If you want your geraniums to bloom their best, you need to know how to prune geraniums. This simple step-by-step guide will show you exactly when and where to cut for healthier, bushier plants.
Pruning might seem scary, but it’s just like giving your plant a good haircut. It encourages new growth and prevents them from becoming leggy and sparse. With a few easy steps, you can keep your geraniums looking vibrant all season long.
How to Prune Geraniums – Simple Step-by-Step Guide
This main guide covers the basic pruning process for common zonal and ivy geraniums. The steps are straightforward and apply to most situations.
What You’ll Need
Gathering the right tools first makes the job quicker and safer for your plants. You won’t need much.
- Sharp pruning shears or scissors (clean and sterilized)
- Rubbing alcohol or a disinfectant wipe
- A container for the cuttings (if you want to propagate them)
- Gloves (optional, as some people find geranium sap irritating)
Step 1: Choose the Right Time
Timing is the most important part. Pruning at the wrong time can cost you flowers.
- Spring Pruning: For outdoor plants that have been overwintered. Do this just as new growth begins, after the last frost.
- Deadheading: Do this continually all summer long. Snip off spent flower heads as soon as they fade.
- Fall Pruning: A light prune in fall before bringing pots indoors can be helpful. Save the major cutback for spring.
Step 2: Identify What to Cut
Look your plant over. You’re aiming to remove three main types of growth.
- Dead or Yellowing Leaves/Stems: These can attract pests and disease. Remove them first.
- Spent Flower Stalks: Follow the old flower stem down to the main stem or a leaf node and cut it off.
- Leggy Stems: These are long, thin stems with few leaves. You’ll cut these back more severly.
Step 3: Make Your Cuts Correctly
Where you cut determines how the plant will regrow. Always make clean, angled cuts.
- Sterilize your shears with rubbing alcohol before you start and between plants.
- Look for a leaf node. This is the bump on the stem where leaves grow out from.
- Cut about 1/4 inch above a leaf node that faces the direction you want new growth to go (usually outward).
- Angle your cut downwards away from the node so water runs off and doesn’t sit on it.
Step 4: Shape the Plant
After removing the obvious dead bits, step back and look at the plant’s shape. Your goal is a rounded, bushy form.
- Trim back the longest stems by up to one-third to one-half there length.
- Try to cut stems at varying heights for a more natural, full look.
- Don’t remove more than one-third of the entire plant in one pruning session.
Step 5: Aftercare
A good prune is a bit stressful for the plant. Give it a little TLC afterwards.
- Water the plant thoroughly after pruning.
- Consider a light feed with a balanced, water-soluble fertilizer to support new growth.
- Place it in bright, indirect light for a few days if it’s in a pot, then return to full sun.
Special Pruning Cases
Not all geraniums are pruned exactly the same. Here’s what to do in specific situations.
Pruning Leggy Geraniums
If your plant is all stem and few leaves, it needs a hard refresh. Don’t be afraid to cut it back hard in spring.
- Cut stems back to about 4-6 inches above the soil line, ensuring each stem has at least one or two leaf nodes left.
- It will look bare, but new shoots will emerge from those nodes quickly.
- This is best done in early spring when the plant’s energy is high.
Pruning Ivy Geraniums
Ivy geraniums are trailing. They require a slightly different approach to keep them from getting stringy.
- Focus on cutting back the longest trailing stems to a point where you see healthy leaves.
- Pinch out the tips of new shoots during the growing season to encourage branching along the stems.
- Remove any upward-growing stems that spoil the trailing habit.
Common Pruning Mistakes to Avoid
Even with good intentions, it’s easy to make a few errors. Here’s what to watch out for.
- Using Dull or Dirty Tools: This crushes stems and can spread disease. Always clean your shears.
- Pruning Too Late in Fall: Major pruning before winter can encourage tender new growth that will be killed by frost.
- Not Pruning Enough: Just snipping the flower head off (deadheading) is not enough to control shape. You need to cut the whole stalk.
- Over-Pruning: Removing more than a third of the plant at once can shock it. If it needs a hard prune, do it in stages over a few weeks.
What to Do With Your Cuttings
Don’t throw those pieces away! Geraniums are incredibly easy to propagate from cuttings.
- Take a cutting that’s 3-5 inches long, with a few leaves at the top.
- Remove any flowers or buds and the leaves from the bottom half of the stem.
- Let the cutting sit in a shady spot for a few hours until the cut end forms a slight callus.
- Plant it in a small pot with moist potting mix. Roots should develop in a few weeks.
FAQ: Your Geranium Pruning Questions Answered
How often should you prune geraniums?
You should deadhead (remove old flowers) every week or two during the blooming season. A major shape-up pruning is typically done once in early spring, and maybe a light tidy-up in late summer.
Can I cut my geraniums back to hard?
Yes, geraniums are very resilient. If a plant is extremly overgrown or leggy, you can cut it back to just a few inches above the soil in spring. It will grow back bushier.
Why are my geraniums getting leggy even after pruning?
Legginess is usually due to insufficient light. After pruning, make sure your plant gets at least 6 hours of direct sunlight daily. Pinching out the tips of new growth also encourages bushiness.
Do you prune geraniums in the fall or spring?
For a major pruning, spring is best. In fall, just do a light tidy-up: remove dead material and long stems. The heavy cutting is saved for spring when the plant is ready to put out lots of new growth.
How do you keep geraniums bushy?
The key is regular pinching and pruning. Whenever a stem gets too long, cut it back to a leaf node. This signals the plant to grow two new stems from that point, creating a fuller shape.
Pruning your geraniums is a simple task that makes a huge difference. With clean tools and confident cuts above the leaf nodes, you’ll be rewarded with lush, flowering plants. Remember, it’s better to prune a little often than to make one drastic cut. Your geraniums will thank you for the attention with vibrant color and healthy growth all through the season.