Which plants benefit from Chelsea chops?

The RHS Chelsea Flower Show, held at the end of May, is a crown jewel in a gardening calendar, depicting green thumbs gathering, plants breaking through things, and flowers of gardening creativity. It’s a busy time for designers to sculpt award-winning show gardens, but it’s also a busy time for gardeners who need to prune their perennials. In perfect match with Chelsea Week, this timely prunes are widely known as Chelsea chops.

Here, Chris Collins, quality control manager at T&M, explains which plants benefit from Chelsea chops and how to proceed.

What is Chelsea Chop?

Chelsea chops include cutting back plants at the end of May
Images; Chris Collins

Chelsea Chops are a clever pruning technique that was carried out in late May around the Chelsea Flower Show. That includes reducing the broad herbaceous perennials by about a third to half. Also, subshrubs – mostly herbaceous, but also apply to plants with woody stems like the “hot lips” of salvia.

Why do you do that? Simple:

It slows flowering – spreading the colour of your garden will expand even further into the summer. It reduces floppy – there are no more mid-July face plants from your burning prox. It promotes bossier growth and often more flowers, even if slightly smaller.

You can chop the whole plant or part of it. So you can get the magical blooming flower flushing in your garden from one plant!

It’s not just the garden – why do we chop it before we ship it

As a commercial grower, I use Chelsea chops as a strategic tool to ensure that I receive healthier, bouchier, and richer plants when I order.

Trimming growth just before the plant leaves can encourage people to establish more compact and robust habits during transport and early facilities. It also means you will not receive plants that flower too quickly at your boundaries and flop with leggy flops. Instead, you’ll enjoy a longer flowering window and a more neat and manageable garden – a victory for everyone! Chops are part of our commitment to sending beautifully functional plants from the moment they arrive.

Which perennials do you love good Chelsea chops?

This is a list of plants bumpers that respond brilliantly to Chelsea chops.

Chris’ Expert Tips for Chelsea Chopping

Chris brings his hints to action!
Image: Chris Collins

experiment! Chop half the chunks and leave the rest at different heights and flowering times. Don’t panic – it may feel cruel, but these plants love trim. It takes time – too early won’t slow the flowering. If it’s too late, you’ll miss the window.

So you have it – Chelsea Chop: some rebellious acts of part science, part art, gardening rebellion. While others plant their bedding, you are giving your garden a growth-enhancing haircut that will reward you for the whole summer. For more inspiration, check out our top 10 perennials articles. Learn how to plant epic, hardy perennial boundaries.

Kris Collins works as the quality control manager for Thompson & Morgan, ensuring that new and old customers stay up to date with the latest plant development and company news through a wide range of media sources. He trained at Royal Parks in London and spent more than a decade writing for Gardening Publishing in the UK before joining the Thompson & Morgan team.

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