Quote:
Originally Posted by stromato
But JamesL has pointed out that pruning=work, which is a very, very bad thing since, of course, work=time. So I am hoping that the pruning method described by cythaenopsis, early sucker removal, requires less work than conventional pruning techniques.
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When your plant exceeds 3', the array of branches can make it a little bit of a challenge to spot suckers. But if you're systematic it isn't too difficult. Generally, I wait until a sucker is about 2-3" long and then pull it. Once beyond 5", it'll become quite thicker and may require a knife to remove. I also try not to pull them when they're really tiny. I've no scientific evidence to back this up, but my feeling is that once the sucker is about 2" long or so and pulled, the plant won't be as quick to try another sucker somewhere else.
Aside from lopping off a couple of lower branches to provide more air circulation and avoid soil splash, the sucker pruning is the only other trimming I've done on my plants and they're doing fine.