Need help with Butterfly Bush!

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NicoleGA Woodstock, GA May 20, 2008

I have just purchased a Buddlei- 3-in-one bush as well as a Buddlei- Bi-Color from Springhill Nursery. (online) They both are in great condition and were shipped in 4" pots. My question is where to plant them. I know they are supposed to get 6-8 feet tall, and according to the label, it says partial/full sun. Do they grow fast and can they be trimmed back to keep them smaller? Also, once I plant them, should I water them everyday? I appreciate any tips on caring for these- Thank you!

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NatureLover1950 Vicksburg, MS(Zone 8a) May 20, 2008

Mine are both planted in full sun. Yes, they grow fairly fast and can be pruned to keep them whatever size you desire but, I don't prune the limbs on mine until they go dormant in the winter. I do, however, prune the spent blooms off to keep them blooming longer. I bought a new one this year that was approximately 6 inches tall when I planted it. It's now about 3 feet tall and has one small bloom on it. I planted mine with plenty of peat moss in the planting hole and watered them well once a week for the first summer they were in the ground. A good layer of mulch around them will help them a lot too. Mine are evergreen down here--yours might be where you are too. Mine are a favorite stopping place for Zebra butterflies as well as several other types.

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ecrane3 Dublin, CA(Zone 9a) May 21, 2008

Sounds like pretty much the same things I do. I've always grown mine in full sun, and I also prune off the blooms, sometimes if the plant's getting a little big I'll do a more generous deadheading and cut off more of the branch rather than just the spent flower stalk, but I save the major pruning for winter. As far as how often to water--it depends on your weather and your soil more than anything else, if it's hot and you have really sandy soil they might need to be watered every day at least for the first few weeks until they get established, but if you have clay soil then that much water could kill them. The best thing to do is stick your finger a few inches down in the soil on a regular basis, if it still feels wet then don't water, but if it's drying out then go ahead and water them. Once they're established they're pretty drought tolerant, so the frequent watering should really only be necessary this year.

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