How to Cut Back Wave Petunias

Wave petunias have a cascading growth habit, making them ideal for hanging baskets and other planters. They also make an eye-catching ground cover. Like their traditional counterparts, wave petunias are annual plants. They thrive in full sun and require frequent watering to maintain healthy growth. They do not have to be deadheaded to produce continuous blooms, but can begin to look a bit bedraggled by mid to late summer. If this occurs the plants should be cut back to encourage growth and a new bloom cycle.

Things You'll Need

• Pruning shears
• Liquid fertilizer

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Instructions

1. • 1

     Clip the stems back to half their length. Use sharp pruning shears and make clean cuts just above a set of leaves.

   • 2

     Trim back to within 2 to 3 inches of the soil if the plants have completely stopped flowering. Do not remove all foliage when trimming.

   • 3

     Feed with liquid fertilizer, at the rate recommended on package instructions, directly after pruning. Continue to fertilize every month until the first fall frost.

   • 4

     Water any time the top 1/2 inch of soil feels dry to stimulate healthy growth and plentiful blooms.