How to prune bougainvillea to make it bloom more

1. Suitable cutting edge

The right cut should leave enough space for the buds to grow but not be too far away, and the cut surface should not be too tilted.

2. Timely pruning

During one flowering period, you can trim three forks. In spring, perform a severe pruning in March or April to ensure that the branches are of uniform length, leaving the thicker branches cut short; after about 20 days, when the first batch of branches have grown taller, perform the second pruning, which is probably around late June to July; the third pruning is in August, no later than mid-August.

3. Pruning method

1. Short pruning: Cut off one section of the one-year-old branch. If you cut it off in half or 1/3, it is considered a heavy short pruning. This can stimulate the buds and promote faster growth of new branches.

2. Thinning: Cut off branches that are more than one year old, which is conducive to the growth of buds below the cut and can increase internal light.

3. Pruning: Cutting off branches that have grown for many years can make old trees strong again.

IV. Precautions

Vertically downward branches and crossed branches can be removed; parallel branches can remove weaker branches; after the flowering period, overcrowded branches, overgrown branches, and weak branches can be thinned out.