Pruning advice?

David, Barry, any other experts out there??? Last year I pruned my hibiscus in the late winter/early spring and it seemed to take forever for them to bounce back. This year, for a number of reasons, I would like to prune them now and hopefully, they will have recovered and put out plenty of new growth before springtime. We still have many weeks of hot weather here.

My question is just how far back can I prune them. Some of them have gotten sort of leggy this year and I would like to get them back to bushy shapes. Normally I just snip a little here and there but I would really like to whack them back this time. Can the fancy hybrids (like Black Dragon) take a severe cut without swooning? Of course, I would leave some greenery on them for photosynthesis.

I'm going to bump this back up because I'd love to know more about pruning.
I have Holly's Pride that is getting top heavy.
Can I just lop off the top a bit and promote more side branching? Will that help or hurt it?
THanks,
LoraB.

Hey Ardesia & LoraB,

I usually leave at least 3 leaf nodes per branch. Make the cut 1/4" above the leaf node in the direction that you want the plant to grow or bush.The new growth will grow out in the direction that the leaf is going so you do have some control of how you want to shape it. In about 6 weeks it should be blooming again. I am cutting all of mine back now. And since my GH is heated I will cut again in mid-january. In mid February I will pinch the tips on the new growth to make it bushy and full. Hard to explain but easy to do. I have had long 3' to 4' branches that I cut way back. They say to prune back only 1/3 but I went much further and still have wonderful new growth. It's your call though. Just wanted to tell you what I do to mine.

Robert



This message was edited Oct 30, 2007 1:02 PM

Thanks Robert, that is pretty much what I needed. I just didn't know if you could prune the fancy ones as hard as the more common varieties. I am going to take the chance as the plants have really grown like crazy the last few months. Once the rains started they took off and they are way too rangy now. Hate to cut the blooming branches but I want fuller plants next year.
..........Off to snip a little here and there :-)

Robert,
Appreciate the advice. Started pruning back last week, large ones only. Didn't even think about pinching.
Can I pinch the smaller ones, instead of pruning, so they will have bushier, new growth late fall, early winter?

Hi Cat,
Pinch Away!!! LOL

Um . . this is my LEAST favorite time to prune; we tell garden clubs to wait until early March if at all possible. It all depends upon your flavor of winter and your acommodations for wintering hibiscus, pot vs ground, etc. These are tropicals, remember, and do not appreciate losing wood ever, and especially in chilly seasons. We prune to please ourselves and if smartly done, it can create more shapely plants.

IF ya gotta prune now, then reduce water, please. More exotic hibiscus are lost from overwatering in damp, chilly weather than any other cause, in my experience. In warm weather you may get blooms again in six weeks if you prune lightly . . but in cool seasons where you cut more than a foot off a limb, expect new blooms a few MONTHS later, in my experience.

If your interest and investment in H.rosa sinensis is high, consider buying the Hibiscus Handbook sold by the American Hibiscus Society. I rewrote it for them just a few years ago . . and it treats pruning and winter protection in some detail. I do not receive money from sales; this is just advice for enthusiasts who love these plants.
peace,
Barry

Yep, own the book. I only pruned off a couple of inches, from the huge plants. Maximum 6 inches, with the exception of Gator Pride, who was loaded with aphids and spider mites. After bug blasting her, I pruned about 8 inches, but I do live in sub tropical Florida.
But, I will only pinch the babies. In most cases they look thicker, and, healthier in about 30 days. But, I also leave the buds on, or bigger than a pea, so I can see their beatiful blooms

Thanks for the advice Barry. That is what I have always done in the past. Traditionally, I have always had a couple of H. rosa-sinensis around (for over 35 years) and spring pruning was the rule. Last year however we had a cooler than usual spring and the plants took a long time to put out enough new growth to bloom. That is why I wanted to try a fall shape up. As it turned out I did not have to take much off anyhow. The plants mostly had plenty of new side shoots so that should provide plenty of green for photosynthesis.

I understand about the water; all the hibs in pots get put under an overhang in the cooler months so they stay dry and I haven't lost one from the cold yet (knocking on wood here.) We are blessed with mild winters here and if the temp does drop it is only for and hour or so. We actually have more trouble during the winter with temperature spikes when it goes up to 85 during the day and quickly drops to 40 at night; that is harder on the plants than more moderate but cooler weather. Barry, I am going to try some of your stress reducer for those times. Will let you know how it works out.