Help the rooting process
Prepare the cuttings
The cuttings must be removed from the lower leaves before sticking them in the rooting medium. For woody cuttings, the lower end is slightly scraped to expose the cambial tissue. The cuttings of some fleshy stems should be left aside overnight or for a few days to form a callus – a layer of dry scar tissue – at the bottom end.
Root medium
A good rooting medium that keeps the cut end constantly moist is necessary. It is better to avoid garden soil because it contains pathogenic organisms and spores which can cause the cuttings to rot. A combination of peat moss and sand / perlite is enough to retain enough moisture while allowing good drainage. Do not add any fertilizer to the mixture.
Regular misting and watering
The cuttings should not be able to wilt. Continue to mist the top and water the medium regularly, but be sure to drain. Covering the propagation pot / tray with plastic helps create a warm, moist atmosphere that is conducive to growth.
Most cuttings can actually take root in water, but roots grown in water are relatively fragile, so extra care should be taken when transplanting into the soil.
Provide heat
Heating pads can be used to provide background heat. It encourages root growth.
Rooting hormones
Hormones can be used to ensure greater rooting success, but are only needed for certain hard-to-root plants. An infusion of willow branches can help rooting. The medium should not contain fertilizer when using rooting hormones.
The best plants to grow from cuttings
25 plants and herbs you can propagate from cuttings
Image credit: Mannewaar @ Flickr
While it is convenient to grow plants or herbs from cuttings, many annual plants that grow easily from seeds may not be worth it. The cuttings of some plants, especially fruit trees grafted on rootstocks, will not grow well, even if you manage to extract certain roots with the help of rooting hormones. But the following plants give excellent results.
- Sage – Take 4-inch semi-ripe basal cuttings in the fall and pot-up. Keep the rooting medium warm and moist throughout the winter, then transplant in the spring.
- Thyme – Grow several varieties of thyme from cuttings taken in summer and inserted in moist soil.
- Basil – They are easy to grow from seeds, but add to the variety by scraping the cuttings taken at any time of the year and kept in a warm and protected place, away from Sun.
- Rosemary – Take cuttings 3 to 5 inches long in the spring, or use heel or base cuttings in the fall to root in a cold setting. If you don’t want a lot of rosemary plants, root a few cuttings directly in individual pots covered with a plastic dome.
- Lavender – Take 3 inch scraps in early spring and save them in a cold frame. Transplant the rooted plants into the garden beds after 4-6 weeks. In summer and fall, heeled cuttings can be harvested in the spring of the following year.
- Horseradish – Lift the root in early spring and cut it into 3 inch pieces. Plant them a foot apart directly in the garden bed.
- Comfrey – Dig a plant and cut the roots in the spring or fall. Plant directly in a deeply worked bed and cover with mulch. Its roots grow deep in the soil and provide nutrients.
- African violets – Cut the young healthy leaves with 2-3 inches of leafy stems. After drilling a hole with a rod at a 70-degree angle, insert the stem of each leaf into a container of wet compost and sand. Keep the tray moist and warm and in a very bright area.
- Rex Begonia – All you need to grow these big leaf beauties is a single leaf. Make a few cuts on the prominent veins on the underside of the leaf and lay it on a damp bed of peat moss and quick sand in equal proportions. Weigh the sheet with a few stones so that the cut edges remain in contact with the bed. Keep in a warm, well-lit place and watch the new plants appear at these cut edges.
- Snake Plant (Sansevieria) – You can use 2-3 inch leaf sections to create new plants. You can thus make a large number of plants from a parent plant. The only problem with this propagation method is that the new plants will not carry the original variegation. Sections of rhizomes must be planted to preserve the variegation.
- Aluminum plant (Pilea cadierei) – Take pieces at 3-4 knots. Strip the lowest pair of leaves and cut the stem at this node. Place it in a moist rooting medium and keep it warm. Keep the environment moist at all times until new growth appears.
- Coleus – The growth tips, as well as the side shoots, resulting from the axils of the leaves of this plant, will give rise to new plants. Water the plants very well before cutting the tips with 2 to 4 knots. Remove the lower leaves and stick them in a moist rooting medium. You can insert the cuttings into bottles of still water, but plants grown in water require extra care when transplanting.
