How to prune and shape a Lantana bonsai so it looks beautiful

Lantana, also known as "color-changing grass," lives up to its name: its plant bears flowers of many colors. Lantana is a flowering plant with very high ornamental value. In southern China, thanks to climate, temperature and various other factors, it can be seen blooming almost all year round, making it very suitable for potted ornamental display. So follow along with the editor to learn how lantana is shaped.

How to shape a lantana bonsai so it looks beautiful

1. Shaping methods

Because lantana branches are soft and drooping, lantana is very suitable for making into a cascade-style potted plant. Lantana has quite strong growth ability, and its branches grow very fast, so it is very suitable to shape lantana by pruning. On the other hand, because lantana branches are too soft, when we carry out complex shaping we can use metal wire to help with the shaping.

2. Shape according to seasonal changes

Lantana grows at different speeds in different seasons, so we should prune lantana branches according to the changes of the seasons.

Generally, when autumn ends and winter is about to begin, lantana should be pruned once, and then when the second year's spring comes, prune again. At this time, remove diseased and weak branches, and by the way prune out the potted shape of the lantana.

In summer, pay attention to pinching or short pruning. On the one hand, this is because lantana grows very fast in summer; on the other hand, it is a chance to make the lantana's crown compact and full of shape.

3. Aspects to focus on when shaping

First, we can pay a little attention to the layout of the roots, because showing the strong, vigorous shape of the roots is very beautiful. We can expose part of the side roots and consciously wash them with water, so that the roots of the lantana can be revealed. Second, we can twist and bend the trunk, which can make the lantana potted plant more interesting, and scoring wounds can make the lantana's branches and trunk form knotted burls.

How to prune the branches and leaves of potted lantana

I. Pruning time

1. Seedling stage

When the seedling grows to about 10 cm tall, pinch it to encourage branches to sprout from the base, keep 3-5 branches as main branches, and when the main branches grow to a certain length, pinch them again to make the main branches grow evenly.

2. Mature plant stage

After the lantana plant matures, the branches will keep growing, so it is necessary to frequently thin out branches and cut them short to maintain the plant's round-headed shape. Lantana at this time is like a person at seven years old: you have to see how it will age. If you do not manage it well during the mature plant stage, when the flowering season comes, you will regret not having pruned it well.

II. How to prune

1. Pinching at the seedling stage

The seedling stage is mainly about pinching for care. The main branches located on the upper part are pinched first, and the main branches located on the lower part are pruned afterward. When pinching the upper main branches, remove slightly more growth than from the lower main branches, so that the branches grow evenly and form a round-headed plant shape.

2. Pruning messy branches at the mature plant stage

After the plant has taken shape, as the branches keep growing, it should be frequently thinned and cut back. Every spring, together with repotting, thin out overly dense branches, slender weak branches, crossing branches, and diseased or pest-infested branches from the base. For the branches that are kept, cut them short leaving 2-4 buds each according to their growth. After flowering, promptly cut off the spent flowers to avoid consuming nutrients.

What are the causes of lantana legginess

1. Insufficient light

The sunlight of tropical regions is simply relentless, as if it will not stop until it tans you black! So how much does lantana, native to tropical America, love light? You can see it from the growing process of flower growers in southern China. In southern summers there are a lot of cloudy and rainy days. At this time lantana lacks light, so it starts growing wildly, completely not following the usual rules.

2. Too much nitrogen fertilizer

Lantana can be seen flowering from May to October. Flower growers worry that the flowering period consumes too many nutrients, so they speed up the frequency of fertilizing lantana and increase the amount, and even increase the amount of nitrogen fertilizer! Nitrogen fertilizer is the best at spurring plant growth. If nitrogen fertilizer is applied in a one-sided way, it is not only unfavorable for abundant flowering, but also easily causes the plant to grow leggy.

3. Too much water

The climate of most of southern China is a subtropical monsoon climate, and the Guangdong and Hainan areas have a tropical monsoon climate. But because they are near the Tropic of Cancer, the temperature naturally can be compared with that of areas within the Tropic of Cancer. So summer temperatures may not be absurdly high. If the temperature is not high enough, the light is not sufficient enough, and the amount of watering is relatively large, it will also cause lantana to grow leggy.

What to do if lantana grows leggy

1. Handling light and water

On cloudy and rainy days in southern China, wanting sufficient light is asking too much. At this time, we can only handle it through water. Lantana is a plant tolerant of water and moisture, but when light is insufficient, it is still best to use a small amount of water. When rain keeps falling, do water control in time, and only keep the potting soil slightly moist.

2. Do not apply one-sided nitrogen fertilizer during the flowering period

Lantana during the flowering period really does need more nutrients, but liquid fertilizer should be applied thinly, mainly phosphorus and potassium fertilizer, with a small amount of nitrogen fertilizer or even none at all. Flower-specific fertilizer and flowering-period-specific fertilizer are both fine, just do not apply nitrogen fertilizer in a one-sided way.

3. Beheading and cuttings

Legginess in lantana seedlings can be remedied with light, water, fertilization, and chlormequat, but for legginess in mature plants, the only method is beheading and taking cuttings. Cut off the top of the plant and root it as a cutting. Roots can form in 15-30 days.

Lantana is a plant very suitable for potted ornamental display, so shaping it adds quite a bit of beauty to it to a certain extent. The specific methods are all mentioned above. In addition, the branches cut off during pruning can also be used for cuttings, letting lantana propagate into a sea of flowers.