How to Pinch Carnations

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30-09-2016, 23:00
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Carnations offer great vase life as a cut flower, and also make a terrific garden display. Depending on the variety, carnations will grow through plant hardiness zones 3 to 10. All varieties prefer a position in full sun with well-drained soil and air circulation. They thrive best in rich soil that is neutral or alkaline. Pinching your perennial carnations will help the plant to perform as well as possible and encourage more flowering.

Pinching Carnations

  1. Pinch your carnations to help flowers grow. Pinching carnations as they grow encourages the growth of lateral stems, which means more flowers will grow. Pinching is especially important if you want to grow flowers for cutting.
    • Pinching also helps the plant to grow bushy rather than as a single tall stem, which some gardeners prefer.
    • The height at which you pinch the plant stem off is the height at which it should start to bush from. This allows you to influence the height of your plant.
  2. Start pinching carnations after the first half dozen sets of leaf nodes emerge. Leaf nodes are the swollen bit of stem from which the leaves will later emerge. The leaf nodes usually appear when the plant is about 6 inches (15.2 cm) tall.
    • Do a second round of pinching about 4 weeks later once the lateral (side) stems emerge. Again, you should pinch the lateral stems once they are about 6 inches (15.2 cm) long.
    • Nursery plants will often have had their first pinching already if you purchase plants that are at least 6 inches (15.2 cm) high. However, you may want to pinch the lateral (side) stems once they reach 6 inches (15.2 cm) in length if this doesn't seem to have been done at the nursery.
    • If you grow carnations yourself from seed, you’ll need to do pinch the plants yourself.
  3. Pinch your carnations with your fingers. Once the plant is about 5 or 6 inches (12.7 or 15.2 cm) in height and has about 5-6 swollen leaf nodes in evidence on the stem, remove or pinch off the tip of the stem above the sixth leaf node. The stem should be tender enough to do this with your fingertips.
    • After this first pinching, lateral (side) shoots should emerge. Repeat the pinching process once these side shoots reach 5–6 inches (12.7–15.2 cm) in length.
    • After you have pinched your plant, it is a good time to stake it. Tie it loosely to a support such as a sturdy garden cane using string or garden wire.
  4. Stop pinching when the leaves start to form. Over pinching can delay blooming, so stop pinching once the leaves start to form. If you want to ensure a long flowering season, pinch only half of the lateral stems. This way you get two flushes of blooming.

Encouraging Repeat Blooming

  1. Make sure to water your plants regularly during dry weather. Perpetual carnations can be encouraged to flower again by making sure they are watered during dry weather.
    • This means watering them about every 5-7 days through the summer or perhaps every 3 days in very dry, hot weather.
    • Also give your carnations regular feeds, pinch the stems and remove the withered flower heads.
  2. Protect your plants from frost. It’s important to protect perpetual flowering carnations from frost. You can grow them under glass or in a polytunnel, but it’s vital to keep them above 45F so you may need a source of heat, even in a greenhouse. Of course, you can also grow them as house plants.
  3. Don’t use nitrogen manures or fertilizers. Avoid using manure or high-nitrogen fertilizers for carnations, as they won’t bloom as well. Also keep in mind that you should never mulch carnation plants.
    • If planted outside, you should add lime to the soil to improve the alkalinity, and use a fertilizer that isn't too high in nitrogen relative to other components, such as potash (potassium) and phosphorus.
  4. Feed the carnations with water-soluble fertilizers every two weeks. During the growing season carnations will need feeding regularly – about once every two weeks – with a weak solution of water-soluble fertilizer. Avoid slow release fertilizers or ones labeled ‘granular’. These release nutrients too slowly to be of much use during the growing season.

Dividing and Propagating Carnations

  1. Divide your carnations for continued plant health. After a few years, even perpetual carnations won’t perform as well. You can rejuvenate your carnation plants by dividing at the root to make new plants. To divide a carnation:
    • Dig it up and gently separate the root mass using your hands. Replant the divided sections and water them well. Continue watering for the next few months once the soil is dry below the surface.
  2. Take cuttings from carnation plants. Taking cuttings is also a great way to reproduce your carnation plants after a few years. Make sure your plant is healthy before you take cuttings from it.
    • Starting early in the morning, cut a piece of fresh shoot about 4 inches (10.2 cm) in length from a section of stem that isn't flowering. Cut below a swollen leaf node; make sure your tools are sharp and not dirty. Strip off any lower leaf growth.
    • Dip the stem in some a rooting powder and bury half the length in some sand. Give the cutting some water, cover with a transparent plastic bag and put it into a well-lit place but not in direct sun. A window ledge that is not facing sun is ideal. Make sure you keep the cuttings watered until they root.
  3. Propagate your carnation plants using the layering technique. An unusual method called ‘layering’ can also be used to make new carnation plants. Mix some sand and compost in the area close to the plant you wish to propagate from, then water the mix. You want to get a healthy side shoot and remove any leaves from the lower part.
    • Halfway along the length make a vertical slit in the stem using a thin blade such as a craft knife. This allows you to bend the stem over and plant the cut middle stem area into the soil mix. You may need to weight this down using a piece of bent wire to ensure it remains in the ground where it will root eventually.
    • Keep the soil mix watered moist for up to 2 months when it will have rooted enough to be removed from the parent plant for replanting elsewhere.

Tips

  • Carnations need to be watered during dry periods, but don’t want to be overwatered or sit in wet earth all the time. It’s best if the soil is damp but not sodden. Good drainage is important. Overwatering can turn the leaves yellow. It’s also important not to splash water onto the plant as you are giving it water as carnations don’t like their leaves being wet.
  • Carnations are available as annual and perennial varieties – also known as Border Carnations (annuals) and Perpetual Flowering Carnations (perennials). Annuals live only for one year; perennials for two or longer. Annuals tend to have a smaller flower size but better scent. Perennial varieties of carnation will need replacing after 3 years.

Warnings

  • Pinching Carnations is also known as ‘stopping’ Carnations in some gardening books.
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