What are the pruning methods for Chaenomeles speciosa (flowering quince)?

Chaenomeles speciosa has a long flowering period, with large and vivid blooms in a rich variety of colors, making it popular among flower enthusiasts. Today we will introduce the pruning methods for Chaenomeles speciosa. Friends who are interested, take a look!

Pruning methods for Chaenomeles speciosa

Spring pruning: The best time to prune is in early spring before the tree begins to grow. The pruning methods are mainly heading back and thinning out branches.

1. Newly planted plants: Following the principle of keeping the good and removing the poor, generally select 3 to 5 healthy branches and cut off the excess weak branches, diseased and pest-infested branches, and curved branches from the base, to promote vigorous new shoots from the root crown the following year, increase the number of branches within the clump, and be careful not to leave stubs when cutting. For the healthy branches already selected, usually prune strong branches lightly and weak branches heavily, leaving an outward-facing bud at the cut to expand the shrub's range, while keeping the interior of the clump hollow to facilitate ventilation and light penetration, and to encourage more flower bud formation. In locations with good fertilizer and water conditions, prune lightly and leave long; in locations with poor fertilizer and water conditions, prune heavily and leave short.

2. Plants after establishment:

An ideal shrub form should maintain a state of being tall inside and low outside, and sparse inside and dense outside. This not only allows the branches to receive sunlight evenly, but also increases the shrub's permeability, which is more conducive to healthy plant growth. The specific pruning methods are as follows:

(1) Cut off from the base the diseased and pest-infested branches, crossing branches, overly dense branches, overlapping branches, and inward-growing branches that affect the tree shape. Select 5 to 8 branches with suitable direction and suitable thickness to keep, and the cutting height should be consistent at the base.

(2) Since 3-to-5-year-old flower branches of Chaenomeles speciosa bloom the most, the flowering branches should be renewed year by year to keep the plant always in full bloom. Renewal of flower branches should be carried out year by year, generally renewing 2 to 3 branches each year; excess new shoots and old flowering branches can be removed.

(3) Since the flower buds of Chaenomeles speciosa basically all grow on short branches, when pruning, leave a few nodes before cutting, to increase short branches.

Post-bloom pruning

To maintain the tree shape and keep the overall effect beautiful, appropriate pruning is needed after flowering. Two weeks after flowering, thin out the crowded branches on the plant and the branches protruding from the crown outline. Appropriately head back long branches, leaving 3 to 4 buds from the base and cutting off the rest, which helps increase the short branches that form flower buds. Fruits set after flowering should be removed as early as possible to avoid nutrient loss and to prevent affecting flower bud formation the following year.

Precautions

1. When heading back flower branches to control plant height, it should be done lightly, and it needs to be done year by year, to avoid heavy heading back affecting the amount of spring blooming.

2. The number of branches retained should be determined by the size of the space. When planting a single plant, more branches can be retained; when planting in rows or in patches, where space is smaller, fewer branches can be retained as appropriate.

3. When pruning after flowering, leafy branches are removed, reducing the photosynthetic area, which will inhibit plant growth, so pruning should be light.