It’s Time to Go Forth, Multiply

Spring is in the air, and so is the urge to plant. Besides visiting the nursery for additions to your landscape, why not try growing cuttings from existing plants?

If you have a favorite geranium or begonia and want more, or you’d like to grow a rosebush just like the one in your neighbor’s yard, it’s time to start those plants from cuttings.

“Now is the perfect time to grow many plants from cuttings, because things are just starting to wake up,” says Chris Barnhill, nursery manager at the Fullerton Arboretum. “Right now at the arboretum we’re rooting a number of plants from cuttings, including salvias, fuchsias and succulents.”

Not only is propagating from cuttings cost effective, but it is also sometimes the only way to get certain plants that aren’t available from the nursery.

Growing plants from cuttings is generally easy. Although not every plant will root, you’ll be surprised at how many take and flourish.

Deciduous and evergreen shrubs and trees as well as many herbaceous and evergreen perennials can be propagated by cuttings.

Some easy-to-root plants include buddleia, chrysanthemum, geranium, fuchsia, hydrangea, ivies, impatiens, lantana, lavender, pentas, petunia, plumeria, pothos, rose, salvia, many succulents, plus many herbs, including mint.

Most cuttings are started from plant stems or leaves. There are three main types of stem cuttings: softwood, semi-hardwood and hardwood. Categories are based on the maturity of the plant parts.

Softwood cuttings are the easiest to root and good for beginners to try. They can be taken from spring until late summer and generally root the quickest. Leaf cuttings of certain plants--such as many succulents, African violets, sansevieria, begonia and cape primrose--also root fairly easily and can be done at this time of year.

Semi-hardwood and hardwood cuttings are generally best reserved for more advanced propagators.

Try tackling them once you’ve mastered softwood cuttings. Semi-hardwood cuttings should be taken after the active growing season, or after a growth flush, which is usually in late summer or early fall. Hardwood cuttings should be taken from fall to spring, during the plant’s dormant season.

Softwood Tips

To successfully gather and propagate softwood cuttings, keep the following tips in mind:

* When removing the cutting, take a piece of plant that is close to the ground and in the shade; these plant parts contain more growth hormone, because they’re trying harder to live. If plant parts in the shade aren’t possible, look for new tip growth, which is also high in growth hormone.

* Before planting, remove the lower leaves and any flowers or fruit so that the cutting can put all its energy into rooting.

* Fill a pot with a rooting medium that holds water yet drains well. A mix of half peat moss and half perlite works well, as does perlite or vermiculite alone. Slowly water the planting medium, mixing with your hands until it is moist but not soggy.

* Stick a pencil into the soil to create a hole for the cutting. Roots come from the leaf nodes--bumps left by a removed leaf--so it is important to insert the cutting with at least one leaf node under the soil. Two leaf nodes are better: That doubles the chances of rooting.

With longer cuttings that have several root nodes, you can lay the stem along the surface of the soil and sprinkle soil over the cutting. This method is preferred when possible because it puts the plant in contact with the soil while providing plenty of oxygen.

Before planting the cutting, follow package directions and dip the end in rooting hormone.

Leaf Technique

Leaves provide an additional method of propagating plants. Plantlets appear next to leaf cuttings. To successfully gather and plant leaf cuttings, keep the following in mind:

* Cut off strong, healthy leaves with a sharp knife that has been disinfected with a diluted bleach solution.

Some plants can be started from entire leaves, others from leaf sections. To propagate from entire leaves, cut leaves from the plant at the base of the stalk and then trim the leaf stalk to about 1 1/2 inches. Dip the stalk into rooting hormone and insert into the rooting medium near the rim of the pot at a 45-degree angle. Or slash the leaf veins and lay the leaf flat against the soil.

To propagate leaf segments, remove a healthy leaf from the plant and cut the whole leaf horizontally into strips about 1 inch wide; let them dry several hours. Dip the base of each cutting (the end nearest the stalk) into rooting hormone and insert the leaf piece into a planting medium. Gently firm the medium around the cutting with your fingers.

Water Loss

* The biggest enemy of propagation is loss of water through the remaining leaves. To minimize water loss, create an environment that keeps the leaves well-hydrated while the cutting creates roots. This is best provided by a high humidity terrarium-type environment.

Place the container in a plastic bag and seal it at the top, punching an air hole on the side, or, top off the pot with a plastic 1-gallon milk jug that has had its bottom cut out and the lid removed. Place the covered cutting under a tree or other structure or in a windowsill that gets bright, but not direct, light.

* Check the cutting periodically to make sure that it hasn’t dried out. If necessary, add a small amount of water, but don’t keep it overly wet, as it will rot.

Signs of Life

* Give the plant two to four weeks before expecting any signs of rooting. By that time, if the cutting hasn’t rotted away, it’s probably rooting or still has a chance to do so. Gently tug on the cutting. If it seems secure, roots are forming.

* Even though roots have started, it’s not time to transplant. Wait until you see white roots coming out of the bottom of the pot. Or pop the plant out of the container and examine the soil for a strong root system. If new foliage appears on the plant, it’s established and usually ready for transplanting.

* Before transplanting, gradually move the cutting to its final destination, which will prevent plant shock.

* Have patience. You’re starting from a small cutting, and if it does eventually take, it will need time to grow. Also, don’t expect 100% success. If half make it, that’s considered very good.

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Making the Cut

Plants can be propagated in a number of ways:

Softwood Cuttings (During spring and late summer)

Take softwood and semi-hardwood cuttings during the growing season; cut below a leaf, remove lower leaves, dip cut in rooting hormone, then plant. Maintain high humidity around cutting using a greenhouse.

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Hardwood Cuttings (During fall-to-spring dormant season)

Take hardwood cuttings at onset of dormant season; make cut below leaf bud, dip cut in rooting hormone. Bury outdoors in a trench or soil-filled box.

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Leaf Cuttings

Leaf cuttings will multiply many succulents, African violets, Sansevieria, begonia and other plants. With some, cut veins and lay leaf flat on soil; others will grow from part of a leaf inserted into the soil.

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Root Cuttings

Cut pencil- to finger-thick sections of roots, place on their sides and cover with soil, or insert upright in soil with tops just at soil surface. Moisten, cover with plastic and place in shade.

Source: Sunset Book of Gardening