Everything is Power-Something these days. Have you noticed? Power Bars, Power Brokers, Power Books, Power Take-overs, even Power Shortages! Now is the time to do some Power Pinching on your fuchsias so that you can boast about your Power Plants in just a few short months!

New growers, this is the most important thing you need to do at this time of year. Veteran growers need the same reminder: pinch in the spring for gorgeous fuchsias in the summer.

As new growth appears on newly pruned fuchsia plants, look carefully at the growth. Two leaves appear, a little stem grows further and produces two more leaves. As the third set of leaves appear, your job begins. Using a small manicure scissors, snip out the newest set of leaves on each branch. In a few days the plants will reward your effort by growing two new stems where you pinched out the growing tip. Let a couple sets of leaves form on these new branches and then pinch out the new growth again. Soon you will have four new branches where you had just one. If you start early enough, you should be able to take four pinches and multiply the number of branches by 1-2-4-8-16 before you need to stop pinching to allow the plant to set bloom.

On the third and fourth pinch, consider how the plant is taking shape. You might want to pinch some branches after just one set of new leaves so that it will break earlier to better fill in the space. Pinching every other branch this way on a trailing plant will allow blooms to form all down the cascade rather than just at the bottom. Do not delay pinching until the leaves are large because you are just wasting time and growth. Tiny scissors can cut out the pinch without damaging the leaves below the cut.

If you are a novice "pincher," you may find you have a few crinkled leaves, but do not fret. Practice makes perfection!

You will also notice that if you have a plant that has three leaves at a node where you pinch, you will get a bonus of three branches. Take advantage of this as often as possible. If the stems seem too long between leaf nodes, move the plant to brighter light.

Add to this regimen some Power Fertilizing: full strength every week or half-strength every time you water and you are on your way to some blue ribbons at the County Fair.