Petunia yellow duckling should I pinch? Proper pinching of petunias for lush and continuous flowering. Well-groomed appearance of the plant

Petunia is an ornamental plant of the nightshade family. It is distinguished by a variety of flower colors, ease of care, and decorativeness. Petunia comes from South America. This is an annual plant with large and bright bell-shaped flowers. It is grown as a decoration for balconies, verandas, and windows.

Petunia leaves are entire and have short petioles. Depending on the variety they are various shapes and magnitude. The leaves are arranged alternately. The stems are branched and green.

On a note. The color of petunia flowers is very diverse, from white to black. The most popular among gardeners: pink, red, blue, purple shades. Sometimes flowers have bright variegated patterns. And the edges of the petals can be either regular or fringed.

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Topping

Pinching petunias means removing the top shoots. It is produced for the purpose of forming a bush so that the petunia blooms beautifully.

When should you do this?

The most appropriate time for the first pinching is after transplanting the seedlings to their permanent place of residence. It could be open ground, flowerpot or container (you can learn about the intricacies of growing petunias in open ground).

It is important to meet several conditions here:

1. After transplanting, you need to wait about two weeks for the plant to take root and become a little stronger. The length of the shoots should be approximately 8 cm. If the shoots are too small, it is better to give them the opportunity to grow.
2. You need to make sure that the plant has “gone to the stem”, that is, a period of rapid growth has begun. If this does not happen, then you need to wait some more time.
3. Be sure to give petunia root fertilizers and spray them as needed.
4. Repeated pinching can be done after about a month. It is repeated pinching that promotes gorgeous and abundant flowering.

If the plant is not pinched it will continue to grow. That is, there will be abundant growth of green mass. Moreover, the growth will go in one branch. The shoots will become long and ugly, resembling whips. In this case, flowering will be sparse. Therefore, pinching can be called a mandatory procedure.

Important! Only healthy plants can be pinched! If the flower looks unhealthy, is not strong enough or has not grown, then it is better to refrain from the procedure.

Many people wonder how to do pinching correctly, and especially over which leaf. For the procedure to be successful, several rules must be followed:

After pinching, growth may slow down slightly. And flowering will move back a little in time.

Growing and care after pinching:

1. Regular and correct. This is one of the most important conditions. It provides both abundant flowering and the growth of green mass. This requires fertilizers containing nitrogen. You can use formulations containing equal amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, or with a predominance of nitrogen. It is nitrogen that promotes the growth of green mass.
2. To ensure abundant flowering you need to fertilize the flower with compounds containing potassium and phosphorus. The best option is “Bona Forte” and “Garden of Miracles”. The main thing is to remember the correct ratio of trace elements (NPK). Most often, liquid formulations are used for feeding. Less often - dry. But there is another type of fertilizer - long-lasting. They are usually available in granules.

   Such fertilizers are applied to the soil before planting. And then, when watered, they gradually dissolve and give back to the soil. useful material. It is enough to add them to the ground once, and they will feed the plant all season. But there is one serious drawback - the grower cannot control the saturation of plants with fertilizers. Therefore, the use of long-lasting compositions can lead to disastrous consequences.

3. In addition to root feeding, the flower requires foliar feeding. This procedure is carried out by spraying the flower with fertilizer dissolved in water. This is done using a spray bottle. So necessary substances(vitamins, microelements, amino acids) enter the plant body through the stem and leaves.
4. Correct and spraying. Petunia loves abundant, but not excessive watering. It is advisable to water it in the morning and evening. In this case, the water can be slightly acidified. If the weather is hot, the plant needs regular spraying.
5. Temperature conditions. This will promote the formation of side shoots, as well as prevent growth into one branch. In order for the plant to have a beautiful appearance, in addition to pinching, it is required heat during the day and low at night. The optimal option is 15-18 degrees during the day and 5-10 at night.

Petunia is a fairly popular flower. However, it requires care if there is a desire for this plant to bloom regularly. You need to pinch it in time and at about the same time trim off excess shoots that have grown too much.

You shouldn’t stop controlling the growth of the flower, as it will only grow upward. As a result, creating a bush will be very difficult. And this negatively affects the external shape and beauty of petunia in general.

Time to pinch petunia

Has the plant started to grow actively? This is a sure sign that you need to start pinching the bushes. This phenomenon is associated with the process of growth along the stem. First you need to find the bottom of the branch. Four or five leaves are counted from it. Top part shoot and call the zone where the flower begins to grow. It should be plucked off with your fingers. After this, growth “in length” slows down somewhat, however, the activity of additional lateral parts of the shoot is activated. After such a simple operation, more flowers appear. This method should be repeated after one month.

Tricks to consider when working with petunia

How to pinch petunia?

