This helpful video describes and demonstrates what you need to do know for successful propagation via plant cuttings. This can be a great way to add new and interesting plants to your garden. See a plant you love in someone else's garden? Ask if you can take a cutting! You can quickly and easily add new plants to your garden without having to wait for them to grow from seeds.
In this video he demonstrates how to do a plant cutting with a couple of different herbs - rosemary and thyme. He waters with a kelp mixture to stimulate root production naturally and organically. Kelp can be found in most garden centers, as well as online.
Check it out, and get cutting!
Kelp Fertilizers for Cuttings and Organic Gardening:
Showing posts with label Plant propagation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Plant propagation. Show all posts
Thursday, July 25, 2013
Tuesday, July 23, 2013
Advanced Garden Tip: Propagating Plants from Cuttings
One of the most cost effective ways of getting plants for your garden is from cuttings off of other plants.
Many people avoid trying to grow plants from cuttings assuming it is too difficult, but if you know what to do it isn't quite as hard as many people believe.
When you take a cutting off the plant that you want to grow, make sure it is approximately the length of a pencil.
You will then need to remove all but the top two leaves on the cutting. If the cutting is from a large-leaf plant you should also consider removing another leaf from the top to ensure there isn't too much leaf for the cutting.
You will find where to cut the plant by looking at the stem. Where there is swelling on the stem, these are called nodes and this is where the growth of the plant occurs. You should always cut below a node when taking your cutting.
Once you have a good cutting you should treat it with a suitable natural hormone formulation. There are different types of hormone formulations specifically for the various types of plants and you will need to match the correct hormone with the plant cuttings you are growing. Your garden center can help with this.
Dip approximately 1/2 inch of the bottom of the stem into the correct hormone and then insert the stem into a suitable rooting medium. This rooting medium can be a mixture of pumice and sand for good results. Compact the mix lightly around the stem to hold it in place.
If you cut the top off a clear plastic 2-liter drink bottle it will act as a mini hot house once turned upside down and placed over the plant.
This will help raise the temperature inside and stimulate growth. After about a month your cutting will have roots and you will be able to remove it and pot it as you would any other plant.
Questions? Need clarification? Check back Thursday for a video demonstration of this process.
Many people avoid trying to grow plants from cuttings assuming it is too difficult, but if you know what to do it isn't quite as hard as many people believe.
When you take a cutting off the plant that you want to grow, make sure it is approximately the length of a pencil.
You will then need to remove all but the top two leaves on the cutting. If the cutting is from a large-leaf plant you should also consider removing another leaf from the top to ensure there isn't too much leaf for the cutting.
You will find where to cut the plant by looking at the stem. Where there is swelling on the stem, these are called nodes and this is where the growth of the plant occurs. You should always cut below a node when taking your cutting.
Once you have a good cutting you should treat it with a suitable natural hormone formulation. There are different types of hormone formulations specifically for the various types of plants and you will need to match the correct hormone with the plant cuttings you are growing. Your garden center can help with this.
Dip approximately 1/2 inch of the bottom of the stem into the correct hormone and then insert the stem into a suitable rooting medium. This rooting medium can be a mixture of pumice and sand for good results. Compact the mix lightly around the stem to hold it in place.
If you cut the top off a clear plastic 2-liter drink bottle it will act as a mini hot house once turned upside down and placed over the plant.
This will help raise the temperature inside and stimulate growth. After about a month your cutting will have roots and you will be able to remove it and pot it as you would any other plant.
Questions? Need clarification? Check back Thursday for a video demonstration of this process.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
How to Bring a Plant Cutting Indoors for the Winter
If you love an outdoor plant but it is too big to bring indoors for the winter you have the option of taking a cutting from that plant. Once you have taken a cutting, you can start a new plant that is smaller and more appropriate for an indoor garden. Depending on the type of plant you are taking a cutting from, there are a few methods you might want to try.
Image via WikipediaTaking a cutting from a plant is also known as propagation. If you have a hardwood plant that you want to propagate the process is slow but easy to do as the cuttings are quite hardy. Take the cutting (about 5 inches worth) when the tree is dormant (in the middle of winter) and place the cutting cut-side up in a pail of sand. Fill the pail with water and wait until spring. Then submersed side will have little nodules that will turn into roots once planted.
When you are taking a cutting from a soft-wood plant, it will require more care and attention. Taking cuttings from soft-wood yields quicker results and you do the actual cutting when the plant is in the active growing phase. You are cutting off the new growth back to a nodal (from the point it stopped growing the year previous). This method benefits from the use of a root-producing medium found at nursery stores. It is important to place the cutting (cut-side down) into the root medium immediately. If the cutting dries out it will lessen the chances of a successful propagation.
Next, pick a pot or container suitable to the type of plant you are growing and plant it once the roots have developed. At this point, you can follow the regular care instructions for the type of plant you have just propagated.
Image via WikipediaTaking a cutting from a plant is also known as propagation. If you have a hardwood plant that you want to propagate the process is slow but easy to do as the cuttings are quite hardy. Take the cutting (about 5 inches worth) when the tree is dormant (in the middle of winter) and place the cutting cut-side up in a pail of sand. Fill the pail with water and wait until spring. Then submersed side will have little nodules that will turn into roots once planted.When you are taking a cutting from a soft-wood plant, it will require more care and attention. Taking cuttings from soft-wood yields quicker results and you do the actual cutting when the plant is in the active growing phase. You are cutting off the new growth back to a nodal (from the point it stopped growing the year previous). This method benefits from the use of a root-producing medium found at nursery stores. It is important to place the cutting (cut-side down) into the root medium immediately. If the cutting dries out it will lessen the chances of a successful propagation.
Next, pick a pot or container suitable to the type of plant you are growing and plant it once the roots have developed. At this point, you can follow the regular care instructions for the type of plant you have just propagated.
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