The number one question I see asked over and over, is some variety of "how do I prune this herb?" So, this will be a general overview on pruning herbs. I will do later posts detailing more specifically how to prune individual herbs.
Remember in general never to take more than one-third of a plant at any single time. Herbs in particular tend to be very hardy and will recover from amazingly harsh cutting, but not always. Plus if you take more than one-third, it will slow growth until the plant recovers. That said, sometimes it is necessary in order to correct mistakes made earlier in the growth process. Usually these cases are along the lines of, 'either it will recover and I can correct it, or it will die and I'll start over'.
Always use clean, sharp shears or scissors to prune. For herbs, I prefer embroidery scissors, as they get into tight spaces better than anything else I've found. However, I have a set that is only ever used for trimming plants. If you use them for other things as well, they can develop nicks and dulled areas on the blade and keep it from making a clean cut.
Never let herbs go to flower if it is the leaves you harvest. All their energy and nutrients will shift to the flowers, and the leaves will either lose flavor or turn bitter. Remove flower buds as soon as you can identify them as such.
You have two primary 'types' of herbs: spiral growers (dill, parsley, cilantro, etc. (and also lettuces)) and branch growers (basil, mint, thyme, oregano, rosemary, etc.(also peppers, though pruning priorities are different since you're after fruit, not leaves)). They both benefit from early and frequent pruning, but the way you go about the pruning is very different.
Spiral-Growing Herbs
For spiral growers, you prune in - you guessed it - a spiral around the plant from the outside. As long as the central growth bud (also called the 'crown', usually about two thirds of the way down the plant) remains intact, they will continue to grow, though if you prune really severely, it will take a while to recover.
They only grow from the center growth bud; unlike the branch growers, you can't stimulate the growth of side-stems.
You can begin to prune as soon as you can take ⅓ of the plant without subdividing a leaf-stem (each long stalk with several separate lobes at the end is a single leaf) - thus, once you have 3 or 4 semi-mature leaves. Cut the leaf stem way down as close to the central stem as you can without damaging the main stem.
Branching Herbs
For branching growers, if you cut off the top of the stem or branch, two new branches will form at the next leaf node down. (A 'leaf node' is the spot where two leaves, one on either side of the plant, emerge.) Thus, once you get the third set of true leaves (do not count the cotyledons, or seed leaves, in this), you remove the top one, and two new branches will form at the topmost remaining node. Once those new side branches develop 3 leaf nodes, remove the top node or two, leaving one or two on the branch. Repeat about a dozen times, and suddenly you have a nice, super-bushy plant.
Being afraid to trim branch growing herbs - especially basil! - early enough is probably the #1 mistake folks make with their first herb garden. The ideal number of nodes to leave can vary, such as with the smaller herbs like thyme, but taking one of every three is a safe rule of thumb for the group as a whole.
Tempting as it is, do not harvest individual leaves unless they get exceptionally large and prevent multiple other leaves from receiving light.
(Chives, however, are actually a third group, off by themselves (in terms of AeroGarden-growing). You simply cut them down once you have a fair bit of growth (about once every month or two), leaving about 1-2 inches at the bottom.)
For a more in-depth look, check out these posts as well:
No comments:
Post a Comment