bonsaiTALK Community - View Single Post - Help With The Right Way To Pinch Junipers.

Pinching junipers, which by the way is Chinese, is very easy to do.

1. It depends on if you are pinching buds

2. or, just pinching down rank growth.

Pinching junipers can also be done with scissors. As long as you are cutting the currant fresh growth, cutting with scissors is considered pinching too.

When taking out just the buds, you pick out the bud packet just before it expands. when done at the right time, it will not turn brown. WARNING; bud pinching should be done after the tree is styled. Pinching buds induces more buds to grow in the same spot. Continued pinching causes more buds to grow thereby creating tight compact foliage. But the branch should be configured like you want it. It does no good to pinch buds on the branch that is not the length or shape you want. If you decide to prune it back you will be cutting off all your previous ramification, aghh!

Style the tree. Wire the tree. Get the tree going in the direction you want the tree to look like in the future. The branches at this point can actually be sheared just like shearing a hedge with electric hedge trimmers. Yes, the ends will turn brown, yes, the tree will look ugly for a while. But, this will give you the basic tree to go with.

Then at this point when the second flush of buds comes out, due to the pruning it just had, you can start bud nipping. This will create the foliage that you want on the branches that you want to achieve the tree that you want.

When doing the pinching with scissors it takes a little more care. When cutting the tip off, the scissor tips must be worked in between the little overlapping leaves running up and down the stem. When done right, there is little browning. If you cut the small leaves or just shear across like hedge trimming there will be browning. It grows out fairly fast if you are religious about fertilizing, have it in a grow box, and have fast draining soil.

Be prepared, pinching procumbens can be a fuill time job, year round if you have very many of them in your collection. They are fast growers, and respond well to the pinching.

Hope this helps, Bonsai-al

16-Mar-2003	#2
bonsaial1 Bonsai Doer Join Date: Aug-2001 Location: Fresno, CA Country: USA USDA Zone: 9 AHS Heat Zone: 13SH Posts: 5,468	Pinching junipers, which by the way is Chinese, is very easy to do. 1. It depends on if you are pinching buds 2. or, just pinching down rank growth. Pinching junipers can also be done with scissors. As long as you are cutting the currant fresh growth, cutting with scissors is considered pinching too. When taking out just the buds, you pick out the bud packet just before it expands. when done at the right time, it will not turn brown. WARNING; bud pinching should be done after the tree is styled. Pinching buds induces more buds to grow in the same spot. Continued pinching causes more buds to grow thereby creating tight compact foliage. But the branch should be configured like you want it. It does no good to pinch buds on the branch that is not the length or shape you want. If you decide to prune it back you will be cutting off all your previous ramification, aghh! Style the tree. Wire the tree. Get the tree going in the direction you want the tree to look like in the future. The branches at this point can actually be sheared just like shearing a hedge with electric hedge trimmers. Yes, the ends will turn brown, yes, the tree will look ugly for a while. But, this will give you the basic tree to go with. Then at this point when the second flush of buds comes out, due to the pruning it just had, you can start bud nipping. This will create the foliage that you want on the branches that you want to achieve the tree that you want. When doing the pinching with scissors it takes a little more care. When cutting the tip off, the scissor tips must be worked in between the little overlapping leaves running up and down the stem. When done right, there is little browning. If you cut the small leaves or just shear across like hedge trimming there will be browning. It grows out fairly fast if you are religious about fertilizing, have it in a grow box, and have fast draining soil. Be prepared, pinching procumbens can be a fuill time job, year round if you have very many of them in your collection. They are fast growers, and respond well to the pinching. Hope this helps, Bonsai-al __________________ I been kidding the last seven years. no.... really!