The right time to cut back
- Spring pruning
- In between cutting
- Topiary for tall trees
- Cutting before wintering
Spring is the best time to prune the gentian bush. Do this carefully. Cut off only the outer tips, especially on younger shrubs.
also read
- A gentian bush should never get frost
- The nightshade plant gentian is very poisonous
- The gentian bush is not hardy
With rotten bushes you have to be extra careful what you cut. In this case, it is best to wait until the bush bears the first flowers. Then don't accidentally remove shoots that would later flower.
Cut the gentian tree in between
If shoots protrude very strongly from the crown, you can remove them in between. Again, it is better to do too little than too much.
Cut before moving to winter quarters
You should only care for a gentian bush if you can offer it sufficiently large winter quarters in winter. This is especially true for the crown, which can be very expansive.
You should only trim the shrub in an emergency before bringing it into the house. This is especially true for younger gentian bushes. The older specimens can also handle a somewhat more powerful pruning.
In any case, you should cut as little as possible so that the gentian bush bears many flowers in the next year.
Cut the gentian bush as a high trunk
Gentian bushes are mostly offered as standard stems in this country. Specialist gardeners use chemical compressing agents to obtain this unnatural shape for the gentian tree.
If you really want to grow the gentian bush as a high trunk, get some compression agent such as Cycocel from the nursery. The remedy also stimulates flower formation.
Always wear gloves when cutting
The gentian bush is very poisonous. Always wear gloves when cutting and wash your hands thoroughly afterwards.
Tips & Tricks
In its South American homeland, the gentian tree can reach heights of up to four meters. The shoots grow drooping. The shrubs have very large crowns or are often pulled on a scaffold like a climbing plant.
