Lobelia is a beautiful, delicate flowering plant that comes in many different colors and varieties. However, to keep your lobelia looking its best, it’s important to know how to properly prune and care for it. This guide will provide you with all the information you need on how to prune lobelia.
What is Lobelia?
Lobelia is a genus of flowering plants that are native to North America, Africa, and South America. They can grow up to three feet tall and come in a variety of colors including blue, purple, white, pink, and red.
Why Prune Your Lobelia?
Pruning your lobelia has many benefits. It keeps the plant looking neat and tidy by removing dead or diseased growth. Additionally, pruning encourages new growth which leads to more blooms throughout the growing season.
When Should You Prune Your Lobelia?
The best time to prune lobelia is in early spring before new growth appears or after the blooming period has ended in late summer or fall.
Tools Needed
Before pruning your lobelias make sure you have these essential tools:
– Pruning shears
– Gloves
– Disinfectant
Steps for Pruning Lobelias
1) Assess Your Plant:
Look at your plant carefully before pruning it; this will give you an idea of what needs cutting back as well as what parts seem healthy enough not requiring trimming.
2) Identify What Needs Cutting Back:
Deadhead spent blooms regularly during their bloom time so that they continue producing flowers longer.
Next look out for dead leaves around new shoots because if left unattended may rot like any other decaying matter leading them towards perishing completely from lack of nutrients which would eventually kill off those parts too!
3) Cut Off The Deadwood:
Using sharp pruning shears trimmed off any branches or stems that appear unhealthy such as those infected with disease or pests by cutting them cleanly off just above where they join the main stem, leaving a clean cut above any nearby buds or leaves.
4) Shape Your Lobelia:
Trim away excess growth from the center of your plant to allow light and air circulation between branches making sure not to remove more than one-third of its overall size at once. This will also help keep the plant looking tidy and in shape
5) Clean Up The Mess:
Gather all pruning debris with gloves on, and then dispose of them properly by either composting if possible (make sure they are free from disease), burning them off site so as not to spread potential infections while keeping the gardening environment safe from harmful viruses that could cause harm in future growing seasons.
Conclusion
Pruning lobelias is an essential part of maintaining healthy plants. By following these simple steps, you can achieve beautiful blooms throughout the growing season while promoting new growth for next year’s flowers. So go ahead and prune those lobelias!
