Mine had a huge summer and is now physically touching the ceiling and leaning toward the window. Every guide says prune in spring, which is useless advice when the plant is bent against the plaster.
I want to take maybe thirty centimetres off the top and remove a couple of leaves to balance it. Is that going to shock it in late October, or is the spring rule about something other than survival?
Practical bits for the cut itself. Clean sharp shears wiped with alcohol. Cut just above a node, the faint ring where a leaf joins the stem, because new growth comes from nodes. Take a small proportion of the leaves at once rather than tidying it comprehensively.
And expect milky sap. It irritates skin, it should be kept away from eyes and pets, and it will mark your floor. Gloves, and dab the cut with a paper towel.
Do not feed it heavily afterwards either. It is not in growth mode and the fertiliser has nowhere to go.
Honestly the autumn care matters more to this plant than the pruning does. Maximise light, because they drop leaves in low light and winter light is a fraction of summer. Water less, letting the top few inches dry first, since overwatering in low light is what causes the brown spots and the leaf drop people blame on pruning.
Avoid draughts from doors, cold windows and heating vents. And do not move it around looking for a better spot. They sulk after being relocated and you will spend six weeks wondering what you did wrong.
@cut_above_a_node · 6d ago · 3 replies
The spring rule is about the response, not about survival. Cuts heal fine in October. What you do not get is the fast comeback: new branches may be slow or may not appear until spring, the plant has less energy to replace leaves, and a big cut can leave it looking bare for months.
So your plan is on the edge of fine. Taking thirty centimetres off because it is against the ceiling is reasonable. Removing a couple of leaves to balance it is fine. Cutting hard to force branching is a spring job.
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@hitting_the_ceiling · 6d ago
If I want it to branch out into a tree shape eventually, I should wait rather than doing it now?
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@cut_above_a_node · 6d ago
Wait. Branching depends on the plant pushing new growth from dormant buds, and in October it mostly will not bother. Same for notching. Do the ceiling problem now and the shaping in April, when you get several branches rather than one grudging one.
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