Gloeckner CARNATION MANUAL 
DIRECT BENCHING AND ITS MODIFICATIONS—Conf. 
PINCHING 
After the cuttings have been in the bench thirty days, they are ready to pinch, The carnation plants will 
often break before they are pinched. After the top of the cutting is pinched out, the side shoots or breaks 
develop and elongate at a fast pace. This pinch must be made high to assure enough breaks — merely 
remove the tip of the young plant, 
To avoid heavy cropping at one time, some growers pinch part of the shoots that develop after the first 
pinch, This second pinch should be delayed until a‘ter the shoots are 8 to 10 inches long, This method 
is referred to as a pinch and a half. This second pinch is only done on the more vigorous varieties and 
will break up the crop giving a more continuous cut. 
The method is likely to fit into two-year culture, with the possibility of replanting half the carnation 
space each year with rooted cuttings, and continuing the other half in late spring and summer produc- 
tion. Since absolute disease control is an essential of two-year culture, the method is particularly well 
suited, since there is less likelihood of contamination when benching cuttings direct. 
The grower of miscellaneous crops, wholesale and retail, usually can rotate carnations with other crops 
and thus have benches free by mid-May or early June where carnation cuttings could be benched direct 
and still be able to cut carnations from the old crop in other benches, If carnations are a minor crop, 
it undoubtedly would be advantageous to eliminate all the chores and worries of propagation and care 
of young plants and procure strong, clean rooted cuttings from a propagation specialist on a specified 
1 planting date. The time and space required for home propagation and growing on can be put to use 
profitably on other crops, thus offsetting the costs of procuring cuttings. 
OBTAINING LATE CUTTINGS 
The advent of direct benching of rooted cuttings necessitates some obvious changes in propagation sched- 
ules, with a need for cuttings in late spring in addition to the customary midwinter supply. To assure 
availability, growers should make arrangements as far in advance as possible to procure cuttings, Some, 
propagation specialists are preparing for this demand, and our representatives are informed as to the 
varietal availability through the late spring months. 
ETRE IS 
MODIFIED DIRECT BENCHING 
Since some growers do not wish to throw out their old car- 
nations until the end of June or early July, a modification 
to the direct benching has been carried out, This modifica- 
tion is to band the cuttings up for a very short time, pos- 
sibly for only six weeks. The cuttings are propagated in 
early May, banded to 3x3x3 bands, pinched thirty days 
after banding, and then benched in late June. Still an- 
other good method would be to plant the rooted cuttings 
into outdoor beds or benches, pinch once and then remove 
and plant inside when time permits. It is necessary to plant 
the cuttings in sterilized soil to assure disease-free stock. 
This past year one grower had wonderful success when he 
planted rooted cuttings into a raised bench outdoors the 
first week of June, He pinched the plants July 1 and 
planted the young plants inside the middle of July. Hav- 
ing the plants outdoors only a short time resulted in a 
stocky growth and also permitted the removal of the old 
plants before the young plants got too’ hard. 
Heavy branching from a single pinch made high 
on a strong, actively growing young plant. 
NO-PINCH METHOD 
Some growers who have practiced direct benching favor no-pinch method. The plant is allowed to grow 
and produce a bloom before the plant is stopped. When cuttings are planted during winter and early 
spring, the first bloom is of very high quality. The breaks appear before the bloom is cut and very little 
9 difference can be detected from the usual pinched plant. (Continued) 
