With their trumpet - shaped prime in tint of pinkish , purplish , white and more , petunias are a darling strong weather annual . To keep them calculate their best all season , see how and when to abstract them is important .

Why Pinch Petunias

Pinching petunias serve well multiple purposes

Encourages ramify and a bushy shape . Petunias incline to grow tall and leggy without pinching .

Promotes more blooms by stimulating axillary bud growth

Article image

Controls height , keeping plants full and compact .

Removes spent prime to prolong unfolding .

maintain a respectable , attractive facial expression .

When to Pinch

metre pinch properly for best solution :

top back tips of youthful seedling when graft to advance bushiness from the start .

squeeze established plants every 7 - 10 days during peak raise time of year .

Remove spend bloom anytime to further young buds .

Cut back leggy stems midway to squeeze Modern growing .

Stop pinch 6 weeks before expected first icing so works can prepare .

How to Pinch Petunias

Pinching Petunia is unsubdivided :

Use Your Fingers

Locate the top 2 Set of leaves on a stem .

Grasp the theme just above the 2nd Seth of leafage .

expend your thumb and index to pinch and get rid of the legal tender tip .

Use Hand Clippers

Position blades 1/4 inch above a leaf node .

crop off the tender tip .

Take care not to damage leaves below the cutting .

Remove Spent Blooms

older , faded flowers should be lift off readily .

Pinch blossom at their Qaeda , where they meet the fore .

forefend result bare , unsightly stems .

Pinching Tips

Pinch stems on actively produce plants only . Avoid pinching when plants are stressed .

Always pinch above folio nodes to avoid dieback .

Discard pinched tips – do n’t leave them around plants .

Spread squeeze out over weeks for a natural look .

Pruning shear can be used to pinch back thickset , woody staunch .

Pinching Leggy Stems

Letting stem get too prospicient and lanky ruins the shapely , mound form of petunias . Here ’s how to correct legginess :

Use hand shears to abridge each leggy stanch back by half its length .

Make cuts just above a set of leaves to preserve some foliage .

This severe pinching triggers fresh growth and flowering .

Bushy , thick new stems will emerge and hide the deletion stub .

Resume regular pinching of tips once new growth appear .

Pinching Potted Petunias

Container - grown petunias often need more frequent pinching to see size and shape in their confined space .

Check heap every 5 - 7 days for swipe needs .

contract back wayward stems straying outside the deal silhouette .

Pinch crowded in - face stem to open up sum space .

Remove drop rosiness promptly before they organise seeds .

Reduce water and fertilizer after pinching to avoid overly lush regrowth .

When to Stop Pinching

Discontinue pilfer in late summertime so flora can temper off for winter :

cease pinching 6 - 8 weeks before your fair first dip frost date .

Allow time for tender new growth to mature and prepare for dormancy .

Pruning too late may remove cold - protective leafage or delay bud Seth .

Let plant naturally decline as daylight minute decrease in autumn .

Pinching for Shapely Petunias

Learning right pinching technique is easy and pays off in full , neater petunia works blanketed with coloured efflorescence . Just a little routine pinching encourages the bushy habit and flowered display you require from these classical bedding annuals .

Reader Success Stories

You Might Also Like

Co - author by :

Pruning your petunia help their flowers stay healthy and flower for longer . Once a workweek , take out any brown , shriveled , or beat flowers with your finger’s breadth or garden shears . If you see any flowers that have fallen to the soil , remove these too . You should also trim any limp stems to about half their distance . If you find any damage fore , cut these to about 2 inches from their base . Cutting off about a third of your petunias every other week will help them grow young I if you have a big craw . For more tip from our Gardening co - author , include how often to fertilize and irrigate your petunias , take on ! .

Trimming Petunias // Garden Answer

How do you Deadhead petunia ?

There are several ways to deadhead Petunia , include hand pinching and shearing . Pruning them every few workweek , or at mid - summer , will help them to fill out and bloom longer . curb what type of Petunia you are uprise . Find the seeds or the plant mark .

How do you squeeze a Petunia flora ?

How do you abridge back a Petunia ?

Cut above a leafage thickening at about half the distance of the stem . For big plants & hanging baskets : Pinch back genus Petunia as many as 8 to 10 stems at a meter . Likewise , trim petunias in half on these stems , right above a foliage node . carry stems between your digit and pollex to stabilize them .

Where should I twitch back a Petunia ?

Where you want to pinch back or veer with shears is right above the first set of leave of absence . The understanding pinching back is so efficacious lies in how genus Petunia turn . By removing the top of the plant , you ’re boost it to rise more sideway than upwards , which go to a shaggy , fuller flora . More stem mean more flower , and who does n’t need that ?