TRAINING YOUR PLANTS
Pruning
Pruning involves trimming leaves, stems and even flowers
or fruits from a plant. In a growroom, selective pruning
can accomplish many things:
• Directing growth
• Stabilizing plants
• Making harvesting easier
• Maximizing space
• Improving airflow
• Enhancing light penetration
• Protecting plants from diseases
• Helping produce larger flowers and fruits
Some pruning methods vary depending on the plant
variety and objectives involved, while others are standard. Removing dead or dying leaves is a common chore
that reduces the risk of plants contracting diseases,
for instance. Eliminating low-lying foliage is another
familiar pruning task that helps plants develop more
efficiently, and may have the added bonus of providing
enough extra space for the intercropping of lettuces
and other small plants.
Another advantage of selective pruning is that it will
encourage plants to behave in ways that help them
flourish in the artificial environment of a growroom. For
example, even though most tomato varieties are bushy,
selective pruning to remove axillary buds and encourage
central stem growth can transform regular tomatoes into
vining plants that are easier to maintain indoors because
they use space efficiently. Similar results can also be
accomplished with sweet peppers.
This is an exciting approach to indoor gardening because
it allows gardeners to modify plants for the better by using
simple, natural, inexpensive techniques. Pruning may
be considered a labor-intensive practice, especially when
training plants to grow differently from the way they’d
develop naturally, but it can help grow healthier, more
robust specimens indoors.
Another advantage of
selective pruning is that
it will encourage plants
to behave in ways that
help them flourish in the
artificial environment
of a growroom.”
86
Maximum Yield USA | November 2015