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When pinching petunias at the seedling stage. Proper pinching of petunias for lush and continuous flowering. An alternative to pinching seedlings

Pinching petunias: why do it and when ...

Volumetric multi-colored bushes of terry, ampelous, two-color and plain petunias won hearts experienced gardeners and newcomers. From mid-spring to the first frosts, flowers, amazing in their diversity and decorativeness, adorn not only summer cottages but also balconies multi-storey buildings, verandas of cottages, city flower beds, cafe and restaurant areas. Flowers are unpretentious, do not require professional maintenance and special conditions, but gratefully respond to the care of flower growers.

Necessary conditions for pinching petunias
How to pinch a petunia
Helpful Hints

Necessary conditions for pinching petunias

Proper cultivation and shaping is important condition to get a beautiful and healthy bush. In addition to timely sowing and diving, it is necessary to properly pinch the petunia. This means that at a certain stage of growth, she needs to remove the top shoots. Such a procedure will ensure the branching of the stems and the formation of many buds on bushy crowns.

To carry out this manipulation, you will need the following:

convenient scissors or secateurs;
strengthened seedlings with 4 - 5 large leaves at the top;
container for collecting removed cuttings.

How to pinch a petunia

Before pinching a petunia, it is advisable to familiarize yourself with the basic requirements for this procedure.

Observing the growth of seedlings, it is necessary to choose a period when it got a little stronger and began to grow up soon. It can have up to 5 - 6 leaves, but no more. If you miss this moment, the seedlings will stretch. Actually pinching petunias does not take much time. It is necessary to cut the stem over 5-6 leaves with your fingers or a pruner.
This forms a new point of growth, from which several shoots will begin to grow in different directions at the same time. During this period, seedlings can slow down development, but at the same time get a little stronger. When will they go side shoots, the bush will take on a more rounded appearance.
If you plan to plant seedlings in open ground, then pinching is best done after rooting. The sprout will take a few days to adapt. During this period, you need to try to create favorable conditions for plants to take root:

it is necessary to plant seedlings loosely, observing the conditions of agricultural technology;
monitor the frequency of watering and spraying;
apply a specialized strengthening fertilizer under the root.

If development occurs in a greenhouse, you can pinch the petunia after diving.

If the pruned shoots are not very small size, they can be used as cuttings. To the stalk rooted, it is placed in a container of water. First you need to remove the extra leaves, leaving a few at the top. When the roots appear, they are transplanted into the soil. So you can get additional young seedlings.

Helpful Hints

during pinching, try to injure the sprout as little as possible, use clean tools;
a month after the event and the appearance of strong side branches, pinching the tops of petunias can be repeated;
for laying large buds on new stepchildren, use suitable fertilizer, they will make the flowers brighter and larger.

In order for the formed decorative bush to please with its beautiful view for as long as possible, it will need constant care. From the moment of sowing, not a single transplant, pinching, spraying of sprouts will be required. Do not forget to water and feed well, remove dried flowers and shoots. In place of the cut off old flowers, new branches with buds will appear. Well-groomed colorful petunias will undoubtedly please you with abundant and long flowering in gratitude.

How to pinch a petunia (video)

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Flowers 30 January 2015 Petunia blooms about three months after sowing the seeds. During this time, due to lack natural light seedlings are strongly extended. To get a powerful branched quagastic, the top of the central shoot must be removed. You will have to pinch a petunia several times during the season, so we will carefully study this issue.

