You are doing it all wrong. Here’s the right way to deadhead petunias for bigger blooms

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## You Are Doing It All Wrong: Here’s the Right Way to Deadhead Petunias for Bigger Blooms

Petunias are a staple of summer gardens — vibrant, colorful, and generous with their blooms. But if your petunias have started to look leggy or aren’t producing as many flowers as you hoped, the problem might not be your watering or fertilizer routine. It could be that you’re deadheading them *wrong* — or not at all.

Deadheading, or the process of removing spent blooms, is a simple gardening technique that can make a huge difference in your petunias’ performance. But it’s not just about plucking off the faded petals. Here’s the *right way* to deadhead petunias so they produce bigger, longer-lasting blooms all season long.

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### What Most Gardeners Get Wrong

Many people believe that deadheading simply means removing the shriveled petals. So they pinch or pluck the flower off at the top — and then wonder why their plant still looks tired.

**Here’s the mistake:** When you remove just the petals, you’re leaving behind the seed pod, which continues to mature. Once a petunia starts going to seed, it diverts energy from blooming to reproduction — meaning fewer new flowers.

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### The Right Way to Deadhead Petunias

To encourage constant blooming, you need to remove **the entire flower head, including the developing seed pod.** This tells the plant, “Hey, we’re not done yet!” — and it keeps pushing out new buds.

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