Top promotion is one of the three most important laws of growth. If home gardeners are familiar with the law, they can predict exactly how a shrub or tree will react to the pruning technique used. This guide explains what the law of top funding is all about and how you can use your new knowledge correctly.

The tips have the most power in them

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  1. Promotion of excellence - definition with explanations
  2. What does the top funding mean for practice in private gardens?
  3. Interplay of peak production and juice pressure - conclusion

    4. Promotion of excellence - definition with explanations

    In a nutshell, the law of excellence is as follows:

    • The top bud has the strongest growth power, it sprout more vigorously than lower buds.

    The bud at the top of a year-old shoot receives the most nutrients. For this reason, it drives out stronger than all the other buds along the shoot and at the same time forms the longest new shoot. The greater the distance between a bud and the tip, the lower the nutrient supply and the shorter the new shoot.

    What does the top funding mean for practice in private gardens?

    Please take a look at the image below. On the left you can see a one-year-old, unbranched long shoot. A documents how this long shoot has developed after a year if it is not pruned. A strong new shoot shoots up from the top bud. Noticeably shorter shoots sprout from the lower-lying buds, the lower the bud position.

    The effect of juice pressure on growth is closely related to the Top Support Act. This comes into play as soon as you cut a shoot. Let's stay with the image below. The shoot in B was pruned back by a third in February. Again, the law of top promotion works in such a way that the longest shoots thrive from the top buds. Since the number of buds has been reduced, more reserve substances are available for each bud. This circumstance causes the new shoots to become longer, with the top shoot showing the longest growth.

    In C it is documented that the budding is stronger the harder you cut. All energy is invested in a few buds, after which very long shoots are formed. You will look in vain for short blossom or fruit wood.

    On the uncut branch, the top bud sprout the strongest (A). The harder the pruning, the stronger the growth from the top buds (B, C)

    Interplay of peak production and juice pressure - conclusion

    In the pruning care of fruit trees, the laws of top promotion and juice pressure are closely related. As a conclusion of the interrelationship presented above, it should be noted that:

    • Heavy pruning encourages upward growth
    • Weak pruning reduces the growth potential in favor of flowering and fruiting

    Repeatedly severely pruning a shrub or tree creates an imbalance between the uncut root volume and the cut shoots. The strong sap pressure leads to strong growth, resulting in long, unsightly shoots and the loss of the compact shape.

    tips

    The law of top support plays an important role in the training of flowering shrubs to tall stems. The top of the central shoot is only cut off when it is at least 3 to 5 buds above the desired crown height. If you cut off the top bud too early, the tall stem will never reach the intended height.

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