To consolidate the result, it is better to carefully examine the petunia several times in thirty days. If possible, pinching is done more often.

But the cut off shoot is not thrown away. It is placed in a plastic bottle with clean water. After a while it will give new roots. You can grow a new petunia from it. This is one of the methods of flower propagation. It is recommended to cut off all excess leaves, leaving only those located at the top.

Petunia wins hearts with its beauty, brightness, long decorative period, and unpretentiousness. The plant does not require much care; however, one of the necessary procedures is pinching.

This simple operation allows you to grow a compact, lush bush, strewn with bright, multiple flowers. Let's find out how to properly pinch petunias and what conditions are necessary for the procedure.

The pinching procedure is also called pinching and involves breaking off/pinching off/cutting off the apical part of the shoots. Translated from German, the word “pincing” means “to remove the end,” and this translation perfectly reflects the essence of the procedure.

The purpose of the operation is to awaken the lateral buds on the shoots, which are dormant before pinching.

After the procedure and healing of the cut site, the remaining stem thickens, sometimes becomes woody, becomes stronger and stockier. The shade of the foliage changes for the better - it becomes brighter and more saturated. The axillary buds swell and become more voluminous - as a result of this, the flowers that then bloom from them delight with their large size and splendor.

Pinching in general is required to produce stronger shoots, a fuller bush and more beautiful, vibrant flowers and foliage. This procedure is aimed at increasing the external attractiveness and decorativeness of petunia.

Benefit

Let's find out why you need to pinch petunia.

Crown formation

This is the main purpose of the procedure. Pinching makes it possible to small sprout get a compact and lushly flowering plant, pleasing to the eye for a long period. A well-groomed and correctly formed crown always looks much more neat.

Stopping the growth of apical shoots

Due to the fact that pinching removes the top of shoots growing upward, the lateral branches begin to grow more actively. As a result, the petunia does not stretch out, but becomes a round small bush, which looks more attractive.

In addition, the more side branches there are, the more flowers will appear, not to mention the increase in bushiness.

Lignification of the lower part of the shoots

Although petunia is essentially a herbaceous plant, the lower part of its shoots, after pinching, becomes very strong, almost lignified. Thanks to this, the plant will be stronger, stronger and more resilient, able to withstand weather disasters.

When to pinch, what conditions are needed?

Pinch petunia when the seedlings begin to actively grow. And this is a clear sign that it is better not to delay the procedure - otherwise the seedlings will stretch out and the bush will turn out ugly. By the time of the first pinching, 40-50 days should have passed from the moment the seeds were planted.

Only healthy plants are pinched: it is advisable to remove weak and defective shoots immediately so as not to waste time and effort on them. What condition should the plants be in: at the time of the procedure they should be grown, strong, and have several leaves (no more than 5-6).

You will need garden shears or a small pruner, as well as a container in which you will put the cut off apical parts of the shoots. Next, you will learn how to pinch petunias step by step.

Process description

In short, pinching a petunia is removing the top of the shoot above the fifth or sixth top leaf. The procedure is carried out with pruning shears, and some gardeners simply use their own fingers, breaking off the shoot in the right place.

Due to the fact that the main shoot is broken, a new active growth point is formed in this place, from which side shoots will branch in different directions. Please note that immediately after the procedure, petunia seedlings slow down their development, but quickly recover and begin to grow even more actively.

If the seedlings are intended for planting in open ground, the procedure is also carried out after rooting the seedlings in a new place. However, after transplantation, several days must pass for the plant to adapt.

When grown in greenhouse conditions, pinching is usually carried out after picking, since before - there is no point.

Step by step guide:

• find the very bottom of the sprout;
• count 5-6 leaves from the bottom, maybe 4;
• We pinch the part of the shoot located above the counted leaf with pruning shears (fingers, scissors);
• Sprinkle the cut area with wood ash.

A month after the first procedure, a second pinching is usually performed.

Attention: no more than one-fifth of the plant shoot can be removed in one procedure. Some gardeners are late and then immediately cut off a third of the shoot, or even half: such crude intervention does not benefit the plant, and can even destroy it.

How to pinch for abundant flowering

In order for petunias to enjoy lush and long-lasting flowering, ideally you need to pinch them twice: at the stage of appearance of 5-6 leaves and the second time after transplanting into open ground.

Particularly responsible flower growers also carry out a third procedure, when the petunia is already actively growing after transplantation. And such triple pinching allows you to achieve the most successful and impressive results in the form of a lush-flowering, bright petunia bush.

How to pinch different types of petunias

Gardeners grow several popular types of petunias:

• cascade;
• ampelous;
• bush;
• terry

Let's look at the features of pinching all these varieties.

