A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2002 BUTTERFLY BUSH

I have a beautiful white butterfly bush. I would like to know how to prune it and if there is a way to proprogate it.

Butterfly bushes are pretty easy to care for. I live in the South and I cut mine back when I see new shoots coming up from the ground. If it's a new shrub, you could wait a year and see how large it gets. They are pretty fast growers. They are fairly easy to propagate. Just take tip cuttings, about 12 inches, scrape the cambium and dip them in a little rooting powder. Don't let them dry out. I have even just taken cuttings and stuck them in the dirt in a pot. Do this in the early summer for best results. Try a few. Won't hurt a thing. Good Luck :p

I live in Michigan, too. Way up in the Upper Peninsula. My butterfly bushes ("Pink Delight' & "White Profusion') die to the ground every winter. Some winters I prune it back before the worst of winter, others I have left the 'wood' standing. Either way, I cut it back to about 12 inches before the leaves sprout in spring. I get about 5.5-6 feet of growth in one season. If you want to obtain a particular shape, I would think that you can trim the branches early in the season. (They flower on new wood.) I have propagated mine by taking cuttings. They seem to root very easily. I have even just stuck a broken branch into the ground and it started growth. I deadhead a lot, as it keeps the flowers coming longer. Good luck!
Robin