Allowing your cape honeysuckle to bloom

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If you live in one of those neighborhoods where all of the plants are trimmed with power hedge-trimmers, looking like the pom-poms on poodles, or something from a Dr. Seuss cartoon, then there are very few flowers. That's because they aren't being allowed to bloom. You wouldn't trim rose bushes with a hedge trimmer! So don't use a hedge trimmer on your cape honeysuckle.

If you want flowers, put away the hedge trimmers! Instead, get your hand trimmers out and learn to see where the blooms are beginning to bud. When you see one, all you have to do is to avoid trimming it. Cut somewhere else! The picture at left shows the beginning of the flower bud. Learn to recognize it early, and just avoid snipping it off. You will be rewarded with lots of blooms! After it blooms, you can clip it off, especially if you are trying to control the size and shape of your plant.

And if your neighbors want to know how got all of those beautiful flowers, just tell them to throw away their hedge trimmers!

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