Hibiscus are lovely plants whose flowers are some of the most recognizable ones in existence. After a few growing seasons, however, your hibiscus may not produce as many of those attention-grabbing buds. Instead of letting your hibiscus decay, learn basic pruning techniques to encourage new bud growth. With a little corrective pruning, your garden will fill with healthy new hibiscus buds.
Steps
Part 1 of 2: Understanding Pruning
Step 1. Know the reason for pruning
Hibiscus have terminal flowers, which means they appear at the tips of the branches. With the pruning of a healthy hibiscus, its growth is stimulated and it is made to generate more branches and, therefore, more flowers. Pruning also serves to prevent further decay of damaged and diseased trees and thus promote healthy new growth.
Step 2. Know when to prune
Pruning must be done according to the plant's natural growth cycles. Never prune a hibiscus in late fall or winter as this will prevent it from growing in spring. The timing of cutting varies from location to location, but generally large or complete prunings should be done in early spring, while smaller prunings should be done by early autumn in March.
Step 3. Use the right tools
So that pruning doesn't cause damage, you'll need a very sharp knife as well as garden pliers, two-handed scissors, and a hacksaw to cut what can't be cut with the other tools. All of them should be very sharp. You may also be interested in an agricultural disinfectant to clean tools before use, as this will prevent plant disease from spreading on these delicate branches.
Your tools should be very well sharpened: when using low sharpened knives, pliers, scissors or saws, pruning will do more harm than good. If your tools are too old, take the time to sharpen them or buy new ones
Step 4. Know where to prune
Keep in mind that it is at the pruning point that it will grow back. It is always desirable to prune outward-facing branches. All cuts will be made 6 mm from the tip of a knot (the location of a leaf or small branch), at an angle of 45° upwards. The lower tip of each cut should be near the middle of the plant, while the upper tip of the cut should be closer to the outside of the plant.
Step 5. Know how much to take away
Although how much should be removed varies by situation, generally never cut more than 2/3 of any branch. When you cut a very large piece, you are no longer pruning the hibiscus, you are just damaging it.
Part 2 of 2: Pruning Your Hibiscus
Step 1. Do a "trimming" pruning
"Trimming" your hibiscus means cutting only the tips of the branches, close to their ends, to encourage some growth without sacrificing too much plant volume. This is the mildest type of pruning and is the safest for beginners. This trimming should generally be done on young or small plants, as they do not need much pruning early in their lives to encourage growth. Cut the ends of the branch at the knot closest to them or at a higher point.
Step 2. Try selective pruning
This is more than "trimming" and involves cutting off larger portions of the plant, but only at certain points to maintain its basic size and shape. A selective pruning involves finding nodes that are one-third of the branch off the tip of the branch and cutting just above them. Do this in all or most branches so that new growth points are developed.
Step 3. Do a complete pruning
It involves cutting all the hibiscus, early in the season, to get the most beautiful flowers possible. Total pruning leaves a bitter taste in the mouth, because, despite making the hibiscus produce so many flowers, they are done with an almost total cut of the plant. Cut each branch so that there are only two or three nodes on each of them. Don't forget that you should never cut more than 2/3 of each branch.
Step 4. Try corrective pruning
As the name suggests, it is done when you have to correct a problem with the plant, usually with a cut in the damaged or diseased parts of the hibiscus. Cut as much of the damaged branches as necessary to expose the green wood. If, in the cut part, the wood is stiff and white, it will be dead and there will be no sprouts on it.
Step 5. Do a heavy pruning
It is only done in the most drastic situations, when the hibiscus is almost completely dead or damaged. It involves cutting off all the branches to expose the spots where the plant is alive and growing and, with time and some luck, you can get it to grow back again. Heavy pruning may not work if the plant is already dead, but at least it will help you finally know the state of your hibiscus.