Geraniums are undoubtedly one of the most popular flowers to place on balconies, in the garden or in a window box on the windowsill.

However, when temperatures begin to drop and the hours of sunshine decrease, that is, between the end of summer and autumn, it is time to take care of your pruning, at this time you can also make cuttings so that plants grow that will be ready. for the following spring.

Geraniums – Source: spm

prune geraniums

Pelargoniums (real name for geraniums) tend, in most cases, to “grow badly”. Proper pruning means shaping the shrub so that it becomes denser and fuller. This is done by shortening the longest branches, and always just above a stem node. Therefore, it should be considered to leave the crown as compact and round as possible, without cutting too much.

Before cutting branches, however, make sure that the scissors or shears are sharp and disinfected: to sterilize them, you can run the blade over a lighter flame for a few seconds or rub it with a little isopropyl or ethyl alcohol. If you have to prune many different plants, it is best to carry a lighter or alcohol and clean the blades thoroughly before starting work on a new plant.

You can propagate geraniums by pruning cuttings, i.e. by planting them in new pots.

You will need small pots, usually 15 cm in diameter, which you will fill with a first layer, a few fingers deep, of expanded clay, then continue adding good, rich, compact soil up to three-quarters of the height of the pot.

Now take a glass of water and a packet of rooting hormone powder and open the lid. Take the first cut branch, dip the cut part in water only a few centimeters, then immediately dip it in the rooting powder, then place the branch in the ground. If you don’t have this rooting powder (available at garden stores, nurseries, or even online), you don’t have to use it, but in that case some people prefer to keep the twigs in water, changing it every other day. – until they produce roots.

Geraniums – Source: spm

Continue this way with the other branches until the pot is full. At this point, carefully take a few more handfuls of soil and finish filling the pot to the brim, making sure that the soil fits well with the various branches. All you have to do is water the cuttings thoroughly, place them in a bright place protected from the wind, and remember to water them twice a week.

Taking advantage of the light and not too cold temperatures of autumn, the cuttings will have the opportunity to root and produce new leaves. During the winter you can also water more sparingly, but always be careful not to leave the soil completely dry for more than a day.