Why you need to pinch a petunia After you remove the top of the central stem, active growth of side shoots begins. The plant becomes bushy, and on each new growth an additional number of buds is formed. As a result of pinching the petunia, we get a beautiful habit and more abundant flowering in the future. Using cut branches, you can get additional planting material. We lower the cuttings into a bowl of water or into a moist substrate. IN last case planting cover with a jar. What you need to know about pinching petunia seedlings Here are a few things a beginner grower needs to know: do not tighten with a pinch. Being late is worse than being a little too hasty; you can nip the petunias every month; don't worry if the flowering slows down a bit. After such a procedure, this is a common occurrence. When to pinch a petunia We do the first pinching when the seedlings have more than six true leaves. Some flower growers advise to carry out this technique after the plants are planted in open ground. But still, you need to be aware of the situation. If it is still cool outside for heat-loving one-year-olds, pinch while they are in cups. We carry out the second procedure about a month after the first. At a time when the side branches grow by about 10 cm. Now it is necessary to shorten not only the central stem, but also all other shoots. Throughout growing season additional pruning of petunias is also allowed. But it is rather done for decorative purposes in order to achieve a uniform habitus. How to pinch a petunia, video We leave at least 4-6 real leaves on the bush. We either pinch off the top of the stem with our fingers or cut it with scissors. We do this with all grown seedlings. Watch the video, which shows well how to pinch a petunia for the first time. The second and any of the subsequent pinches are done in the same way.

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Is it necessary to pinch (tweezer) petunias?

Wednesday, April 18, 2012 2:54 pm + to the quote boxRead allTo your quote box or community!

Why pinch out Petunia seedlings?

Pinching (German pinzieren - remove the end) - pinching, removing the top of a young shoot. This is done in order to grow side shoots, otherwise all growth will go first to 1-3 shoots and the plant will become ugly, will fall under the weight of these shoots.

The process is laborious and painstaking - but worth it. In the photo above, the petunia is already two weeks after pinching.

When and how to pinch Petunia seedlings?

Pinching must be done when the Petunia seedlings look like in the photo. The optimal time for pinching is the beginning of the appearance of the third pair of true leaves. With nail scissors, it is necessary to cut the upper kidney as deep as possible to make it look like in the photo.

Do all Petunia varieties need to be pinched?

Petunias from cheap seeds in amateur packages need to be pinched 100%. Pinching is a laborious process, so the efforts of breeders are aimed at creating such Petunia varieties that would normally develop without pinching.

I must say that the breeders succeed. Earlier, I gave comparative photos of petunias from cheap and professional seeds, from where it was clear that it was not necessary to pinch normal varieties.

Modern varieties of Petunias for professional cultivation do not require pinching.

Why pinch those varieties of Petunias that do not need to be pinched?

Last season on some plants from professional seeds I tried to pinch and it turned out that such plants quickly acquire a normal look. I think if I had placed Petunia wide enough at once, pinching might not have been required.

But the place needs to be saved, the seedlings are dense and therefore stretch up. Now I will try to pinch as many plants as possible.

The result of pinching (pinching) seedlings of Petunia.

An alternative to pinching seedlings.

To prevent seedlings from stretching, many seedlings use Athlete, which shortens the length of the internodes. However, Athlete is an insidious drug and its effect is unpredictable. Below is a photo of a petunia treated with Athlete three times.

The delay in flowering of such a petunia, in relation to the pinched one, was 2 weeks. Later I will try to post comparative photos of pinched and not pinched plants of the same variety already in adulthood.

Pinching petunias.

Petunias, thanks to the efforts of breeders, are gaining more and more popularity among lovers of decorative floriculture every year. Petunias are suitable both for decorating flower beds and for growing in a small culture (balcony vases, garden vases, etc.). Growing petunias is not particularly difficult, however, if you want to fully enjoy the decorativeness of these flowers, you need to know some "secrets", one of which is pinching.

A little about tweezing and pinching petunias

Pinching - an operation to remove the growth point - is usually carried out at the stage of growing seedlings in order to obtain a compact bush with numerous side shoots on which flower buds are laid. Most optimal time for the operation, the beginning of the appearance of the third pair of true leaves is considered.

Tweezing petunias involves removing the central growth bud, which is cut out with nail scissors or a sharp garden knife. The tweezing operation is laborious and requires great care, so amateur flower growers prefer to form already mature plant pinching.

Professional varieties and hybrids of petunias in most cases do not require pinching, unlike cheap amateur ones. However, in case of violation temperature regime and insufficient illumination, the seedlings are strongly drawn out, then it is desirable to carry out tweezing on professional varieties.

Pinching is carried out already on an adult plant, if for some reason it was not possible to perform tweezing. Experienced flower growers also often resort to pinching, as this technique allows you to quickly propagate a valuable variety from cut cuttings.

