Pruning
Why prune?
There are many reasons to prune a plant. Pruning is necessary to train a new plant, maintain plant health, to restrict growth and to improve the quality of floers, fruit, foliage or stems.
When?
Generally it is best to prune a plant when it is dormant. In Austin most plants are dormant during the winter. Pruning in late summer or early fall may encourage new growth which is susceptible to winter damage.
Some plants, like climbing roses, only bloom on old growth so it is a good idea to let them bloom before they are pruned. Although many people in Austin trim Crape Mertails we reccomended choosing a variety that is the correct size for your space so it will not need pruning.
When deciding what parts of the plant to prune it is a good idea to begin with removing any dead growth. If you want to reduce the size of the plant begin trimming from the top. It is a good idea to only reduce the plants total size by 1/3. If the plant still needs work begin removing any branches that cross thru the middle of the plant. Once you have completed pruning feed the plant with compost tea.
It is important to use clean sharp pruners. We recommend Felcos because they are made of high quality materials and have replaceable parts.
There are many reasons to prune a plant. Pruning is necessary to train a new plant, maintain plant health, to restrict growth and to improve the quality of floers, fruit, foliage or stems.
When?
Generally it is best to prune a plant when it is dormant. In Austin most plants are dormant during the winter. Pruning in late summer or early fall may encourage new growth which is susceptible to winter damage.
Some plants, like climbing roses, only bloom on old growth so it is a good idea to let them bloom before they are pruned. Although many people in Austin trim Crape Mertails we reccomended choosing a variety that is the correct size for your space so it will not need pruning.
When deciding what parts of the plant to prune it is a good idea to begin with removing any dead growth. If you want to reduce the size of the plant begin trimming from the top. It is a good idea to only reduce the plants total size by 1/3. If the plant still needs work begin removing any branches that cross thru the middle of the plant. Once you have completed pruning feed the plant with compost tea.
It is important to use clean sharp pruners. We recommend Felcos because they are made of high quality materials and have replaceable parts.