Cascade

This plant must be pinched two to three times during the growing season. The procedure will allow the plant to bush more actively and become more luxuriant. When pruning cascading petunia, you need to imagine how it will look later, since this type of flower is especially difficult to shape. It is important to achieve a uniform shape, symmetrical on both sides.

Ampelnaya

This plant is already initially, at the genetic level, designed to form a lush, well-flowering bush. Therefore, many varieties (especially new ones) of ampelous petunia do not need pinching at all. However, pinching the seedlings for the first time is still advisable - it will guarantee that the bush will be well branched.

Bush

The plant is pinched in the traditional way to achieve the correct and lush shape of the bush.

Terry

Since all terry varieties are hybrid and selection, they rarely need pinching. Initially, they form lush bushes with abundant leaves and flowers, so the procedure can be neglected. An exception is made if the seedlings stretch strongly to one side.

We'll tell you in detail about important nuances procedure and care for petunia after it.

To minimize injury to delicate seedlings, carry out the procedure carefully and only with clean tools.

If the shoot is weak, you should not pinch it too much, much less tear off the leaves. Such a specimen must be treated with care, since otherwise it may not survive the procedure or may become ill.

It is best to carry out the procedure in the evening, when the sun sets below the horizon: at this time the rays become less scorching and aggressive than during the day.

When you pinch petunia not at home, but in the open ground, choose a dry and warm day for the procedure - this way the cuts will heal faster.

To make the buds larger and brighter, do not forget to fertilize the petunias with suitable minerals when caring. The plant responds very gratefully to feeding. After the next pinching, feed the petunia - it will recover faster and grow more actively.

Proper care should also include watering, spraying, and removing faded buds. Such care will have a positive effect on the health and appearance of the plant, making it lush, decorative, and pleasing to the eye.

To make side shoots grow faster and become more branched, it is useful to lower the air temperature at night.

Blooming petunia can also be pinched. However, no more than 2-3 shoots from the plant are removed in one procedure. Additional spraying succinic acid will allow the plant to survive the operation more easily.

There are cuttings left - what to do with them?

After the pinching procedure, strong, high-quality and healthy shoot tips are usually left - complete planting material. Thus, with the help of the remaining tops, you can make your petunia population even richer.

To germinate such a cutting, you need to remove its lower leaves. Otherwise, they will rot in the water as the roots grow. After removing the foliage, the cutting is placed in a container of water. Then you need to wait a while for the roots to appear. And after their appearance, the cuttings are planted in the ground in the usual way (see photo).

Don’t forget to pinch the cutting when it actively grows and begins to stretch.

What varieties of petunias are pinched?

IN mandatory procedure Not all varieties of petunias need pinching, but only:

• old varieties, bred long ago;
• amateur varieties;
• flowers from your own seeds.

All these types of petunias are not very decorative without pinching, so they must be pinched absolutely precisely. If you allow such varieties to grow as they please, you will end up with elongated, non-compact bushes with sparse flowers and stunted foliage. And you won’t be able to wait for abundant flowering.

However, there is also good news- and these are new, hybrid breeding varieties. Scientific developments are aimed at breeding varieties of petunias that would require minimal care and still bloom luxuriantly.

Therefore, most varieties bred in last years, or do not require pinching at all, or minimal. However, it is necessary to pay attention to the conditions in which the cultivation takes place - in low light and in cramped conditions, the plants will still begin to stretch upward.

If a similar problem happens to a hybrid petunia, you can eliminate the elongation with chemicals such as Athlete. However, for most gardeners, a formative mechanical procedure in the form of pinching is better than using “chemistry” once again.

So, we learned how to properly pinch petunia so that it blooms long and luxuriantly. The procedure is absolutely necessary - when planning to grow petunia, keep this fact in mind. Without pinching, the bush will turn out to be inconspicuous, shapeless, and there will be few flowers.

Watch the pinching procedure in the video.

To make petunia seedlings strong and branched, it is not enough to simply care for the bushes. For growing side branches and correct formation, young shoots must be pinched.

What is pinching?

Pinching is a mandatory stage in the formation of petunia seedlings. It consists of removing the shoot tip of the main trunk and, accordingly, cutting off the central growth point. As a result, instead of one trunk, the plant forms many lateral shoots. More branches grow on the bushes, and accordingly, the number of buds increases. Petunia, pinched at seedling stage, grows well-branched, fluffy, with many large flowers.

There is an opinion that some varieties of petunias do not need pinching. For example, some hybrids and ampelous petunias. According to the manufacturers, they should bush well on their own. Unfortunately, this does not always happen. In any case, one pinching will not be superfluous for any variety of petunia. Even ampels after such manipulation grow more decorative and bloom better.

At what stage are seedlings pinched?

Several pinchings may be needed to form seedlings. It all depends on the variety. Some varieties branch perfectly after one pinching. Others, to obtain the same look, will need to cut off the growth point 2-3 times.

