Thanks for this great information Pagan. Sorry to keep hounding you with questions..tell me to bug off when you get tired of me.

How do you prune these tall gangly ones? Do you simply pluck off the leaves? Or remove every other leaf? Cut the leaves in half? I would like to sample this pruning on some of my gangly seedlings. Can you provide some details on how you would prune a tall skinny DR?

Cheers, Tracy

Nah, not a problem, Tracy. Remember, I was taught here in this forum too. Your turn will come!

Anyway, I just slice them off diagonally with a sharp box cutter, like so:

I prefer cutting diagonally because it doesn't look as abrupt. Also, the angle helps prevent water beading on the surface. I just took about two inches off of the one above. This might not be the last cut though. It might start looking annoying in the days to come and I will probably slice another inch off. I just leave the rest of the leaves on. They will die on their own as the plant grows older. I sometimes sprinkle a bit of ceylon cinnamon on the cut--it's a gentle fungicide that will help prevent rot. On older branches of older plants, I let the cut dry then seal it with a bead of wood glue.

This one below, I just sliced the new growth since it was not as stretched.

Not all adenium growers are as drastic and ruthless, however. Also, every time you prune, you set the plant back. I just really prefer to keep mine compact so I don't mind that part. I also don't want them wasting energy growing rapidly in one direction and then falling over when they bloom because they can not support the weight. Finally, I've decided not to care if they do not bloom while I am in the process of manipulating their basic shape.

Oh! Wear gloves. A lot of people are sensitive to the sap.

Pagan

My goodness, this is extreme! Judging by the bunch you have shown us you must know what you are doing. Here comes a barrage of questions... So can you tell us what the plant's response is after you prune? Does it die a little or respond in any physical manner in the days following the cut? Do you stop watering for a period of time or proceed with watering and/or fertilization as usual? Remove it from bright light? When the regeneration begins does the cut then produce a new tip or does it divide into two branches? Are the leaves bigger when they grow back?

I am thinking that after spring when my grow rack has some room I might grow some plain pinks to begin experimenting on. Knowing that I may part with them from the very beginning may help make it easier to give them the whack.

Thank you again.

Tracy

So can you tell us what the plant's response is after you prune?

After cutting, the first response of the plant is to ooze sap. This will dry out and the surface of the cut will become somewhat woody. Then bumps will form the beginnings of a new branch or branches. If you do it in the spring, it will just keep growing and develop a new canopy very quickly if it is hot and sunny--three weeks to a month. It depends on how hot it is.

Do you stop watering for a period of time or proceed with watering and/or fertilization as usual? I keep watering and feeding as usual.

Remove it from bright light? Nope.

When the regeneration begins does the cut then produce a new tip or does
it divide into two branches? Are the leaves bigger when they grow back? The cut just scabs over.Branching, on the other hand, is largelya crap shoot. As I said above, sometimes they form multiple branches around the tip of the cut, sometimes a pruned branch will form only one.

Note that this plant is now producing 3 new branches after it was pruned last December.

Are the leaves bigger when they grow back? Not necessarily. That will depend on the care it will receive after pruning as well as the genetic predisposition of that particular plant. If you are already giving it optimal care, it will just keep producing the same kinds of leaves as before. If the plant started out problematic, improving your care will then allow it to produce the best kind of leaves it is capable of producing under ideal conditions.

Winter has ended!

Pagan

Additional info

I do much the same as Pagan. As Pagan mentions, there is a lull or slowing down of growth afterwards.

I treat mine the same as always, depending on the rate of growth at the time of pinching/pruning.

They get watered, fertilized at what ever rate they allow. After the pruning I let the plant let me know when it needs water based on it's uptake.

When you have a large number of seedlings, it makes it a little easier to play around and experiment.

I always seem to have way too many and so I pinch early on with quite a few.

My last Rinoa batch of seedlings are all pinched back now.

Rick

Thanks this is extremely helpful. I really am learning so much about Adenium in this forum. Thinking about how many plants I killed before I found you all..still killing them but at a much lower ratio. Going to check out Pagan's additional info now. Rick keep us posted on your Rinoa batch.

Tracy

Pagan,

I miss my cat. Can I have yours? What is his/her name?

-bong

That's Hodor. It took us about a year to find a name that will stick. He's extremely skittish with strangers but dangles like a stole if he knows you.

My other cat, inspecting spring.

Sigh!

Marie, tell that to the plant he's suffocating lol I don't even know what that is, the MIL planted it last autumn. Oh! And I have to show you my confusing success with grafting this winter (I know, I should've waited).

Bong, you clearly need another cat.

Pagan

Not really--I was trying to be complimentary about your picture of your cat. I am very happy with my Chihuahua, who does not care for cats.