The Dirt
Tips for Central Kentucky gardeners
Pinching and trimming back: With many plants, pinching off the top end of the main stem allows side shoots to grow better. The plant's growing tip, or meristem, produces hormones called auxins and gibberellins that prevent lateral buds from taking over, a phenomenon called apical dominance. Once those controlling growth hormones are removed, increased side growth appears. A plant's size and shape are controlled for a variety of reasons. In topiary, pruning shapes 3-D figures out of evergreen shrubs; in espalier, branches of fruit trees are trained to lie flat against walls; in bonsai, shrubs are miniaturized by pruning branches and roots. Pinching back faded blooms, called dead-heading, will encourage reblooming, lengthening growth time; trimming back branches will create shorter but fuller shapes.
Pinching and trimming back: With many plants, pinching off the top end of the main stem allows side shoots to grow better. The plant's growing tip, or meristem, produces hormones called auxins and gibberellins that prevent lateral buds from taking over, a phenomenon called apical dominance. Once those controlling growth hormones are removed, increased side growth appears. A plant's size and shape are controlled for a variety of reasons. In topiary, pruning shapes 3-D figures out of evergreen shrubs; in espalier, branches of fruit trees are trained to lie flat against walls; in bonsai, shrubs are miniaturized by pruning branches and roots. Pinching back faded blooms, called dead-heading, will encourage reblooming, lengthening growth time; trimming back branches will create shorter but fuller shapes.
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posted by Davor Novakovic @ Saturday, July 02, 2005
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