How To Prune Pumpkins: Top Tips And Tricks

pumpkin cultivation

pumpkin cultivation

Pumpkin is a crop that must be prune if you want it to grow correctly apart from meeting the rest of the requirements. many people ask how to prune pumpkins since there are multiple ways to do it. However, the type of pruning that is given is not so important, but the technique of the pruner. For this reason, it is essential to first practice little by little as pruning techniques become known.

In this article we are going to tell you how to prune pumpkins and what aspects you should take into account.

Key features

tips on how to prune pumpkins

tips on how to prune pumpkins

Pumpkin flowers are yellow, large, funnel-shaped. They have a short life: they bloom at the first light of the sun and close for good at mid-morning. As a monoecious plant, it has both male and female flowers and is self-pollinating: the female flowers can be pollinated by pollen from the male flowers of the same plant.

However, cross pollination prevails. That is, the female flowers are fertilized by the pollen of other plants of the same or different species. When the female flower is fertilized, the fruit develops, otherwise it withers.

As for the fruit, in general, the fruit varies in size, from courgettes to pumpkins weighing more than 20 kg. They are spherical, flattened, curved, with a smooth or rough surface, in yellow and green tones. The pulp is firm and orange, and the seeds are transparent and flat, 1 cm long. The fruit and its seeds are used for human consumption, livestock feed, medicinal and ornamental products. Pumpkin seeds were eaten roasted in large quantities before being commercially replaced by sunflower seeds.

It has a semi-woody stem that is prostrate or climber and has coil springs for climbing. The leaves are large, heart-shaped, deeply incised, and rough to the touch. They are green.

Why are pumpkins pruned?

ripe pumpkins

ripe pumpkins

The purpose of pruning a pumpkin is to redirect your energy and remove damaged or withered stems, leaves and flowers. This is good for the plant since it helps prevent diseases and improves its development and appearance, which is why it is one of the most important tasks in the care of our plants.

Pumpkin pruning has several objectives:

  • It is conducive to light and ventilation of the plant stem.
  • It promotes the growth of plants.
  • Remove damaged, broken, or dried twigs, leaves, or flowers, which can also harbor parasites.
  • Improves flowering.
  • Enhance the colour.

In this way, the development and appearance of the specimen will be improved if proper pruning is carried out. As a result, it will increase the size and flowering of the plant.

When to prune pumpkins

In general, a good time to prune pumpkins is in early spring, before the plants regenerate and the risk of frost has passed. This reduces sap loss and the wound will soon begin to heal as the development stage approaches. Autumn pruning can be a good option in climates where winters are not very intense.. Seasonal pruning is done annually.

Cleaning pumpkins or maintenance pruning is a common task that we can do at any time of the year. It is done when the suckers begin to appear, those twigs that sprout between the main stem and the branches. The ideal is to remove it when the measurement is less than 5cm.

How to prune pumpkins

how to prune pumpkins

how to prune pumpkins

To prune a pumpkin we only need a pair of pruning shears sanitized with alcohol and some gloves. There are different types of pruning depending on what we want to achieve, let’s take a look at them. The purpose of clean-out pruning is to make room for the growth of healthy new shoots and to remove unwanted elements from the plant. This pruning is carried out along with other maintenance tasks throughout the year.

First, we’ll remove the suction cups by doing the following:

  • We will find secondary shoots or shoots that appear between the first leaf and the main stem.
  • Later we will cut the sucker carefully, making the cut as close as possible to the main stem without damaging it. It is best done when the shoots are less than 5 cm long.
  • Cut branches diagonally to allow water to flow. This will prevent water from staying in the wound and causing it to fester.

So we have to eliminate the following negative factors:

  • Dead, dry or diseased stems, leaves and flowers.
  • It probably springs from the same root (they are called snakes).
  • The plants that sprout from the feet of the plant are weak or poorly positioned, and we are not interested in its development.
  • Branches cross, stray, or intertwine on bushes.
  • Withered flowers, which make plants ugly and consume energy.

Flowering pruning

Flowering pruning is done annually, usually in late winter or early spring, and is intended to increase the flowering of the plant. We will proceed as follows:

  • Winter pruningwhen the worst of the cold has passed, around mid-February
  • Buds that have flowered will never flower again, so they must be removed in order for new buds to grow.
  • Flowering pruning It can be done at the same time as cleaning.
  • Do not cut non-flowering stems, as they They are for next year’s bloom.

Remember that the best conditions for plants to thrive are moist conditions and plenty of light.

pruning reminder

When a plant has been neglected for a long time or has started to grow slowly, it may be a good time to do a rejuvenation or renovation pruning. With it we will make the plant grow new shoots from its base and develop again. This is a thorough pruning that will rejuvenate the pumpkin, but it can also be done gradually.

  • Drastic rejuvenation pruning: In the first case, what we are going to do is prune the entire plant so that it is at ground level. This should only be done if the specimen has the strength to bear it and be sure to water and fertilize afterwards.
  • Progressive rejuvenation pruning: It consists of eliminating 50% of the branches, aligning them with the inserted sections. The remaining branches were cut to half their length, or just a third of the tip of the best buds we could find.

I hope that with this information you can learn more about how to prune pumpkins.

How To Prune Pumpkins: Top Tips And Tricks

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