The following is about the pruning of geranium in three parts to talk about my own experience, so as to attract more attention and discuss with flower lovers:
First, small seedlings topping
If geranium pays attention to controlling plant type by topping from the beginning of seedling, good results will be achieved and satisfactory plant type will be obtained soon. So when should the seedlings top? Where can I make a phone call?
According to many data, geranium seedlings should be picked when they grow to 12- 15 cm high. After practice, I don't agree with this opinion. I usually top the seedlings within 5 cm. When the seedlings grow to 5 or 6 leaves, cover the top when they grow vigorously, and remove one leaf and one core. There are only 3 or 4 leaves left on the main stem. After topping, three or four stout new lateral branches can be sent out from the axils of these three or four leaves, and the main stem becomes stout during the growth of the new lateral branches. When three lateral branches grow to four or five leaves, top branches are carried out, and each lateral branch keeps three leaves, so that at least six lateral branches can be obtained. After the formation of six lateral branches, the plant shape will be plump and round. At this time, if you let it blossom, you can at least enjoy four or five flower arrows at the same time.
The Loretta on the right in the above picture was cut off on February 9, 20 12, 65438. After two topping, now there are five flower arrows in six side branches! Imagine how beautiful it would be if you opened five balls at the same time! It's worth waiting. What's the harm of seeing flowers two months late?
On the left is a seedling from another shop I bought online. Because the internodes are also long, in order to control the height, I only leave two leaves to top. At present, two small side branches have been issued. When the lateral branches grow to four or five leaves, I will top them again, and two will become four; Keep playing once, change from four to eight, and then enjoy the flowers.
The above two pictures are all living seedlings of my 068 ruby dream. The topping position of these seedlings is shown in the red line below:
(Note: If the florist wants to cut it for later use, that's another matter. You can wait until the branches are longer, and branches four or five centimeters long can be cut off from the main stem with more than four leaves. The cut part can be cut into another seedling. )
Sometimes, the seedlings we buy are not satisfactory, just like the long-awaited two-color Picasso. I was disappointed when I received the seedlings on April 27 (there were only five leaves and few roots at that time, so I had to change them into plastic cups with a diameter of 7 cm to slow down the seedlings. This picture was taken at noon on May 17, and the lower two yellow leaves have been removed).
There are no internodes 6.5 cm below the main stem of this seedling. In order to obtain a satisfactory plant type, such a tall seedling must be picked from the first internode (red line) and replanted to cultivate new plants. If a new lateral branch can develop from the internode left below, when the new lateral branch is long enough to be cut, cut it off. Because such a seedling is not beautiful even if it grows into a tree.
My seedlings have short internodes, and the height of seedlings with five or six leaves is generally less than 6 cm. Look at the contrast between my seedlings and this 036 tree, just like Yao Ming and Pan Changjiang standing together, hehe! They were also shot lying down.
In addition, seedlings that have just received long-distance express delivery should not be rushed to the top, but should be delayed to adapt to the new environment and start to grow obviously. Note: It is not advisable to top the geranium when the temperature is too high in summer and too low in winter, because the geranium is in a semi-dormant state at this time and may recover slowly after topping.
Second, adult pruning
Geranium grows rapidly and needs pruning and shaping many times a year. Generally speaking, adult plants are pruned at least three times a year.
The first pruning can be in early spring, mainly thinning branches and cutting disorderly branches.
The second time, after the full flowering period in spring, cut off the residual flowers and over-dense branches. Because geraniums bloom at the top of new branches, there will be no more flower arrows on the old branches that have already blossomed. Therefore, after the geranium blooms in spring, the residual flowers should be cut off and the excessively long branches should be cut off to facilitate the development of new branches and continue to sprout and blossom.
The third time is in autumn (the temperature is about 26 degrees), mainly to shape and control the height of plants. I usually cut it again in autumn.
In addition, small pruning should be carried out from time to time, and the branches that are too long and asymmetrical should be shortened at any time, so that the branches of the whole plant are evenly distributed and compact, and the plants are short, plump and round, with many flowers and several flowers. When I trim the side branches, I only leave two or three leaves, four or five at most. Later, the new branches growing from these leaf nodes are plump and strong new lateral branches.
Third, trim and change pots.
Geranium blooms hard and needs a lot of fertilizer. Generally, it will be fattened in a year or two. Generally, change pots when the temperature is below 26 degrees in autumn. If the temperature is too low or too high, it is not conducive to the recovery of Xiaotian after changing pots. Under normal circumstances, annual seedlings don't need to trim their roots, just need to trim and replace larger flowerpots; Adult geraniums over a year and a half will be pruned at the same time, and one-third to two-thirds of the roots can be removed when cutting roots. After changing pots, potassium permanganate solution with the ratio of 1000 can be used as root fixing water, which can not only sterilize and prevent the pruned roots from being infected, but also promote the generation of new roots.