- Geranium – Cuttings 6 to 8 inches long can be rooted, but this helps if the mother plant is allowed to wilt slightly before taking the cuttings. Take water for a week and take the cuttings 12 hours after watering the plant. Rehydrated stems root more easily.
- Philodendrons – You can find a wide variety of philodendrons with attractive leaf patterns and colors, but the good news is that they are easy to grow from cuttings. Cuttings with 2 or 3 nodes are the easiest to root because they start to grow as soon as the roots form, sometimes even earlier. The 2-3 knot mid sections are also good, but it may take some time for new shoots to develop from the leaf axils.
- Jade plant (Crassula) – These fleshy plants are ideal for gifts. If you have one plant, you can make several with stem cuttings taken at almost any time of the year, as with most indoor plants of tropical origin. Take cuttings 3 to 4 inches long with a sharp blade and keep them aside for a week. Proper callus formation protects fleshy stems from decay. Insert the cuttings into a well-draining soil used for succulents. Water from time to time, allowing the soil to become almost dry in between.
- Chinese evergreen (Aglaonema spp.) – When these plants come apart, take cuttings and put them in pots in a moist compost and a mixture of sandy soil. Keep the soil evenly moist, not wet. Mist the leaves to keep them hydrated until new roots can provide water. Make 3-inch-long sections of the remaining stem and place them horizontally in a tray of moist peat-sand mixture. Partially cover the sections with sand and enclose the tray in clear plastic until new shoots start to push through the plastic. Put the new plants in individual pots.
- Dumb cane (Dieffenbachia spp.) – Plants constantly lose their low leaves as they grow. Cut the leafy heads and set aside for a day or two to form a callus. Put in individual containers and keep them in a warm, well-lit place. Cut the remaining bare canes 2 inches above the ground line. Divide these canes into 3-inch sections and place them in rooting trays containing peat and compost. Keep covered until the sprouts arrive. Keep the original plant in a warm, well-lit place. it will set up new growth in no time.
- Ti plant (Cordyline spp.) – These cane-forming plants will eventually become too tall and too thin. Whenever you want to prune your Ti plant, create new ones with the cut branches. Take growth tips 1 to 1.5 feet long and cut the lower leaves. Insert into the potting mix in individual pots and keep them warm near a bright window. If any part of the cane remains, cut it into 8-10 inch long sections. Mark the bottom of each section giving it an oblique cut. Insert in a bed of moist soil in the garden.
- Fragrant corn plant (Dracaena fragrans) – This is closely related to the Ti plant, so the method of propagation is similar. Cuttings and mid-section cuttings can be grown to become new plants.
- Fuchsia – You can never have enough of these beauties; fortunately, they are very easy to cultivate from cuttings taken in spring. Cuttings with 3 pairs of leaves can be inserted into a moist compost-sand mixture and kept covered with plastic to provide moisture and warmth. Plant them in summer to have flowers in the same season.
- Hydrangea – Take cuttings 4 inches long with 3-4 pairs of leaves. Remove the lowest pair and cut the stem closer to the knot. Insert it in a moist root medium and cover it with a plastic sheet. You can cut large sheets of 3/4 to reduce water loss through evaporation.
- Holly – In the fall, take 10 to 12 inch cuttings from a female bush (the one that has already borne berries) and wrap the bottom of the thumb. Dip into the rooting hormone powder and pour into a moist rooting medium. Cover with plastic sheeting and keep inside.
- California Poppy Tree (Romneya sp.) – Detach roots in winter (December) and cut them into 3 inch sections. Place them horizontally on a wet sand-compost mixing tray. Cover with a glass until the sprouts appear. Wait until summer to plant them outside.
- Rose – Take 12-inch-thick hardwood cuttings in pencil in the fall and plant them where you want them. Water the cuttings until winter.
- Weigela – Take 5 inch long / semi-ripe softwood cuttings in late spring or early summer and potted, keeping them under a plastic blanket. Plant in early fall. Otherwise, take hardwood cuttings in the fall. Roots and winter in a cold setting, until they can be planted outside next spring.
