How to pinch a petunia for a lush bloom

Petunia is loved for its unpretentious care, rapid growth and abundant flowering. A wide selection of bell flowers of various colors also adds only advantages to it. And the cherry on the cake is a wonderful aroma, which only becomes sweeter by evening. Each owner of an exotic beauty needs to know what the care and growing of petunias should be. Pinching is part of a set of procedures and involves cutting off the top of a young shoot. The first time is carried out on seedlings (called pinching). The further procedure serves as the foundation for the future form of the plant in the open field. The third provokes abundant flowering with larger flowers, evenly spaced along all the shoots.

Why pinch petunia

There are many reasons for pinching:

• the shoot begins to awaken dormant buds in the leaf axils and release new twigs from them. Soon it becomes densely covered with shoots that will bloom in the future;
• the decorativeness of the plant increases not only due to lateral branches, the stems after pinching become thicker, young shoots will be densely covered with leaves;

Petunia can decorate any flower bed

• the trimmed shoot will quickly stiffen, which will provide additional support and support during flowering;
• after the third pinching, additional flower buds wake up along the entire length of the lateral and main shoots;
• with the help of a pinch, you can give the plant any shape, make it spherical, elongated to the top or grounded. Ampel petunias will not have a bare crown. The cascading ones will launch their whips in steps. Beautiful bush varieties will begin to bush correctly;
• depending on the growing conditions, you can also adjust the formation of the bush. If the landing site for the petunia is not too good, for example, too windy, you can land the bush more so that the plant does not feel discomfort;

Seedlings after correct pinching

• in a cold and humid summer, fungi, pests and diseases can start in too thick bushes. Therefore, for the purpose of prevention, it is necessary to pinch the petunias in order to thin out the bottom of the bush;
• late pinching serves to renew the shrub. Pruning 1/3 of the length of the shoots provides a powerful stimulus for the growth and flowering of petunias in the fall.

How to pinch a petunia so that it blooms gorgeous

When to pinch

When a small sprout gets stronger, pruning the upper part of the shoot will become an incentive for its branching. But this procedure cannot be put in a clear framework: the presence of a certain number of leaves on the shoot or its length. The shoot is ready for pinching if:

• the stem began to grow actively;
• it has at least six real sheets;
• the length of the shoots of ampelous varieties exceeds 10 cm;
• the shoot began to noticeably stretch and thin out;
• the distance between the new leaves began to increase;
• the leaves became smaller and dimmer.

Pinching is needed for all young shoots grown from seeds or by cuttings

Visually, it will look like the shoot is stretching up, but it lacks the strength to grow so quickly. If the young stalk is plump, thick and round leaves grow densely on it, it is in no hurry with rapid growth, you need to wait a little with a pinch. You can not only spoil the future appearance, but also destroy the flower altogether.You can not pinch off the top if:

• the plant looks sick, lethargic;
• if the flower is damaged by pests and diseases;
• the wrong care is taken for the flower, and the shoots are pulled out only due to a lack of light or nutrients;
• if you are late with a pinch and the length of the shoot is more than 20 cm. In this case, you can harm the plant, since it put a lot of effort into the growth of a shoot of such a length and laying dormant buds in them. Cutting this length is not worth it.

Growth of lateral shoots after the procedure

The second pinching is done after at least 30 days, when more than six leaf plates have already grown on the new side shoots. This procedure may no longer affect all shoots, depending on the shape that needs to be given to the flower. Shoots are chosen according to the same principle as during pinching.

Most often, the second pinching falls on a transplant in open ground or a pots. Both procedures cannot be performed on the same day. You need to give the flower time to take root and get used to new conditions. The habituation period takes from 3 to 14 days. It is difficult to say what period a particular plant has. The signal to pinch will be active growth and a healthy appearance of rooted seedlings.

How to pinch petunias correctly so that they bloom gorgeous

The third pinching is carried out another month after the second. By this time, the active development of flower buds is underway, which means that this procedure will only add new buds on the stems. By saving energy and nutrition, petunia forms more flowers. You need to pinch off the wilted flower along with the peduncle.

Proper care and timely pinching will provide the most beautiful view of the blooming beauty.

The last pinching of the petunia to renew the bush is carried out when the flower has lost its decorative effect. The bush managed to bloom and thinned out its green cap. Usually this is the end of August - the beginning of September. If the petunia looks not at all good by the end of summer, there is one way to revive the bush:

• pruning of shoots by 1/3 of the length should be carried out;
• pull the bush out of the pot, cut off the lower half of the root system;
• replace potting soil.

During the third procedure, you can also correct the shape of the bush by cutting off excess shoots.

The result will be an active build-up of the root system and greenery.

Able to delight with flowering before the first snow

Preparing the sprout for pinching

So, the main reason why it is time to pluck the stem is its healthy appearance and dynamic growth. So that the bush does not die after this procedure, you need to provide it with proper care at the preparatory stage.

