What are the methods of flower pruning?

The methods of flower pruning are:

①Heading back. The principle of heading back is: prune strong branches lightly, prune weak branches heavily. Light pruning: cut off 1/5-1/4 of the branch; medium pruning: cut off 1/3-1/2 of the branch length; heavy pruning: cut off 1/2-3/4 of the branch length.

②Thinning. The objects of thinning are crossing branches, inward-growing branches, diseased and pest-infested branches, leggy branches and aging branches, so as to make the plant's structure clear and promote ventilation, light penetration and flowering.

③Pinching and tip removal. Pinching is removing the growing point at the tip of a branch; tip removal is removing the top of a new shoot. It can promote the sprouting of lateral buds, speed up the formation of the crown, and make the plant bloom more.

④Bud removal and flower bud thinning. Remove excess lateral buds or new small tender shoots from flowering plants to reduce nutrient consumption and concentrate nutrients for the development of the main bud. Flower bud thinning is removing lateral flower buds so that too many lateral buds do not affect the growth of the main bud and make the flowers smaller.

⑤Flower and fruit thinning. Most ornamental fruit flowers produce more flowers than fruit; if flowers are not thinned, a large amount of nutrients will be wasted, and after the fruit has set, excess young fruit also needs to be thinned out.

⑥Root pruning. When transplanting or repotting, prune off overly long, damaged or rotted roots.

Extension: Before pruning flowering plants, you must have some understanding of their habits, for example:

①Roses bloom at the tips of new branches of the current year, so they cannot be headed back; after the flowers fade, the flowering branches should be headed back promptly, and they can continue to bloom in the same year.

②Camellias also bloom at the tips of branches, so they cannot be headed back either; otherwise the flower buds will be cut off.

③Wintersweet and others bloom in winter and early spring; if headed back in autumn, the flowering branches will inevitably be cut off.

④Lantana and night jasmine, however, can bloom after early summer, so they are suitable for heading back in late autumn.