Petunia pinching technique

They start pinching petunias after planting seedlings in open ground, when the plant "confidently started to grow." To form a compact bush on the central stem, it is necessary to leave 4-5 internodes, cutting off the upper part of the shoot with scissors.

After the operation, the growth of the petunia will slow down a bit, as the plant will "get sick". To help petunias adapt faster, it is necessary to fertilize with a complex mineral fertilizer for flowers.

It is also good to carry out foliar feeding with microelements and growth stimulants. Petunia is very responsive to spraying with a solution. succinic acid and copper-molybdenum fertilizer (this will also serve as a preventive measure against fungal diseases). The matter is not limited to pinching the central stem, therefore, after 1 - 2 weeks, a second operation will be required, but already for the formation of side shoots.

Alternative Methods

Of course, carrying out pinching or pinching activities will take time, especially if the number of plants is in the hundreds. For commercial floriculture, a number of preparations have been developed that significantly reduce costs. manual labor. Growth regulators produced by the chemical industry are used at the stage of growing seedlings and prevent it from stretching, and also stimulate the development of side shoots.

Pinching and reproduction

The cut tops of the stems are excellent planting material, so if you want to quickly propagate a variety or hybrid you like, do not throw away the shoots, but root the cuttings. Flowering of petunias grown from rooted cuttings will be delayed in relation to mother plants by only a couple of weeks.

Cuttings take root very quickly (within 7-10 days) if they are stuck into a container with moistened vermiculite, and a translucent shelter is built to prevent increased evaporation of moisture. At the cutting, it is first necessary to remove all the leaves, leaving only a couple of the top ones, and bury them in vermiculite before them.

cheerful petunia

The popularity of petunia is no longer in doubt - this plant has become welcome guest gardens and parks, streets and squares, country estates and modest country houses, and also confidently settled on balconies and loggias, window sills and at the entrances of houses. Petunia bushes delight the eye with a splendor of colors and shades, from white, lilac, blue, pink and red, to multicolor and striped.

Hundreds of varieties are offered to choose from. perennial came to us from distant Montevideo, taking into account our climatic conditions, it is grown here as an annual. Loves very much sunlight, well perceives heat, subject to regular watering. Cooling slows down flowering, but with an increase in temperature environment budding resumes.

well-groomed plant appearance

So that the petunia does not cease to please its owners throughout the summer, in addition to fulfilling the basic conditions for keeping plants, it is necessary to pay attention to the formation of its bushes, keeping them in a compact, lush and luxurious form. For this, the pinching method is used. For those who have never pinched anything, it will be useful to find out what it is and what it is for.

Each plant tends to grow, first of all, up. For some, this does not work out very well, but some grow so fast in height that the stem cannot withstand and collapses.

The picture is depressing. To prevent this from happening for some flowers, especially domestic ones, pinching is used - removal of the upper regrown shoots. In particular, this is done with petunia. It's simple and useful.

Someone comes to this after their conclusions, someone does not hesitate to ask professionals how to pinch a petunia correctly. But the result is always positive.

Why pinch a petunia?

As a result of pinching, the petunia begins to actively produce side shoots. The bush from this looks more lush, strong and healthy. Large quantity new branches guarantees more buds and flowers.

At the same time, the quality of flowering also increases: it becomes long and abundant. In addition, pinching a petunia is one of the ways to reproduce it. The resulting cuttings are placed in water or in moist soil under a jar.

They give roots pretty quickly, after which they are ready for planting. A beginner grower just needs to know how to pinch a petunia. There is nothing complicated, but there are several important points.

1. Do not delay with pinching, it is better to do it earlier than late. Do not pinch too much, leave 5-6 sheets and remove the shoot above them. Carry out the procedure a couple of times a month.

And don't forget about general rules: remove everything that has faded and wilted, feed the plant, spray in the heat several times a day. High-quality care will provide you with long and bright flowering. Carry out the first pinching procedure after the plant planted in a permanent place of residence gets stronger and acclimatizes. At the same time, there should be at least five leaves on the upper shoot. Do not be upset when, as a result of another pinching, the flowering of the petunia will slow down for a while, but the side shoots will grow intensively, on which new, larger buds will appear.

