Honeysuckle is an unpretentious plant. It is known for its high ability to shoot formation: numerous tops of shoots and strong basal shoots thicken the bush, if not taken care of.
Do I need to cut honeysuckle
In order to bring a large harvest as long as possible, not to get sick and to please gardeners with a well-groomed appearance, honeysuckle needs pruning. There are two varieties of this shrub:
- decorative - serves as a decoration of the garden, proper pruning will give the bush a beautiful shape;
- edible - pleases its owners with an early harvest of healthy and tasty berries, after pruning it begins to bear fruit more abundantly.
Why trim edible honeysuckle
Edible honeysuckle must be cut off necessarily, since the main cause of poor fruiting is thickening of the crown. Flowers in the middle of the bush bypass bees. Berries that managed to ripen deep in the bush become small and sour due to lack of lighting. The key to a good harvest is regular thinning of the bush.
Honeysuckle grows very slowly, so the first two to three years after planting do not resort to radical pruning. It is permissible to remove dry and diseased twigs, as well as those lying on the ground or growing deep into the bush.
An uncircumcised bush of edible honeysuckle will produce few berries due to a very thickened crown
The need for trimming decorative honeysuckle
Decorative honeysuckle is cut to give it the desired shape. From the bushes a dense hedge is obtained. Lianoid forms are placed on the pergolas, they decorate the arbors, form a "living wall" from them. To grow decorative honeysuckle in the form of a stem, its shoots, gathered in a bundle, are tied to a support standing upright. The old lower branches in the center of the bush are left to stiffen the stem, the lower young shoots are removed.
Photo gallery: methods for growing decorative honeysuckle
- Lianoid forms of decorative honeysuckle can be grown on arches
- The decorative honeysuckle in the form of a "live wall" looks beautiful
- Growing honeysuckle in the form of a stem allows you to mask old walls
Using the shaping trim of decorative honeysuckle, you can create various landscape forms.
Video: how to trim a honeysuckle tree from honeysuckle using pruning
When to Honeysuckle
Editing of honeysuckle can be circumcised only when it is at rest. In the spring - until the buds wake up, in the fall - after the shrub discards the leaves. Decorative honeysuckle can be trimmed throughout the growing season.
Pruning shoots happens:
- sanitary;
- formative.
Honeysuckle is a cold-resistant plant, but its branches can be damaged by frost. When sanitary pruning, dead branches, broken and dry shoots, as well as branches damaged by fungal diseases and pests, that are affected by low temperatures are removed. Cut to healthy wood. This pruning is recommended every year.
Exfoliating bark on the branches of honeysuckle is not a consequence of the disease. This is its species feature. Also, this culture is characterized by the presence of a large number of small dry branches.
Formative pruning is carried out on adult plants. Cut old branches that do not bear fruit, remove the shoots, shorten weak branches. Such pruning is done every 2-3 years on edible honeysuckle and once a year on decorative.
Spring honeysuckle pruning
In spring, pruning is carried out in two stages.
- Prior to the start of the growing season, in March-April - at this time it is recommended to limit oneself to sanitary pruning, as the formative injures the bush, and if the edible honeysuckle is subjected to it in the spring, a large harvest should not be expected.
- After the kidneys open, then all non-viable branches become visible.
Video: how to cut honeysuckle in spring
Honeysuckle pruning in autumn
In the fall, formative pruning is carried out in the period from August to October. The time is chosen depending on the climatic features of a particular area. You can start work when the following conditions are met:
- the bush has lost foliage;
Autumn pruning is started after the vegetation is over and the bush drops its leaves
- night temperature has passed through zero;
- not earlier than in a month steady frosts come.
Too early pruning can cause untimely opening of the buds, and if you cut the skeletal shoots late, there is a risk of plant death due to freezing of the slices.
In areas with severe winters, all manipulations to form a honeysuckle bush are recommended in early spring. Perhaps in the first year after pruning, the crop will not be too big, but the plant will quickly grow stronger after suffering stress and will bear fruit well in the future.
How to prune honeysuckle
In the first 2-3 years after planting, edible honeysuckle is not subjected to forming pruning. After 5-6 years, such an event is mandatory.
Honeysuckle Forming Pruning
Trimming is carried out in several stages:
- Remove the branches in the lower tier of the bush, touching the ground.
- Cut out unnecessary young growth.
- Cut tops of shoots (growing steeply vertically on perennial branches inside the crown).
- Remove the branches going inside the bush.
- Cut off weak and thin shoots.
- Cut off the ends of shoots having a weak growth.
- Remove old thick branches in the center of the bush, not giving growth.
- Do not touch well-developed annual shoots. It is on them that berries will form.
The edging bush of edible honeysuckle is carried out in several stages.
In the bush of edible honeysuckle there should be about 5 powerful skeletal branches. Old thick branches in the center of the bush can be cut to the point of growth of the lateral shoot. Cutting spots are greased with garden varnish or sprinkled with ash or charcoal to protect the bush from infection with a fungal and bacterial infection.
Branches in the place of pruning are treated with garden varieties for the prevention of infections
Experienced gardeners recommend that when pruning, pay attention to the fact that the lower part of the bush is not exposed too much, and the central part is not thickened.
After trimming, the plant must be fed. In the spring - with nitrogen fertilizers, 2 buckets per bush; in the fall they feed phosphorus and potassium. Before top dressing, the honeysuckle must be watered.
As nitrogen fertilizers in the spring, you can use an aqueous infusion of mullein or chicken droppings, in autumn it is preferable to use wood ash.
Anti-aging honeysuckle pruning
A bush older than 7 years is subjected to partial anti-aging pruning. Selectively cut the stems at the base, leaving a stump a few centimeters high. At the same time, healthy shoots begin to form. If such pruning is carried out regularly, every 3-5 years, the period of abundant fruiting of the honeysuckle can be extended by several tens of years.
A running bush after 15 years needs a radical rejuvenation (the cropping scheme is shown in the photo).
A running honeysuckle bush older than 15 years is cut to a height of 30-50 cm
The bush is completely cut off at a height of 30-50 cm from the ground. Young shoots will form a new bush in two years. Radical anti-aging pruning can be done in spring and autumn. In areas with harsh climates, this procedure is best done in the spring.
Features of the formation of honeysuckle seedling
Usually two to three year old seedlings are purchased for planting. Edible honeysuckle seedlings do not need to be trimmed - this can weaken the plant and delay the entry into the fruiting season. Honeysuckle should form a crown within 2-3 years, after which you can begin to trim the bush.
If the seedling has damaged roots, it is recommended to shorten the shoots by one third for its better survival.
For decorative honeysuckle seedlings, pruning is desirable, as shortening the shoots will contribute to their branching.
Shortening the shoots of seedlings of decorative honeysuckle ensures their best branching
Some experts still recommend cutting the seedling after planting, leaving shoots 8 cm long. In their opinion, such a preparation of the seedling will make it possible to obtain a more lush bush. If you plant several bushes of edible honeysuckle, this advice can be tested in practice. Shorten a few seedlings, and plant the rest without cutting.
Honeysuckle, like any fruiting or ornamental shrub, needs pruning. Correctly pruned shoots of edible honeysuckle ensures a rich harvest of berries for several decades. Such a honeysuckle decorative procedure is necessary to give the desired shape to this beautiful plant.
