How to prune five-color plum

When should the five-color plum be repaired?

Seedling stage

As the saying goes, you can tell a child's future at the age of three and his old age at the age of seven. If you don't take good care of and prune the five-color plum seedlings during the seedling stage, the five-color plum will grow into a tangled mess when it grows up, and it will end up like the Black Mountain Monster.

When the seedlings grow to about 10 cm in height, pinch off the top to encourage them to sprout branches from the base. Keep 3 to 5 branches as main branches. Pinch off the top again when the main branches grow to a certain length to ensure balanced growth of the main branches.

Adult stage

After the five-color plum plant is mature, its branches will continue to grow, so it is necessary to frequently thin out and prune the branches to maintain the round-headed shape of the plant. The five-color plum at this time is like a seven-year-old human being, looking old. If you don't manage the plant well during its mature stage, you will regret not pruning it properly when it blooms.

How to prune five-color plum

Topping during the seedling stage

The main maintenance work during the seedling stage is pinching. The main branches at the top should be pinched first, and the main branches at the bottom should be pruned later. When pinching the top main branches, the amount of branches removed is slightly more than that of the bottom main branches. In this way, the branches grow evenly and form a round-headed plant shape.

Pruning of branches during the mature stage

After the plant is formed, as the branches continue to grow, they need to be thinned and pruned frequently. Every spring, when repotting, thin out the dense branches, weak branches, crossed branches, and diseased and insect-infested branches from the base. For the branches that are retained, cut them short and leave 2 to 4 buds depending on their growth conditions. After flowering, cut off the remaining flowers in time to avoid wasting nutrients.

Another thing to note is that the top branches pinched off during the seedling stage can be left for cuttings, otherwise it would be a pity to discard them. Although most of the pruned branches during the mature plant period are weak branches, there are some slightly healthier branches that can be left for cuttings. You can lose a small sesame seed and pick up a big watermelon.