Associated propagation by cuttings

The tops of the petunia shoots plucked or neatly cut with nail scissors are used as cuttings for further reproduction plants. The roots that have appeared on green cuttings placed in water serve as a signal that they can already be planted in the ground, having cleared the lower part of the stem from leaves, leaving a couple of leaves at the top.

Young plants can be planted quite densely, often watering and spraying them, feeding them, and also using a growth stimulator as necessary. Petunia grown from seeds at home, as well as purchased in retail chains seedlings of inexpensive varieties must be subjected to regular pinching of shoots protruding from a common bush. Elite varieties grown in special nurseries can develop well without pinching, but they are more capricious, sensitive to sudden changes in humidity and temperature, and suffer from the effects of rain and wind. In general, petunia is not capricious, it is not difficult to care for it, but to observe the main condition is still necessary: ​​you need to look with love and touch all life on the planet, then life will reciprocate.

How to grow petunia seedlings: we understand technology

Already in the middle of spring, the sale of flowering seedlings of petunias begins in the markets and garden centers. The choice of varieties is usually small, so the search for some fancy hybrid usually ends in disappointment.

To prevent this from happening, you need to learn how to grow petunia seedlings at home on your own. In fact, it's as simple as two and two. Do you want to learn?

Then go ahead!

Stage 1. Determining the timing of sowing petunias for seedlings

Let's start by determining when to plant petunia seeds. Usually in the literature there are recommendations to date crops for the second half of March. During this period, daylight hours are already long enough to provide the sprouts with the necessary amount of light.

• south-facing apartment windows - plant petunia in early March there is good lighting - crops can be started at the end of February windows face north - postpone the sowing season until the end of March - beginning of April

Remember that if you plant the seeds too early, then the lack of light will definitely affect the health of young plants. Their development will be slowed down, they will grow frail, elongated, unable to fight diseases.

You are unlikely to get beautiful petunia bushes from such seedlings. It's a completely different matter if you delay landings. In this case, you don’t have to worry about the sprouts, but flowering will be pushed back in time.

Be guided by the fact that, on average, petunia blooms 10-12 weeks after sowing.

Stage 2. Preparing a "place of residence" for seedlings

For sowing petunias for seedlings, wide and not too deep containers are used: boxes, cassettes, plastic container from under mayonnaise or oil. The prepared container is filled with earth by about 2/3 of the height. Fill the selected container with soil mixture, spill it with boiling water. This execution is necessary in order to destroy possible pests.

Petunia

However, a high-quality store-bought mixture, even during the production process, undergoes all sorts of treatments and checks for the presence of pests (a particularly important analysis is a test for nematodes). However, it is better to play it safe and treat the earth with boiling water (steam in the oven or microwave). After 10-15 minutes, when the soil has cooled down, you can start planting petunias with seeds.

Stage 3. Sowing petunias with seeds

Petunia seeds are sown on the surface of a moist substrate, they are not sprinkled with soil on top. Recently, elite varieties of petunia seeds have been processed to improve germination and make it easier to sow useful substances, which form a shell around the seed - a granule. Seeds in this case visually increase several times and it is easier to plant them, observing the distance between crops.

However, in order for the sprout to have the strength to break through a hard granule, it must be well moistened with water. Therefore, as soon as you spread the granules on the substrate, moisten them from above with water from a spray bottle. Sometimes this measure does not work and the shell of the granule does not lend itself.

Perhaps the processing technology was not followed or the storage rules were violated. Then you should pry off each granule with a toothpick and try to crush it to release the seed. Cover the planting container with a sheet of glass or transparent polyethylene on top so that the seeds, and then the sprouts at the very beginning of their development, are in greenhouse conditions.

