How Do You Prune Stem Plants?

[denis coghlan]

As the post topic states my question is how does one go about pruning large stem plant? To date I haven't had to prune this particular plant as it has been kept in check by the ever hungry goldfish. But the goldfish has since lost his appetite for the particular species and it now eating my more expensive plants. Thus the plant has started to grow rapidly and has reached the surface of the water.

This brings me to the question, where abouts on these types of plants does one cut in order to reduce the plants competition with its neighbours for light? It just seems that if I cut up at the top of the plant I will be cutting off the meristematic zone and the plant will loose form of growth. The plant in question is highlighted with a bright circle in the picture below.

Any help would be much appriciated.

 

[jimbooo]

hiya, seems drastic but literally pull the whole thing out of the water, chop off the bottom to suit the height required and replant the top portion. there wont be any roots but they will soon form from the cut stem as long as your substrate is up to scratch. if you have only plain gravel without any plant additives (laterite etc..) push a root tab fertaliser stick directly beneath the stem, where the roots will need to form.

 

[lissie]

What i do is chop the top off the plant, then replant this. The bottom of the plant you've cut can then be replanted and as this plant will now split into two where you originally cut it, these two new growths can be cut at the bottom and replanted.