Should i deadhead petunias

By Holly Reaney TZ. Learning how to deadhead petunias will encourage your plant to continue producing its beautiful flowers from early summer, right through until the first frost.

Deadheading is simply the process of removing dead blooms from a living plant in order to encourage it to produce more flowers rather than turning the spent flowers into seeds. Petunias are a favorite for hanging baskets, windowboxes and pots, and are one of the joys of the summer garden. Abundantly colorful, available in every shade from white and yellow through to red and pink and blues and purples. Petunias are the perfect flower for beginners as they're very easy to care for.

Allow them to dry out between waterings and avoid wetting the flowers or foliage,' advises PL 's gardening expert Leigh Clapp. As well as being a beautiful addition to the garden, petunias are also very useful. Petunias repel pests, particularly aphids, and also attract pollinators. For these reasons, they are particularly good companion plants for peppers. By knowing how to deadhead petunias, you can keep your plant blooming and looking beautiful throughout the summer.

It will also prevent your petunia from self-seeding and growing more flowers in unwanted areas of your garden. Step 2: Sterilize your shears — Before using pruning shears or scissors, you should always sterilize them first. Dip the blades into rubbing alcohol and allow them to soak for five minutes, then air dry. Or you can wash them with soap and water. Step 3: Locate the spent blooms — Examine the plant, and find the stems that contain several spent flowers.

Look for the ones that are dry and wilted. Step 4: Cut the stems — Cut back the stem just below the spent blooms. So only trim one stem per week on small plants. Larger ones with dozens of branches can withstand heavier pruning.

You can cut back up to ten at a time on the larger plants. Toward the end of July or early August remove all the spent blooms, and cut back any leggy stems. Not all types of petunias need to be deadheaded. Ask your local garden center if they carry any self-cleaning petunia varieties, or look at the details on the plant tag.

Deadheading petunias is a fantastic way to keep them blooming and vigorous throughout the entire gardening season. I live and garden in Minneapolis, MN zone 4b. My green thumb comes from my parents, and I've been gardening most of my life.

Read More Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Leggy petunias may benefit from heavier pruning in the middle of the growing season. Regular maintenance ensures you'll have plenty of vibrant, healthy petunia flowers all season long. Trim off the spent petunias at the stem beneath the base of the flower with scissors or pruning shears.

All parts of the flower should be removed, but some of the stem can remain. Do this no more than once a week, so the plant can recover between trimmings. Prune the whole plant by half of its length when it appears leggy or overgrown, usually in mid-summer. Time a large pruning session for mid-summer, if you were not able to do it weekly.

If possible, do it right before you leave for a trip, so that you will return when the petunia returns to full bloom. Fertilize petunias with a liquid fertilizer every 2 weeks.

If the bloom has dropped off the petunia stem, how can I tell if it should still be pinched to get more blooms? The part of the flower where the bloom has dropped will be visible. Prune it. Not Helpful 7 Helpful Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.

By using this service, some information may be shared with YouTube. Petunia plants will rot if left in standing water. Helpful 37 Not Helpful 9. Water your petunia plants daily in the very hot sun. Water and fertilizer will ensure they fill out after deadheading. Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0. How to. Plant Specialist. Expert Interview. More References 3. About This Article. Co-authored by:. Co-authors: Updated: September 18, Categories: Growing Flowers.

Article Summary X To deadhead petunias, allow the plant to fully flower and for some of the blooms to die before pruning. In other languages Italiano: Cimare le Petunie. Nederlands: Petunia's snoeien. Bahasa Indonesia: Melakukan Deadhead pada Petunia. Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read , times.

She taught me how to deadhead petunias. It was good to know I was doing it right, thank you for the information!