A stable microclimate with high humidity inside such a homemade "greenhouse" will save you from having to water the newly hatched petunia shoots. And this means that the survival rate of the younger generation in such conditions will tend to 100%. Seeds sprout only in the light, so immediately after sowing, place the container on a warm (23-26 ° C) and light windowsill. Water droplets condense on the cover of the greenhouse, so the film (glass) must be turned over every day to the other, dry side. Now nothing will not prevent the seeds from germinating after the due date - usually after 3-4 days (old seeds germinate longer - up to 10 days).

Stage 4. Refusal of greenhouse conditions - the first "walks" of young sprouts

As soon as the first sprouts appear from the seeds, the temperature of their content can be reduced to 18-20°C. For example, move containers with seedlings closer to the window glass and away from the battery. This event is rather desirable, but not mandatory.

When the temperature drops, young plants do not stretch, respectively, they grow more squat and stocky. Petunia seedlings are very small, so the first days need a very careful attitude. In the very first days of their existence, petunia seedlings should get used to non-greenhouse conditions. The high humidity of the greenhouse is, of course, good, but it can play a cruel joke on seedlings.

The most common disadvantages of a long stay of the substrate with sprouts under the greenhouse "cap" is the formation of mold on the ground and the spread of "black leg" disease. Therefore, every day the planting greenhouse must be ventilated by slightly opening its cover (polyethylene, glass, cassette cover, etc.). The first time, 2-3 minutes is enough, then, on each subsequent day, the time of “walking” seedlings should be increased by several minutes and, finally, remove the cover of the greenhouse completely.

Stage 5. Dive seedlings of petunias

When a petunia sprout hatches from a seed, it already has a pair of cotyledon leaves. They are elongated and do not look at all like the so-called "real" leaves that will appear a little later.

Cotyledons must be handled very carefully - they contain nutrients for young plant. With the appearance of 2-3 pairs of true leaves (they already retain varietal characteristics, unlike cotyledons), you can start picking. What it is?

In the traditional sense, picking (dive) seedlings consists of two procedures: 1. Transplanting sprouts from common containers to separate ones. Seedlings develop quickly and very soon, if the crops were made in one planting container, they begin to oppress each other.

When diving a petunia, each sprout goes to its own territory - in a separate cup or pot.2. Shortening of the central root. If your "center" is damaged root system begins to grow intensively in breadth and becomes more powerful.

When diving seedlings of petunias, only procedure No. 1 is usually performed. Manipulations with the central root are gradually fading into oblivion: amateur flower growers rightly decide that when transplanting seedlings, the root system is still damaged, so there is no point in injuring it additionally. It is convenient to dive petunia seedlings with a wooden stick or a small coffee spoon. that the seedlings have become cramped, carefully transplant them, along with a clod of earth around the roots, into separate "apartments". At the same time, deepen each sprout into the soil to the cotyledon leaves. Subsequently, additional roots will appear on the buried part of the stem, which will form a more developed root system. In ordinary plastic cups, petunia seedlings will develop until planting for permanent residence

Stage 6. "Hardening" - lowering the temperature

After diving, the seedlings are already quite mature and need to be “hardened off”. Among flower growers, this term means regular exposure of seedlings to low temperatures - 10-15 ° C.

At first, short-term, for 10-15 minutes, and then longer "hardening", gradually turning into constant conditions of detention, allows petunia bushes to grow more compact and strong. This can be achieved if the seedlings are taken out every day to a glazed balcony, or if a window is opened in the room where the plants are located.

Stage 7. Pinching petunia seedlings

Pinching (pinching) petunia seedlings is another important procedure that determines the appearance of an already adult bush: how branched, lush it will be, how many flower buds can form on it. The petunia sprout always forms a distinct central shoot that stretches upward.

