It bothers me that some people will parrot advice they read or saw on Youtube without verifying it or without reconciling the advice with what they observed with their very own senses.
I am (barely) humble enough to admit that maybe I am the one who is in-the-ditch with my beliefs, so take what I write with a grain of salt and use your own eyes.
Plants have to struggle to be resistant to stresses
Variations on this are "Plants that are not watered are more drought resistant", "Fertilizing plants make them more susceptible to stresses".
If you look at a pasture in mid-drought, the only grass that is green will be the grass where the cows peed (urinated) and/or next to their poop where it is not grazed. Roots are energy-sinks. They will not grow without energy. Energy comes from leaves capturing light. Leaves cannot grow without fertility and water. Ergo, plants that are struggling for water or fertility will have fewer roots, shorter roots and cannot mine the soil as deeply for moisture as grass that is fertilized (urine) or does not have its leaves cropped (next to the poop).
Healthy plants are the most resistant to stresses; with the caution that excessive fertilizer late in the season delays maturity and can lead to late ripening and/or winter kill in cold climates.
You have to prune the tops to make the tops grow
Same arguments as above with one additional note: If cutting the tops makes the bottoms grow, then why do we cut the tops off of weeds and expect them to die?
I can see the tiniest bit of logic in this belief. If you cut the stem of a rose or apple the buds on the stem below the cut will break dormancy and push side-branches. That is because the growing tip emits growth regulators that keep the buds dormant. Since the growth regulator migrates downward in the bark, you can also encourage side-shoots by "ringing" the bark with shallow cuts.
A gardener seeing this phenomena MIGHT think that the same thing applies to roots, but it doesn't. Root growth is not the same as a dormant bud.
Thank-you for letting me vent.
It often seems like the most vocal people are the ones who know the least on the subject...
ReplyDeleteJonathan
Joe, I for one value your gardening advice very highly. Along with your number crunching ability. Some brown thumb will always have an excuse for being a crappy / lazy gardener. Keep being you.
ReplyDeleteHTR
Last week I had some young guy that moved here from the city telling me cutting the plant stimulates growth and that mowing the yard proves it. I told him to cut one inch off his dick and it would grow back two inches. I'm still waiting to hear.---ken
ReplyDeleteGood one Ken. Woody
ReplyDeleteI’m a city guy living in the country. My sense tells me you give a seed everything it needs to thrive so it can mature to be strong and bountiful. I think that applies to everything.
ReplyDeleteThe great benefit of the information age is that there is a great deal of information is available. The great detriment of the information age is that there is a great deal of information available that people will quote as fact and gospel based on a minimum of real experience and data.
ReplyDeleteKeep posting the actuals. It is much appreciated.