• Sun protection. Petunia is sensitive to direct sunlight. Seedlings are doubly sensitive. The burnt leaves will sooner or later dry out and fall off, and if you leave them below the pinch, it is unlikely that you will get good material for future tillering. New shoots will not appear from the sinuses of damaged leaves.
• Providing lighting. If there is not enough light, the shoot will reach for it, and inexperienced growers may confuse this process with the beginning of active growth and pinch it. This entails not only the loss of decorativeness. When correcting a mistake in care, young shoots will grow of normal thickness, and the main one will be too thin. Over time, it can break under the weight of the entire bush.
• Watering is plentiful, but not frequent. The roots of petunia are thin and quickly rot when moisture stagnates in the soil.
• Moisturization provides additional nutrition to the flower through the leaves and shoots. Regular spraying is essential with proper care.
• If the seedlings grow in the same box, they should be planted at a sufficient distance from each other.If the planting is too dense, the shoots will be dull and elongated, the seedlings will clog each other. This also applies to further planting in open ground.

What is needed for the procedure:

• sharp scissors (manicure or garden);
• antiseptic for processing blades;
• charcoal or activated carbon (pre-crushed);
• a glass for cut cuttings.

How to pinch a petunia

When the shoot is already ready for pinching in all respects, the best time for this procedure is morning or evening.

The procedure is simple. With the processed tool, you need to make an oblique cut closer to the leaf, which will remain on the shoot. The cut must be treated with charcoal. Often, flower growers pinch only the tip of the shoot - the first millimeters of the rudiment of a new leaf. At the first pinching, this will be wrong, since the small stalk may not have enough strength to develop lateral shoots. The shoot should go into active growth and release more than six leaves.

Depending on the variety, you need to know how to properly form a petunia with a pinch.

• Ampel petunia will bush on its own. This property is incorporated into it by breeders. But the first pinching is necessary, since over time the crown of the hanging lashes will be naked. If the procedure is carried out at the seedling stage, the ampelous beauty will start up new side shoots faster, and they will look like basal ones.
• Cascading petunia requires a minimum of two pinches. How to pinch a petunia so that the flowering is a cap: you need to use all the shoots that grow up. This will allow you to form the desired shape of the bush, as well as get large leaves and flowers.

The ampelous petunia bush turns out to be evenly thickened

• Bush petunia, like terry petunia, needs to be pinched, only based on its appearance. These varieties of petunias bush on their own. Sometimes it is necessary to correct the shape of the bush or hide the shortcomings of improper care (stretched out with a lack of lighting or neglect of seedlings). Pinching of bush varieties of petunias for bushiness is rarely carried out.
• Varieties of multi-flowered petunias only need to pluck withered flowers. And you need to do this without pulling out the petals from the bracts, but removing them together with the peduncle. If only the petals are removed, the petunia will form a seed capsule. It takes a lot of effort to harvest seeds, flowering may thin out or growth may stop.

What petunias do not need to be pinched

Hybrid varieties of petunias are already equipped with a set of genes that provide active growth of side shoots. Such petunias begin to independently develop lateral stepchildren at the seedling stage. Sometimes you can resort to this procedure only to correct the shape of the bush.

Hybrid petunia is able to bush on its own

Is it possible to pinch during flowering

If it was not possible to pinch in a timely manner, you need to know how to pinch a petunia during flowering. The main thing is that the adult shoot just begins to bloom. Shoots should be cut, leaving 5-6 leaves on the stem. Flowers are also cut. After this procedure, you can notice some stop in growth, and even more so in flowering. But after a week, new shoots and buds will appear.

Leaving after pinching

Pruning young petunias to form a bush is stressful for the plant. After all, it did not at all count on the fact that now it would have to so actively release its shoots and flowers. Therefore, correct step-by-step care and additional feeding are important.

• Top dressing after pinching.For these purposes, fertilizers for petunias and other growth stimulants are used. If pinching is done a second time, it is imperative to introduce nitrogen-containing preparations that will help the root system and the growth of greenery.
• In addition to fertilizers, petunia responds well to homemade nutritional supplements: banana water, ash, hydrogen peroxide, yeast.
• It's not just the roots that can be nourished. Regular spraying with succinic acid or a well-diluted fertilizer will help harden young buds and feed the leaves.
• Correct watering. Not too abundant watering is required in the morning and evening every day.
• To stimulate the growth of side shoots, daily temperature drops are important. At night, the temperature should drop by at least 6-7 ° C.

What to do with cuttings

The plucked off cuttings are suitable for reproduction. If you cut the stalk at least 2 cm, it is able to sprout on its own. After the first procedure, it is better to put such stems in water with a root, which will give strength.

After the first roots appear, the cutting is ready for rooting. You need to plant in a pot with fertile soil. Two parts of garden soil and one part of peat and sand will perfectly nourish the young sprout and not retain moisture in the soil. Cuttings can be placed in greenhouse conditions: in a bag or under glass.

To get an ornamental bush or ampelous plant, you need to know a few secrets in caring for exotic petunia. One of these secrets is to pinch the petunia correctly so that it blooms gorgeous. This procedure is aimed at the formation of a dense bush, uniform and abundant flowering. The procedure will also provide petunias with thick shoots and buds, wide and fleshy leaves and large brightly colored flowers.