It must be pinched at the level of 4-5 of a real leaf, that is, with nails or thin nail scissors, carefully pinch off the growth point. After that, new shoots will begin to grow from the axils of the remaining leaves, the bushes become fluffy, compact, densely branched. Remember that the more branches a petunia has, the more adulthood it will have flowers. Therefore, pinching petunia seedlings can be done several times, the more - the thicker the flower "ball" will be. In order for a young petunia to start branching, its stem is cut - pinched

Salvia flower seedling

Volumetric multi-colored bushes of terry, ampelous, two-color and plain petunias have won the hearts of experienced gardeners and beginners. From mid-spring to the first frost, flowers, amazing in their variety and decorativeness, decorate not only summer cottages, but also balconies of multi-storey buildings, verandas of cottages, city flower beds, cafes and restaurants. Flowers are unpretentious, do not require professional maintenance and special conditions, but gratefully respond to the care of flower growers. The flower needs good care, providing, in addition to traditional procedures, the formation of a bush by pinching or pinching it. Petunia, which is not pinched, but allowed to grow freely, can form an elongated bush that will tumble to one side. If you correctly form the crown of the plant, you can get a lush flower with many flowering shoots.

Why pinch a petunia?

Pinching (or tweezing) - breaking / pinching off the top of a plant shoot with your nails. After that, the remaining part of the stem becomes stiff and begins to thicken, the leaves become more saturated in color, and the buds in the axils increase in size. In horticulture, this process is done to obtain new strong shoots and a more beautiful appearance. However, this method works if the tweezing was done before the growing season ended.

Get strong and pleasing to the eye from a small sprout living decoration it’s easy, the main thing is to know how to pinch a petunia correctly and strictly follow the rules.

Do all varieties of petunias need to be pinched?

Long-bred old amateur varieties or plants grown from seeds collected from their flowers must be pinched. As a rule, such a petunia in natural form far from compact and pompous.

To modern hybrid petunia breeders make stringent demands not only on the beauty and splendor of flowering, but also on the simplification of plant care.

Petunia of modern varieties or hybrids does not require pinching or requires minimal intervention in the formation of the crown.

Nevertheless, even on modern varieties, pinching is indispensable. Often, when petunia seedlings are grown at home with a lack of light and in cramped conditions, at a temperature that is too high for it, the plants stretch.

In this case, you can spill the seedlings with the Athlete preparation or another similar agent (which in industrial greenhouses and applied) or do pinching. Many gardeners do not support the use of excessive "chemistry" even on flowers and prefer to pinch the petunia.

The rapid formation of lateral shoots is facilitated by a decrease in night temperature.

What you need to pinch a petunia

To carry out this manipulation, you will need the following:

• convenient scissors or secateurs;
• strengthened seedlings with 4 - 5 large leaves at the top;
• container for collecting removed cuttings.

How and when to pinch a petunia

Pinching petunias should be done twice - at the seedling stage and after planting in open ground. If the second tweezing with a lack of time can be neglected, then pinching at the seedling stage is carried out without fail. It is carried out when a young seedling has 5-6 leaves, a little less, but not more than this amount. The algorithm is quite simple. With a miniature pruner, scissors or just your fingers, you need to pinch the stem of a young plant over the 5-6th leaf. In order for the seedling to recover faster after this procedure, you can water or spray it with a growth stimulator such as "Epin" or "Zircon".

A month later, when new side shoots begin to grow, you need to tweeze again. Now it is carried out not only on the central stem, but also on the side shoots, which, after this procedure, will sprout the third order. After repeated tweezing, foliar and root dressing complete mineral fertilizer and growth stimulator. Ampel varieties it is desirable to tweezer every 3-4 weeks.

What to do after pinching a petunia

With regular shortening of shoots and increased growth of petunias, constant feeding with a growth stimulator and complete mineral fertilizer is required. Otherwise, many thin stems will develop. It is possible to achieve a return on the plant only with constant watering and proper care.

We remember that it is necessary to cut off wilted flowers in time (do not pull them out, but pinch off from a branch with a pedicel). Forming testes, they take strength from the plant.

Associated propagation of petunias by cuttings after pinching

The tops of the petunia shoots plucked or neatly cut with nail scissors are used as cuttings for further propagation of the plant.

The roots that have appeared on green cuttings placed in water serve as a signal that they can already be planted in the ground, having cleared the lower part of the stem from leaves, leaving a couple of leaves at the top. Young plants can be planted quite densely, often watering and spraying them, feeding them, and also using a growth stimulator as necessary.

