Pride of Madeira

[readervirg]

I have two beautiful Pride of Madeiras which just bloomed for the first time this spring, it was spectacular! I would like to know what I should do now? Do I cut it back, leave it alone, or prune the bloom stalks off? I would like it to bloom again in the spring. I live in Bakersfield, CA and the weather is very hot in the summer and we have moderately mild winters.

[Greg Rubin]

Pride of Madeira, or Echium, is actually not native to California. It comes from the Canary Islands. Having said that, I can tell you that its always a good idea to dead head this plant (prune off the dead flower stalks) when its done blooming. You can actually prune it back pretty severely, and it usually comes back even better the following year.