Gardening and Landscaping Stack Exchange
Gardening and Landscaping Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [pinching-out]

The process of removing the top growing point of a plant.

"Pinching out" is the process of removing the top growing point of a plant. This is done by literally pinching the bud between finger and thumb.

This is performed to encourage the plant to bush out more, and not to grow vertically up. It also encourages many plants to produce more flowers.

Use this tag for questions about pinching-out - should a plant be pinched out, when to do it, which buds to pinch out, etc.

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What is the right way to pick peppers so the plant keeps producing?

Does it matter where on the stalk you cut or remove the fruit off the plant so that you don't suck away its future earning potential? Let's take the photo here, of a Cayenne pepper (Capsicum annuum), where the chilli is now ripe and ready to burn up…
Eight Days of Malaise
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How do I actually "pinch out" a pepper plant?

I've been given a few peppers plants a few weeks ago, which I'm now trying to grow inside, on my sunnier window ledges. While trying to find out how to care for them, most advice I've found seems to indicate that I should "pinch out" the top when…
DMA57361
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Is it too late to pinch back my avocado plant?

I'm growing an avocado plant from the pit (started with the toothpicks and glass method). Unfortunately I was out of town when it hit its growth spurt and therefore was not there to pinch back the first set of leaves when it was 6 to 12 inches…
netnichols
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Should I pinch off flowers that form on chives?

I've got chives that are growing like crazy. Recently, I noticed they are flowering, which I and my wife appreciate for the beauty. But we also appreciate chives for their taste and answers to other questions indicate that pinching the flowers is…
Jon 'links in bio' Ericson
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My fuschia is dying after pruning

We have a home garden and recently fuschia was added to our collection. it was all great looking and healthy but after a few days there were no blooms and it was all leaves on the plant. I did read some articles Googling the issue, and they…
Gigili
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Should I pinch my first celosia blooms?

This is my first year starting annuals from seeds, mainly for containers. I've read that pinching off the first blooms helps the plant produce more blooms and form a bushier habit. I started my seeds late and while they're at a good height and have…
OrganicLawnDIY
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Where and when to pinch back for bushy basil

I've read that "pinching back" or pruning basil plant (ocimum basilicum) will produce a bushier, less leggy, plant. Where on the plant do you cut? When do you cut? How often? Does age of plant matter?
Brian Low
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How many basil plants required to produce seed?

I have 5 groupings of basil plants, each containing between 5-7 unique plants. I would like to produce enough seeds (say 100) to replant the same total amount of basil next season. I have throughout the season been pinching out flowers to delay the…
jimmyjambles
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How long can I continue to pinch flowers from a basil plant

I have 10-15 50cm tall lettuce basil plants hanging in large flower pots over my balcony. They are approx. 14 weeks old. I have for about 4 weeks now been cutting the tops of the plants or pinching whenever flowers have developed. Assuming optimal…
jimmyjambles
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Should I pinch out the flowers on my potato plants?

After a very warm and dry spring, my potato plants have already started to bloom in early June. I wondered if they are putting a significant amount of energy into producing the flowers, and if pinching them out would cause the plants to put that…
Niall C.
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