By Arbuthnot
Buckinghamshire,
United Kingdom 
I have so many questions this season! Here's another:
my cottage garden pinks have grown massively (as have the clems) and though they are still flowering they are now a sprawling mass with long stems. Should I pull them out and start new plants with the cuttings, or just cut them down to the ground, thinning them out as I go?
I've never had this problem in any garden before so it's either the soil here or the unusual weather we've had for the past 18 months or more.
27 Jun, 2019
Answers
dead head them and take cuttings. At this stage in the year I would give them a light trimming to encourage more flowers. later in the year you can either prune drastically or replace with the cuttings that you have taken. I tend to prune/remove older plants in the spring and plant the newer ones then.
27 Jun, 2019
Ditto. I cut mine back after the first flowers have finished. After a couple of seasons, I take cuttings and grow them on in the greenhouse. By the end of the season, if the old plants have become woody, I compost them and replace with the new in the spring. At the same time, I often buy a few new varieties and take cuttings at the same time. One reasonable size plant will produce many new ones.
27 Jun, 2019
Looks like I’ve got some work ahead of me! Thank you all for your advice. I shall cut them back and take cuttings.
29 Jun, 2019
Previous question
All I have ever done with pinks is to cut them back after flowering. Take some of the cut stems as hostage cuttings.
Usually left them about 2 to 3 inches tall and then they have enough stems to reshoot. Don't take them right back to ground level though.
27 Jun, 2019