Buddleia experts please help, I need to save this hybrid and also to know when to prune it.

[P0ttedUp]

I have a buddleia that is a cross between B. alternifolia and B. crispa and raised by my grandfather many years ago winning an RHS award. Although easier to get hold of in the USA it is impossible to get hold of here and I was lucky enough to be gifted one The thing is I’m not sure when to prune it. I struggle every year.I think I pruned at the wrong time this year and thought I’d killed it. However we’ve just noticed growth round the bottom.Do I prune the rest of it right down( it had a lovely structure) or will it kill it and going forward when would you prune?

It can’t die, it’s the last one we have as a family. 😱

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I'm not an expert in buddleia but I prune mine over the winter, up to March time. I cut it right back, but mine is very old, like a tree trunk. If yours is young then I think you can cut it back to knee height.
Mine is just starting to grow now so yours sounds ok. They're quite difficult to kill!
Can you post a photo of the flowers when they come out? Sounds like an interesting hybrid.

Definitely fine, you can cut off those old dead branches if they're not sprouting any green leaves.

I normally cut the height by about half after they've finished flowering, to reduce windrock risk, then in February(ish) I'll cut it right down to somewhere near or a few inches off the ground, depending on where there's growth.

You should be able to take cuttings as back ups @P0ttedUp later in the season, they root very easily.

https://www.buddlejacollection.com/plants/x-pikei-hever/

It’s this one and is lovely. You can’t buy it over here. Hever Castle kindly sent us two as my grandfather was head gardener there when he raised it. Unfortunately they presumed we have his expertise in gardening. We don’t and my sister has killed hers. I’m improving as a gardener but not great with things I can’t search on the internet. The pruning advice is vague. I just can’t kill it. The arbutilons I inherited came to a sticky end but are easier to replace

Going forward when would you prune it?

That’s great to hear, just learnt how to do that and managed my first nepetas this year.

Are there no leaves at all further up ? Possibly too brutal a prune if so, It looks very much alive though, so let it put on plenty of growth and then cut back any definitely dead wood.
Buddleia is a tough shrub but I did have one killed by a man doing my garden. He pruned it too much, almost to the ground, and it didn’t recover.
They flower on new growth so I usually take out any dead wood (brittle and with no green if you scratch the bark) in mid Winter. With wood that has life I just take back by about a third, depending on how large or old the plant is.
Take cuttings when it is looking a bit more full and growing well. They are fairly good taking from cuttings, so you will then have plenty of back up plants.

Sorry cross posted re cuttings !

I'd get in touch with the current Hever gardeners, I bet they'll shower you with advice. They could even make it into a little story feature on their website. And advise you on taking cuttings too, so a few more plants come into existence. Then you can give them some of the cuttings and Bob's your uncle! Heartwarming buddleia story! 💜

How lovely !

I over pruned mine and it vanished for two years, then looked like yours did. A couple of years later and it’s six foot again.

Going forward, maybe you could contact Plant Heritage, a society which is dedicated to the preservation of rare and endangered cultivated plants in the UK. Seems like this variety should have a place in one of the National Plant Collections.

I did email the head gardener email address but got no answer. The head gardener was the one who previously sent us the cuttings to my sister. I may have got the wrong address or they may think they’ve done their bit which I understand.

Looking at the hybrid when would you prune it going forward?

You could also talk to the RHS. If you are a member, you can get personalised and expert advice from one of their qualified horticulturalists.

Thats good to know. Not a member but was considering it.