Petunia grown from seeds at home, as well as seedlings of inexpensive varieties purchased in retail chains, must be subjected to regular pinching of shoots protruding from a common bush. Elite varieties grown in special nurseries can develop well without pinching, but they are more capricious, sensitive to sudden changes in humidity and temperature, and suffer from the effects of rain and wind.

• Do not use the operation for seedlings in boxes and young immature sprouts, do not mix different varieties and timely rid the soil of weeds and pests. Remember petunias need just like the rest decorative types, in constant attention and care;
• After pinching, the removed shoots (in 3-4 sheets) can be put in a jar of water and, after the appearance of small roots, use them to grow new petunia bushes;
• Throughout the season, it is necessary to remove wilted flowers in time, this will contribute to the formation of new buds on the plants.

Pinching is a simple and at the same time important manipulation that allows you to improve the quality of flowering and form a certain shape of the plant. To correct the shape of the plant, you need to pinch the petunia regularly, skipping a month between this procedure. If you follow these rules for the care of petunias, you will be able to grow beautiful bushes of this flowering plant, which will be no worse than in the photo given in this article. If petunias are allowed to grow on their own, then it will simply stretch out, and the flowers will be small. Petunia lovers are constantly finding new ways to decorate using unusual varieties and it just looks amazing.

The unpretentious petunia, familiar from childhood, has long been transformed into a luxurious beauty. Thanks to the hard work of breeders, a huge number of varieties and hybrids of various colors and shades have appeared. The plant won the hearts of even inexperienced flower growers, distinguished by unpretentiousness and continuous chic flowering. One of the main procedures in its cultivation is the removal of apical buds. This operation allows you to get lush bush, strewn with multiple flowers.

Brazil and Uruguay are considered to be the birthplace of this beauty, from where in the 18th century it was brought by the French botanist Jean Lamarck, who was looking for rare plants.

The plant is a perennial, however, it is mainly grown as an annual, and, with the onset of the first frost, it is simply thrown away. In late autumn, petunia can be transferred to a container with nutrient soil, bring into the room and provide additional lighting. Then this flower will delight all year round.

The flower is a shrub with a height of 15 to 90 cm with creeping stems forming axillary shoots of the second and subsequent order. Perennial leaves, different various forms and size, without teeth and notches, strongly pubescent. flowers correct form: simple, semi-double, terry. They are distinguished by a delicate aroma and a variety of colors. The fruit of the plant is represented by a box with 300-800 pieces of small seeds.

The beauty blooms in late June - early July, delighting with its beauty until the onset of significant frosts. Quietly withstands a short drop in temperature to -3 degrees. Propagated by sowing seeds or cuttings. Seedlings begin to grow in the third decade of January, using additional lighting.

Important!

When planting in a permanent place, the plant must be provided with well-lit areas, sufficient watering, and ventilation.

How and why to pinch a petunia

Having worked on the creation of modern cultivars and hybrids, breeders have ensured that the gardener has to make a minimum of effort and intervention in the formation of the petunia crown. However, even when growing modern hybrids, it is simply impossible to do without pinching.

The pinching method is used in order to:

• stimulate the growth and development of lateral branches;
• provide abundant flowering;
• give splendor and compactness to the bush.

Apical buds are removed at the time of active seedling growth no later than 30-55 days after the appearance of the first shoots. The procedure is carried out with any cutting tool or just with your fingers. The shoot is cut off above the fourth or fifth true leaf. At the site of a break in the plant, a new growth point is created, from which secondary stems will grow. After the operation, the seedlings slow down their development for some time. However, after a few days, it fully recovers and begins to grow more actively.

After the tweezing process, the lower part of the petunia becomes very strong. Due to this, the plant is more hardy and resists any natural disasters.

Do all varieties of petunias need to be pinched?

The mandatory removal of the apical buds is necessary for:

• old varieties that are not decorative;
• plants cultivated from self-collected seeds.

Most of the hybrids bred by the originators-breeders do not require pinching, differing in compactness and lush flowering. Hybrids do not need tweezing at all:

• Limbo F1;
• Mambo F1;
• Alladin F1;
• Schok Wave F1;
• Ultra F1;
• Frost F1;
• Picobella F1;
• Hulahoop F1;
• Dreams F1;
• Merlin F1;
• Mirade F1.

