Plant crown formation

The main methods of forming the appearance of the plant include pruning, pinching, pinching and tying to a support or trellis. Each procedure has its own purpose.

Crown pruning

Pruning is very important for plants, since it allows you to maintain balance between the aerial part of the plant and its root system. When forming a crown with pruning, it is necessary not only to give the plant a beautiful look, but also to achieve a uniform flow of nutrients into all branches of the plant, in addition, the plant should be accessible to light and air from all sides.

Some plants (laurels, myrtles, biots, boxwood, etc.) withstand pruning to give them a wide variety of shapes, for example, a ball, pyramid, etc.
All lateral shoots are removed from the plant to obtain a stamp shape, and when the shoot intended for breeding the stamp reaches the desired height, its top is pinched. This will cause lateral shoots to appear from the axils of the leaves, the tops of which are also pinched, and this is done 2-3 times until the crown branches well enough. Roses, pelargoniums, fuchsias, etc. are grown in stamp form.

Pruning is carried out annually in the spring, after transplantation. The shoots are pruned above the outward-facing kidney. At the same time, the handle above the kidney should not remain, but the kidney should not be damaged. Pruning is carried out with secateurs, sharp scissors or a knife.

Strong pruning is also used to rejuvenate the plant (pelargonia, fuchsia, hydrangea, etc.). In this case, almost the entire crown is removed, only short shoots with 2-3 buds are left. When pruning, it is necessary to take into account where buds should be formed - on old or young shoots. Plants in which flowers form on new summer shoots are pruned in the spring, before growth begins.

By the way: not always pinching the apical kidney immediately leads to the development of lateral shoots, sometimes it takes quite a long time. For example, once in May, I pinched the apical buds of two lateral shoots on a bank, and branches, these shoots began only in July, all this time other, not pinched shoots grew.

Formation of plants with wire

This technique is used not only to create bonsai, but also for ordinary shrubs or miniature trees grown at home. Wire formation can be carried out by two methods:

• wrap the wire around the branch in a spiral
• make a loop and bend the branch in the desired direction

The method depends on the target - if you need to straighten the curved branch or move it to the side, then we use the winding, if you just lower it down, then it is enough to pull it (in the second photo, the right branch is directed down, the wire is attached to the edge of the pot). By the way, if you bend the branch down hard, so that the top of the shoot looks towards the windowsill, then after a while the kidneys or one kidney located closer to the base of the trunk awaken on this branch, that is, a new shoot appears at the bottom of the branch. This technique is used to make the plant branch .

If you want to use wire winding, then keep in mind that branches with thin vulnerable bark must first be wrapped with soft electrical tape so as not to injure the plant. In addition, it is unnecessary to impose turns very tightly, because the branches grow not only in length, but also in thickness. If you do not leave a reserve, the wire will grow into the bark and leave a scar (photo below).

Before applying wire to densely deciduous shoots, you need to rid them of small twigs and leaves in order to better see the skeleton of a tree or shrub. Do not think that they will remain bald, over time they will grow even more.

Pinching

Pinching, or pinching, consists in removing the apical kidney - it is removed by hand or cut off with scissors or a knife. This causes the development of lateral shoots. Plants are pinched after transplantation, when they take root and begin to grow. It should be borne in mind that pinching and pruning delay the start of flowering, so after the plants get the desired shape or bushiness, pinching is stopped. Pinching or a small pruning in August of strong branches with flower buds improves the quality of flowers.

Many plants are cut after flowering (acacia, hydrangea, etc.). Plants that are very balding during the winter in warm conditions (for example, fuchsia) are cut off in the spring with the beginning of new growth. At the same time, dry, weak and unnecessary branches are cut off. Good strong stems shorten about half.

In passiflora, after flowering, they cut off all flower-bearing shoots almost to the base, and in autumn, in addition, they cut off all non-lignified shoots. In spring, passiflora cut off the lower shoots in order to direct all juices into the upper, flowering shoots. But in hoya (wax ivy), on the contrary, flower-bearing shoots do not cut off, because they are able to produce new flowers.

Stepchilding

Stepchilding is a technique that consists in removing unnecessary side shoots (stepsons). It is used mainly for ornamental flowering plants. Non-flowering or poorly flowering lateral shoots are removed. This technique contributes to more abundant flowering and larger flowers. Also, foraging is required on ampel plants, such as fuchsia, especially when the shoots are not tied to the support up, but hang freely. At the same time, strong branching occurs from one stem, and if part of these branches is not removed, the stems become heavy and can break off. And, in addition, not pasked strongly branching shoots are quickly exposed at the base, this happens not only in fuchsias, but also in tradescantia, hoya, hypocrites.

In addition to ampelny, all indoor flowers, which tend to grow a dense shapeless crown, need to be pasted. For example, hibiscuses, azaleas (rhododendrons), birch bark, pomegranate, some ficuses, for example, benjamin .

Garter to support

The garter of plants is designed to give the plant stability and a more beautiful look. The garter to the support should be mandatory for plants carried into the garden in the open air so that the plant does not suffer from the wind. Plants are tied with woolen thread, soft braid, ribbon, large plants in the form of trees are tied with wire (in the winding). Threads or braid are best taken in green or brown. When tying, it is important that the plant does not damage the bark or skin of the stems. Plants having a long trunk are tied in several places. In bushy plants, one or more main stems are tied.

The photo shows ways to create a garter wall, from trellises, can be made from thin racks. It is so convenient to tie not only vines (ivy, hoyi and other plants), but even fruit trees, ficuses. Moreover, if you form citrus fruits in one plane on a trellis, you can get a more productive fruit tree. Judge for yourself, at home the lighting is lopsided (the chandelier and lamps in the room do not count), and a lemon, tangerine or orange tree needs a lot of light and necessarily some sun. The location of the crown in one plane allows you to place the plant even on a narrow windowsill, while the branches will not hang over the edge where the batteries, and even if they begin to protrude slightly beyond the edge, you can protect them with greenhouse film.

The disadvantage of forming a crown in one plane is that this must be done from a young age - when the stems are still flexible. I.e. you need to think over the whole structure in advance. You need a frame - a frame to which you need to stretch a metal wire horizontally, but thick, not flexible, or wooden slats. Rope and fishing line will not work - it will sag under the weight of the branches. And you will have to attach trellises not in a pot, but in a long box or container (see figure), since the structure is quite heavy, an ordinary pot can simply tip over.

Leaf care

Leaf care - can also be called appearance formation. Dust, dirt settle on plant leaves as well as furniture, but this is not always noticeable. Dust clogs the pores on the leaves, interfering with breathing processes, reduces the amount of light so necessary for plants, and simply disrupts the decorative beauty of plants. On plants with wide leaves, dust is especially noticeable. The leaves of such plants should be wiped more often with a damp cloth or sponge. It would be nice for plants that are not contraindicated in spraying to periodically shower, if the size of the plant allows. Aerosols or sprays can also be used to polish the leaves, but not all plants can use them. It is especially convenient to use polishing agents for large plants that take too long to wipe with a sponge, and if such a plant is in the office, then there is simply no time to wipe the leaves.