Daily Dosage - Methods of Pruning - Horticulture Short notes

Methods of pruning

1. Thinning out: 

• When a shoot is removed entirely from the inception (from the point of origin) so that, no new shoot arises from that place, it is referred as thinning out.
• This thinning is practiced in the removal of shoots arising in unwanted places, water shoots etc.

2. Trimming: 

• Cutting the growth of the twigs to a pre-determined level as in the case of fence, hedge and edge.

3. Heading back: 

• When the branches grow tall and vigorously without producing flowers, these shoots are headed back. When a branch is cut almost to the base, leaving a few inches of stump, carrying few buds, it is referred as Heading Back. 
• These buds left on the stump will give rise to shoots which are important to the tree either being spur bearers or bearing flower buds or filling up of gaps in the tree or forming vegetative wood from which flowers may arise in the following year. The shoot from the bud nearest to the cut takes the place of the pruned shoot.

4. Pollarding: 

• Mere cutting back of the shoots, indiscriminately to reduce the height of the tree is Pollarding. 

5. Pinching (tipping): 

• Removal of the tip of the shoot to stop its indeterminate growth or to encourage the growth of the lateral buds is pinching or tipping. This is practiced in marigold and chillies at the time of transplanting.

6. Disbudding (nipping or rubbing): 

• Nipping or rubbing of young buds preventing a chance of their sprouting is disbudding. When the buds arise in wrong places they are rubbed off. Similarly sprouts (Buds) on root stocks are disbudded.

7. De-blossoming: 

• Removal of surplus flowers to enable the tree to produce crops regularly year after year is called deblossoming. This is practiced in alternate bearers like mango. apple etc.