The first pinching is usually done on 4-5 true leaves (not counting the cotyledon leaves). For modern hybrids, as a rule, this is enough. If the petunia is capricious and stubbornly does not want to branch, after 20-30 days a second pinching is done. Moreover, you can pinch not only the central trunk, but also those side branches that still managed to appear. Subsequent pinchings (if necessary) are performed with the same frequency.

Technology for pinching petunia seedlings

So, what needs to be done to make petunia start branching? So, as soon as the young plants produce 4-5 true leaves, the “surgical” operation can begin. Often, nail scissors are used for this, which are used to carefully cut off the apical bud. Instead of scissors, you can pinch off the growth point by grabbing it with your nails. That's the whole procedure - nothing complicated.

If the seedlings have stretched out and there are no longer 4-5 leaves, but much more, then it’s also not scary. On the contrary, you will have a wonderful opportunity to get additional planting material. In this case, there will be no need to carry out minor manipulations. It is enough to cut off the central stem at a height of 2-3 internodes. The cut off top can be used as a cutting for a new petunia bush. Young cuttings take root well both in water and directly in the soil. Moreover, in the spring the rooting process occurs at an accelerated pace. After just 2 weeks, the cuttings will take root and begin to live as an independent plant. And you will have to pinch it too!

Pinching and flowering: some nuances

Pinching – useful procedure, which helps to form dense, branched, lushly flowering balls from petunia seedlings. And you might think that the more pinches, the better. But that's not true. This procedure has consequences. Since petunia forms buds at the ends of the shoots, when pinching off the apical buds, already established buds are also removed. Flowering of seedlings is delayed. You will have to wait until the budding of buds occurs on the new side shoots that have grown from the central stem. On average, after each pinching, the flowering of petunia is inhibited by 1.5-2 weeks. Therefore, you should not get carried away with pinching, otherwise you may not see flowering at all.

What housewife doesn’t dream of a well-groomed, admirable, and even enviable flower garden next to her house? In our climate, petunia is one of the most best options how to decorate the local area, because the number of its varieties and colors is very large, and in special care she doesn't need it. Petunia is native to Montevideo and belongs to the nightshade family. Although petunia is a perennial plant, it dies in open ground during our winters, so it is grown as an annual. This plant is very thermophilic, tolerates heat well, but requires constant watering. In cold weather, petunia stops blooming. There are a huge number of petunia species (several hundred varieties), but they are all divided into four groups: ampelous, large-flowered, multi-flowered and floribunda. Large-flowered varieties of petunias look most impressive, but they are also the most capricious, suffering most from changes in temperature, wind and rain. Multi-flowered varieties and floribunda are used for planting in flower beds and on. And the ampelous petunia will delight its owners with a whole cascade of bright flowers. Petunias come in almost every color of the rainbow: white and lilac, yellow, blue, red and pink, bicolor and striped.

In order for petunia bushes to become a real decoration and delight their owners with long flowering, it is very important to pinch them in time. How to properly pinch petunia and when to do it will be discussed in our article.

Do I need to pinch petunia seedlings?

Petunia, like any other plant, strives, first of all, to grow upward. If the top shoots are not removed in time, the petunia will stretch upward, forming a long, ugly stem that will collapse under its own weight - and there will be no talk of a beautiful flower garden. Pinching petunias will allow you to form a beautiful lush bush that will actively produce new side shoots, each of which will have new buds. As a result, the petunia bush will bloom more luxuriantly and actively. Pinching will also have a beneficial effect on the duration of petunia flowering, and the pinched shoots will grow again, forming new bushes. Therefore, to the question “Is it possible to pinch petunia?” There is only one answer - it is possible and even necessary. This is especially true for plants grown independently from purchased seeds. The fact is that pinching plants is a very labor-intensive process and breeders are working hard to create varieties that would grow and develop normally without it. Naturally, varietal petunia seeds are expensive and are sold in special nurseries. Cheap types of petunias, available for free sale, must be pinched.

When to pinch petunia seedlings?

To achieve maximum effect, pinching petunia seedlings is done twice: the first time in the four-leaf phase, and the second - a month after the first. The first pinching is usually done after the petunia is planted in open ground (usually in the second decade of May), giving the plant time to get stronger and acclimatize. Using nail scissors, cut out the top bud to the maximum depth, leaving only 3-4 bottom leaves to make it look like in the photo. You can also pinch petunia simply with your hands, without any equipment. Plucked off parts of the stem can be used to propagate petunia. To do this, just put them in a jar of water, where the petunia will quickly sprout roots. After this, the petunia can be replanted in the ground, having first cut off all the leaves from the cuttings, except for one or two of the top ones.