‘Force’ Flowering Branches to Bloom Indoors

     I look at the calendar and it tells me that spring in not far away.  I can hardy wait for all the spring blooms!  But I do not want to wait so I am going to ‘force’ Mother Nature to wake up early for me.

Spring flowering trees and shrubs develop their flower buds during the fall of the previous year.  By late January, most woody plants have gone through enough cold period to break dormancy.  

Success in forcing branches to early bloom depends on the plant type, stage of dormancy, and how close to their normal flowering time they are forced. The closer to normal flowering time that forcing takes place, the greater the degree of success. 

Start by selecting and cutting 12-24 inch long branches with many flower buds. Flower buds tend to be larger, round buds whereas the smaller buds are leaf buds.  Most of the flower buds are found on the portion of the branches that grew last year.  Use sharp pruning shears to cuts the branches.  Remember to use good pruning techniques and not destroy the shape of your shrub or tree.

     After you bring the stems indoors, recut them one inch from the base and insert in water immediately.   Some ‘forcers’ submerge branches in the bathtub in warm water overnight.  Place the container of cut branches in a cool (60–65°F) corner of the house.  High temperatures near heaters and vents cause the buds to dry out and drop off.  Be sure to remove any buds and twigs that will be under water.  Change the water every few days.  Adding a floral preservative to the water can help to control bacteria and extend the useful life of the branches.

Here are a few favorites for forcing: redbud, flowering quince, flowering dogwood, parsley hawthorn, forsythia, saucer or star magnolia, crabapple, flowering almond or peach or pear, black cherry, pussy willow, spirea, Carolina jessamine, and serviceberry.

If you want to be different from everybody else, try forcing the branches of some trees such as red maple, hickory, pecan and oak. The young, developing leaves can provide a different aspect to an arrangement.  When pruning fruit trees, save a few branches of your apple, peach, pear, or plum tree for forcing indoors.

The hardest part of forcing branches is the wait for the flowers to open.  It might take one to six weeks for the blossoms to open. Branches cut later in the dormant season will open their buds faster.  But that takes away the challenge of ‘forcing’.

Never forget that it is not nice to fool with Mother Nature.  Several weeks ago I brought in some forsythia branches to ‘force.’  The branches finally began to have some open flowers…. the same time the plants in my yard began to open their buds!

Preventing ‘Crape Murder’ Starts with You!

   The crapemyrtle is a very popular plant that produces dazzling blooms all summer long in Mississippi. During the winter months, their stems add form and texture to the landscape. Late winter is the optimal time to prune crapemyrtles.

'Crape Murder'

    And here is where the problem begins.  Most homeowners and many landscape maintenance companies do not know how to properly prune them.  They simply go out and top them at some arbitrary height - a practice that has become known as "crape murder."

   Often this mishap had its beginning at the garden center where the plant was purchased.  The homeowner buys a nice 3 – 5 foot crapemyrtyle in full bloom for that perfect spot in their landscape.  Once the plant gets established and starts to grow it becomes too big and has to be severely topped to maintain its space.
   In reality, crapemyrtles need very little pruning.  The secret is in the variety selection – select the right size variety for your site.  Crapemyrtles can range in size from one foot to over thirty feet in height!  But this is a story for another day.

   For now, let us focus on the ones you already have.  Proper crapemyrtle pruning is as simple as 1, 2, 3, here is how:

1. Remove suckers (small sprouts that can develop along main stems or at the base of the plant).

2. Remove crossed, damaged, or diseased branches.  For crossed branches, remove the weaker of the two limbs that are crossing or rubbing.  If you have maintained your plants on a regular basis, you might not have any of these to remove.

3. You might want to remove the tips of branches with last year’s seed heads on them. 

   Okay, now that you know the error of your ways how do you rehabilitate all those crapemyrtles that have been murdered in the past?  You can try one of the following options:

1. Choose the strongest two or three sprouts from each stub and remove the rest. This will encourage the remaining sprouts to grow. After a couple of seasons, the plant will improve in appearance.

2. Cut the plant back to within one to two inches of the ground while it is dormant. After two to three weeks of growth, select three to five of the most vigorous new shoots on each trunk and remove all others.  Remove any new shoots that emerge through the summer.  Or you can apply a sprout inhibitor to prevent the emergence of new sprouts.  Within three to five years, you will have a natural-looking crapemyrtle again.
  
  Use proper pruning techniques on your crapemyrtles to show your friends and neighbors to help eliminate “crape murder.”  Also, remember to choose the right size plant for your site, train it properly, and prune sparingly to maintain naturally beautiful crapemyrtles in your yard.