The Peace Lily tree is an evergreen species very well suited to foliage viewing, so it is generally kept as a potted plant in the home, where it can beautify the indoor environment and purify the air, giving it very high practical value. But to make the potted Peace Lily tree's shape fuller and its ornamental value higher, it usually needs to be pinched out or topped by hand, and scientific pinching often plays a more important role than simply pruning branches. So how do you pinch out a Peace Lily tree? Huayoujun is here to tell you.

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Peace Lily tree

Pinching out the Peace Lily tree is generally done in spring and autumn, because spring and autumn are its periods of vigorous growth, and after pinching, more lateral buds and lateral branches can sprout in time. When the temperature stays around 20°C, we can pinch off the tip of the main branch and the axillary buds, which lets the plant lose its apical dominance, thereby achieving the goal of controlling the height of the plant shape and preventing the main branch from growing too tall and ruining the shape. And once the plant loses its apical dominance, nutrients are distributed to the lateral branches, which not only spurs more lateral branches to sprout but also lets the other lateral branches grow more evenly.

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By pinching out the potted Peace Lily tree in a timely manner, the plant's growth condition is often much better than what simple pruning of branches and leaves brings. But pinching cannot be done blindly; besides mastering the best timing for pinching, the method of operation is also very important. Below, let's take a look with Huayoujun at the pinching process for the Peace Lily tree (illustrated)!

Illustrated guide to pinching out the Peace Lily tree

1. Preparation

First we need to move the potted Peace Lily tree to a spacious, bright place, which makes it easier for us to observe and carry out the next step of pinching. Because the more spacious the area and the brighter the light, the easier it is for us to examine the whole potted plant and to find the main branch and other secondary branches that need pinching, avoiding any omissions. At the same time, we also need to prepare all the tools that pinching may require, such as special branch shears and the like.

2. Determining the position

Pinching, like ordinary pruning, cannot be done arbitrarily, because once a branch in a direction that needs to be kept is pinched, it not only causes the loss of that branch and makes the potted shape imperfect, but may also affect the plant's growth and thus disrupt the balance of the branches. Generally, you need to search from the top of the potted plant downward for the part that needs pinching, mostly choosing the first axillary bud at the tip of the main branch and the leaf portion above it, and then cutting it off.

3. Pinching

After choosing the part that needs pinching, we can use the branch shears to cut off the tip of the main branch and the axillary bud portion. But it is recommended to disinfect and sterilize the branch shears beforehand when pinching, to avoid wound infection after pinching. And when cutting off the tip, do it in one clean cut to avoid leaving breaks or jagged edges, which are bad for wound healing and also prone to infection. Of course, if the tip is easy to handle, we can also simply pinch it off directly with our fingers, but we still need to keep the wound as flat as possible.

Peace Lily tree

4. Care after pinching

After dealing with all the parts of the potted Peace Lily tree that need pinching, place the potted plant in a cool, ventilated spot as much as possible; of course, it can alsoreceivesome scattered light, but avoid direct sunlight, otherwise it can cause some harm to the wounds left after pinching. Because after pinching the wounds are in an open, split state, and if the light is too strong, it easily causes sap loss, which makes the wounded parts wilt and dry up. However, besides shading the light, you also need to take measures to keep off rain, and you must wait until the wounds have dried before resuming normal watering and fertilizing.

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