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#1
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protea pruning
Folks, live in the Adelaide hills with a nice garden that includes one 1.5
metre protea (silver ice, I think) that is flowering very well on every stem. The bush is almost too big for the roots and stem. Although staked up I think I need to prune after the flowers loose there colour. However, the flowers are at the junction of 5 or 6 other stems that also have flowers or flower like things starting. There doesn't seem to be any stem at the junction to cut the flower off from. Most articles I have seem talk about leaving 10 to 15cm of stem. I also have one or two flowers that have opened up all the way and are starting to look like they are dying so wish to prune them out. Help ( no skills what soever as a gardener except that everything I plant seems to go berserk and grow!! go figure) regards, in anticipation -- Don From Down Under |
#2
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protea pruning
"Don" wrote in message ... Folks, live in the Adelaide hills with a nice garden that includes one 1.5 metre protea (silver ice, I think) that is flowering very well on every stem. The bush is almost too big for the roots and stem. Although staked up I think I need to prune after the flowers loose there colour. However, the flowers are at the junction of 5 or 6 other stems that also have flowers or flower like things starting. There doesn't seem to be any stem at the junction to cut the flower off from. Most articles I have seem talk about leaving 10 to 15cm of stem. I also have one or two flowers that have opened up all the way and are starting to look like they are dying so wish to prune them out. Help ( no skills what soever as a gardener except that everything I plant seems to go berserk and grow!! go figure) regards, in anticipation -- Don From Down Under I guess that you do what you do with roses when they have 4 or 5 flowers and that is to take the spent ones off and leave the flowers and buds. Does your protea have a thick base at ground level? It could have a lignotuber which would allow you to cut it down to ground level. Which would result in new growth springing up. But if it is thin at the base I'd just prune down the stem under the flowers. There could be dormant buds which would appear as small swellings or nodes. The idea is to cut above one of these. Oh and if anything results in it's loss. Just keep in mind there is always another plant. Cheers Richard |
#3
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protea pruning
Thanks
Don "loosecanon" wrote in message ... "Don" wrote in message ... Folks, live in the Adelaide hills with a nice garden that includes one 1.5 metre protea (silver ice, I think) that is flowering very well on every stem. The bush is almost too big for the roots and stem. Although staked up I think I need to prune after the flowers loose there colour. However, the flowers are at the junction of 5 or 6 other stems that also have flowers or flower like things starting. There doesn't seem to be any stem at the junction to cut the flower off from. Most articles I have seem talk about leaving 10 to 15cm of stem. I also have one or two flowers that have opened up all the way and are starting to look like they are dying so wish to prune them out. Help ( no skills what soever as a gardener except that everything I plant seems to go berserk and grow!! go figure) regards, in anticipation -- Don From Down Under I guess that you do what you do with roses when they have 4 or 5 flowers and that is to take the spent ones off and leave the flowers and buds. Does your protea have a thick base at ground level? It could have a lignotuber which would allow you to cut it down to ground level. Which would result in new growth springing up. But if it is thin at the base I'd just prune down the stem under the flowers. There could be dormant buds which would appear as small swellings or nodes. The idea is to cut above one of these. Oh and if anything results in it's loss. Just keep in mind there is always another plant. Cheers Richard |
#4
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protea pruning
Don wrote:
Folks, live in the Adelaide hills with a nice garden that includes one 1.5 metre protea (silver ice, I think) that is flowering very well on every stem. The bush is almost too big for the roots and stem. Although staked up I think I need to prune after the flowers loose there colour. However, the flowers are at the junction of 5 or 6 other stems that also have flowers or flower like things starting. There doesn't seem to be any stem at the junction to cut the flower off from. Most articles I have seem talk about leaving 10 to 15cm of stem. I also have one or two flowers that have opened up all the way and are starting to look like they are dying so wish to prune them out. Help ( no skills what soever as a gardener except that everything I plant seems to go berserk and grow!! go figure) regards, in anticipation Normally the new bypass shoots which come from around the flower head should be rubbed off to stop them growing, leaving you with a single stem with a flower head at the top. If Silver Ice is anything like Pink Ice it is a very prolific flowerer, and responds well to pruning, even on older wood. Yes, you normally need to leave 2 to 2 inches of stem; preferably this season's growth. |
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