Return to the Pennsylvania Gardening Forum
| Post a Follow-Up
pruning mums now?
| | |
Posted by vaderbanger Z6 SE PA (My Page) on Wed, Mar 14, 07 at 11:59
this is my second season with mums and they have grown into huge balls!
am i supposed to prune them? is now a good time? if i prune them how far down and will they produce flowers again in the early fall after being pruned? |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: pruning mums now?
| | |
| These are garden mums planted outdoors? If so, they should be just barely showing growth. Keep pinching until July 4. If these are ones that are growing indoors, they may not be hardy in PA. You can take some cuttings, maybe 2 inches in length, dip in rooting hormone and potting soil that you should keep wet. Wet, not just moist. After about 6 weeks you should get some rooting. With my outdoor garden mums, I take cuttings by the handful (like 40 at a time throughout the growing season), then I give away the rooted cuttings. |
RE: pruning mums now?
| | |
yes they are outside
they arent showing new growth what i meant was the old woody growth from last season, its huge like a giant fossilized mum lol
i wasnt sure if i should cut it down or just leave it? |
RE: pruning mums now?
| | |
| Cut it off. As close to the ground as possible. You'll probably see (or will shortly see) some new green growth at the base. That's the stuff you should keep pinching until July 4. Don't be afraid. That's the way to make it bushy. |
RE: pruning mums now?
| | |
| Here in South Central PA (Perry County just north of Carlisle), during the growing season, I pinch or trim back the growth until July 15 or there abouts. One time I stopped on July 4th and had blooming mums during the latter part of August and early part of September..and I was growing 500 of them to sell. I learned the hard way that July 4th was a bit too early for the weather conditions (drought) that year. So, I make my last cutting back, pinching or trimming around the 15th and that is still plenty of time for the plants to set even more buds and bloom during mid to late fall. |
RE: pruning mums now?
| | |
thanks :)
i wasnt sure if new growth was formed on the old woody stems
im such a dodo lol |
|
|
|
|
