Pruning hibiscus is a great way to give these plants exactly what they need. In this way you stimulate the growth of new shoots. They also rejuvenate the plants after their long hibernation and promote their attractive appearance and healthy, vigorous growth. Should you prune hibiscus in late winter? Below you will find out when you should prune the plant and how best to do it.
Why prune a hibiscus bush?
By lightly pruning the hibiscus's branch tips, you encourage the plant to grow more branches and develop a fuller, bushier silhouette. More branches also produce more flower buds, and beautiful flowers are the point of hibiscus. Aside from aesthetics, pruning also removes damaged and potentially diseased leaves and branches. Prudent pruning is a good way to keep any plant healthy.
When to prune hibiscus usually depends on where you live. However, most hibiscus pruning occurs in late winter/spring, before new growth begins. In most cases, these plants can easily grow in late summer or early fallbe circumcised, but no pruning should be done in late fall.
One of the disadvantages of waiting to prune later in the season is that the plants will not develop as many branches and produce fewer flowers. Therefore, it is often better to completely prune dead or weak growth after the plants have sprouted in the spring. A complete pruning should actually only be done in spring. Completely pruning hibiscus plants helps rejuvenate them for summer blooms.
How to make the cut?
Branch tips can be trimmed throughout the season to promote bushier growth. Before cutting hibiscus, make sure your scissors are sharp and clean, preferably sterilized with alcohol gel to prevent the spread of disease to affected branches. When pruning hibiscus plants, they should be trimmed by about a thirdbe cut back, leaving at least two to three nodes on the branches for new growth to develop.
These cuts should be made directly above the nodes, leaving about 0.5 cm. Remove weak, diseased or dead growth as well as crossing or bending branches. Branches that grow toward the center of the plant should also be removed. When the temperatures have warmed up sufficiently towards the end of spring, you can further promote flowering by increasing the amount of fertilizer.
How to proceed with different species?
Hardy hibiscus
Because hardy hibiscus plants die back to the ground each winter, you can cut them back to the ground in the fall after flowering or in early spring. However, it is betterwait until spring to prune. Leaving the old wood standing improves winter hardiness and, perhaps more importantly, it also marks the plant's location. Use pruning shears to cut back all of the plant's old growth to three feet or less before the new branches sprout.
Tropical hibiscus
Tropical hibiscus species can be pruned at any time during the growing season to shape them and remove dead branches. A tropical hibiscus can also be cut back in the fall when the growing season is nearing its end and the plant is going dormant. As with perennial species, you should never remove more than 1/3 of the plant at a time with tropical hibiscus plants.
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A mature tropical hibiscus with a lot of dead wood or damaged branches may benefit from corrective pruning or hard pruning. This can also be helpful for a plant that doesn't have as many flowers as it did last season. Cut the affected branches back about three feet from the ground, leaving at least a few leaf nodes intact. Be patient and you will see new shoots sprouting with new leaves, buds and flowers.
Cutting hibiscus in the pot
Gardeners who love tropical hibiscus but live in a cold winter climate can keep the shrubs as container plants, brought indoors during the cold season. Therethey can be used like houseplantstreated and left in a sunny window or overwintered in a cool, dark place.
For houseplant hibiscus or hibiscus that will be overwintered in a warm greenhouse, consider pruning the stems in the fall to bring them indoors. Do this pruning on a warm, nice day. If you overwinter the hibiscus in the basement or garage,Don't cut it until early spring.
