The Dusty Miller care information provided in this section represents the kind of practical advice is available for all the plants in this web site if you subscribe to the monthly customized newsletter Yardener’s Advisor.
| Care for Dusty Miller | |
|---|---|
| April | Plant Dusty Miller seedlings purchased at the garden center or nursery as soon as danger of frost is past and the soil is warm (when night time temperatures stay above 50 degrees). See Yardener’s Helper re: hardening off seedlings before planting outside. Space plants 10 inches apart. |
| May | If Dusty Millers are growing in good soil containing lots of organic material, they want only a light feeding in the spring when the seedlings are set out, about a half a tablespoon of slow-release granular fertilizer per plant. In poor soils use a bit more; one tablespoon of slow-release granular fertilizer per plant. That is all you need for the season. |
| Optional task – Dusty Millers grow best when mulched. As soon as the Dusty Miller seedlings are tall enough, spread a 2 or 3 inch layer of some organic material such as chopped leaves, dried grass or wood chips on the soil around the plants. For more information see the file on Using Mulch | |
| June | To encourage leaf growth, pinch back flowers as they appear. |
| July | Optional - To maintain a rounded, compact form, prune back your Dusty Miller this month and next month about 1/3 of the plant. |
| August | To maintain a rounded, compact form, prune back your Dusty Miller about 1/3 of the plant. |
| September | Your plants will die with the first hard frost. Remove them to the compost pile but keep the beds mulched right through the winter, ready for next year’s plants. |
