Top funding is one of the three most important laws of growth. If home gardeners are familiar with the law, they can accurately predict how a shrub or tree will react to the pruning technique used. This guide explains what the law of excellence is all about and how you can use your new knowledge correctly.
What does top funding in horticulture mean?
Top budding states that the top bud of a shoot has the strongest growth power by receiving the most nutrients. The greater the distance from the tip, the weaker the buds. Strong pruning promotes height growth, while weak pruning promotes the formation of flower and fruit wood.
Top funding – definition with explanations
The short version of the law of top funding is:
The top bud has the strongest growth power, it sprouts more vigorously than deeper buds
The bud at the tip of an annual shoot receives the most nutrients. For this reason, it sprouts more strongly than all other buds along the shoot and at the same time forms the longest new shoot. The greater the distance between a bud and the tip, the lower the nutrient supply and the shorter the new growth.
What does top funding mean for practice in private gardens?
Please take a look at the picture below. On the left you see an annual, unbranched long shoot. In A it is documented how this long shoot has developed after a year if it is not cut. A strong new shoot shoots skyward from the top bud. The lower buds sprout noticeably shorter shoots, the deeper the bud position.
The effect of juice pressure on growth is closely related to the top funding law. This comes into play as soon as you cut a shoot. Let's continue with the picture below. The shoot in B was cut back by a third in February. Again, the law of top promotion works in such a way that the longest shoots grow from the upper buds. Since the number of buds has reduced, more reserve substances are available for each bud. This circumstance causes the new shoots to become longer, with the top shoot having the longest growth.
In C it is documented that the harder you cut, the stronger the shoots will be. All the energy is invested in a few buds, after which very long shoots are formed. You will look in vain for short flower or fruit wood here.
On the uncut branch, the tip bud sprouts most strongly (A). The stronger the pruning, the stronger the growth from the top buds (B, C)
Interaction between top promotion and juice pressure – conclusion
In the pruning care of fruit trees, the laws of peak production and sap pressure are closely related. The conclusion of the interrelationship presented above is:
- Strong pruning promotes upward growth
- Weak pruning reduces vigor in favor of flower and fruit wood formation
Repeatedly pruning a shrub or tree severely creates an imbalance between the uncut root volume and the cut shoots. The strong sap pressure leads to strong growth, resulting in long, unsightly shoots and the compact shape is lost.
Tip
The law of top promotion plays an important role in the training of flowering bushes into standard stems. The tip of the central shoot is only cut when it is at least 3 to 5 buds above the desired crown height. If you cut off the top bud too early, the standard tree will never reach the intended height.