Time to pinch a petunia

In order for the beauty to please with chic and long flowering, you need to remove the apical buds three times per season:

1. When the fourth or fifth true leaf is formed on the plant 30-40 days after the appearance of the first shoots.
2. 10-15 days after transplanting seedlings to a permanent place in the ground.
3. During the active growth of flowers in a permanent place, no later than thirty days after transplantation.

Triple tweezing allows the plant to turn into a bright, chic bush in a season.

Petunia care after pinching

After removing the tops, you need to provide the plant with the necessary top dressing. A few days after the first pinching, young seedlings need to be fed with any growth stimulator according to the instructions:

• Endophyte;
• Regoplant;
• Appin;
• Succinic acid;
• Alpha Nano.

Further top dressing should be carried out every 10-15 days with complex mineral fertilizers with a high percentage of nitrogen. A pinched plant also needs systematic watering and loosening of the soil. Not providing petunias after tweezing proper care, you can get in return the development of thin, painful shoots.

Cutting petunias after pinching

Removed apical shoots are complete planting material. With the help of the remaining cuttings, you can successfully replenish the collection of petunias. This is especially true for those hybrids whose seeds are of considerable value. To get a young bush you need:

1. Leave 1-2 leaves on the cut shoot.
2. Place the cutting in a container with water, adding 2 tablets of crushed activated charcoal to it.
3. When whitish roots appear on the shoot, plant the plant in a container with nutrient soil.
4. After complete engraftment of the petunia, tweezing it, necessary feeding and put in a permanent place.

How to pinch different types of petunias

Differing in the shape of the bush and the length of the stems, the plant has some features in the formation of its lush crown.

ampelous petunia

Plants that have inherited the natural formation of a lush, profusely flowering bush. Many ampelous hybrids do not need tweezing. However, to fully guarantee the creation of a well-branched bush, it is necessary to carry out a one-time removal of apical shoots at the age of seedlings of 35-45 days.

cascading petunia

A type of petunia that needs at least triple tweezing throughout the growing season. By removing the apical shoots on the plant, you can achieve chic flowering and the shape of a brightly flowering ball.

bush petunia

Plants of this type pinch out when few lateral branches are formed. Such petunias need to be stimulated by cutting off the central stem and treating with any growth stimulant.

Terry petunia

Terry hybrids need to remove the top shoots very rarely. Created by breeders, compact luxurious flowers that initially form a chic crown during the growing season. The pinching procedure is carried out in cases of pulling young seedlings due to lack of daylight.

Is it possible to pinch a petunia when it blooms

If the flowers have already begun to bloom profusely, the removal of the apical shoots can also be successfully carried out. The main thing is to cut no more than four shoots from the bush. After the procedure, in a day, treat the flowers with any growth stimulator.

What to do with cut shoots

Pinched off shoots of plants can be rooted by replenishing the flower garden with new bushes. For this you should:

• process the cut stems with "Kornevin" or dip the lower part of the cuttings in wood ash;
• cut off all the leaves on the shoots, leaving 1-2 pieces in the upper part;
• place the cuttings in a container with distilled water with the addition of activated carbon;
• plant the tops in open ground, mulching, covering with a plastic transparent container.

To form a bush that will delight with its beauty and continuous flowering, remember the following recommendations:

1. For a good build-up of the vegetative mass, top dressing is necessary. complex fertilizer once every 7-10 days throughout the season.
2. Be sure to regularly water and loosen the soil.
3. Remove faded buds and formed seed pods.
4. Preventive treatment from pests with pesticides, from damage by diseases with copper-containing preparations.
5. Carry out the tweezing procedure with a sterile instrument.

Important!

For the fastest formation of lateral branches on the plant, you should lower the air temperature at night by 4-6 degrees.

Conclusion

When carrying out a competent removal of apical shoots, following the recommendations for caring for petunias, you can admire the exquisite beauty of plants and continuous flowering until frost.