the next couple of years.

[shovetheholly]

cupcakes That would have called for some spectacular contrition.

What I don't understand is WHY. WHY would you just go in with a massive pair of scissors and chop everything down? What on earth would make you think that's a good idea? You would think that it would be easy just to have a quick check to see if it might, you know, KILL EVERYTHING!

Is it something primal? A bit like the fire on barbecues?

[LetThereBeCupcakes]

holly I have NO idea. I did ask him why he did it, all I could get out of him was he was "helping".

If it helps, he's very fond of BBQs too.

[Davros]

Like the time my friend put all her DH's silk ties in the machine. His business clothes went to the laundry/cleaners after that

[DontCallMeBaby]

MissPenelope my DH killed a rosemary bush once - I thought he'd just over pruned it; eventually he let slip he'd poured weed killer on it cos he was fed up with it.

Our trouble is I'm lazy, so I don't garden; he gets hayfever, so doesn't garden. Eventually either I get fed up and prune everything drastically but nicely, or he goes out and massacres it all.

[DontCallMeBaby]

I'm currently hoping he won't notice our bedroom smells divine because of the huge honeysuckle not far from the window (only moved in last July so this is still a new time of year in the garden for us). He'll accuse it of pollening him and want to kill it.