I have artemisia silvermound on the way. I planted a test patch in the back and *loved* the way that it looked. It became rather scraggly later on however. I looked it up and apparently it needs to be cut back intermittently. Any recommendations as to how often, what time of year, and how much? Any other experiences to share? I am a very beginning gardener so the simpler the suggestions the better! Thanks,
i got that last year and loved it - even when it did get scraggly-looking. just cut back whenever it gets out of hand - as needed, you don't need to keep to any kind of a schedule with it. it's supposed to be hardy in my zone 6b. it didn't come back this spring and it had plenty of time last year to get well established. so, i guess it's not really hardy here. don't know what your zone is. just putting the info out there for you to keep in mind.
Artemesia schmidtiana 'Silver Mound' is hardy at least down to zone 2, and possibly beyond - it's one of the garden staples of the coldest zones of the Canadian prairies, and is very commonly grown. If it did not come back for you in zone 6, cold hardiness is not the reason. Inadequate drainage might possibly be a reason though... (not to imply that it needs exceptional drainage, however).
yeah, i don't know what happened to it! we had a fairly mild winter last year, too, so that made it more surprising that it didn't come back! my glads survived in the same bed for years - and they're not even hardy in this zone. the silvermound is the only thing i've planted there that's not survived. weird.
