Amateur Gardening – 21 May 2019

8 AMATEUR GARDENING11 MAY 2019

Takingshoot-tiporsoftwood

cuttingsis aneasywayto

createmoreplants

fromoneparent.

Takethemearly

in thedaywhen

theplantsare

firmwithwater.

Removethree-

four4in(10cm)

lengthsof healthy

newgrowthandstripoff

thelowestandlargetopleaves.

Dipthecutendsin rooting

compoundandinsertin individual

3in(7cm)potsof dampenedcuttings

compostandvermiculite/perlite.

Alternatively,setthecuttings

aroundtheedgeof a 4in(10cm)

potfilledwiththesamemix.

Sealin a plasticbagandplace

somewherelightandwarm.Remove

thebagwhenthecuttingsstartto

grow,whichindicates they have

developed roots.

Cuttings of tenderperennials

Ruthtakescuttingsandmoveslastyear’sintonewpots

W

HILEyourmaturetender

perennialsarehardening

off,readytomoveintothe

garden,youcantake

cuttingstocreatemoreplan

Shoot-tip(softwood)

cuttingsof pelargoniums

andpenstemonsareeasy

totake,andif theygrow

welltheymaybereadyto

plantoutbeforetheend

of summerforlatecolour.

If theyaren’tlarge

enough,oryourgardenis

exposedtoearlyfrosts,mov

themintolargerpotsandoverwinter

themundercoveruntilnextsummer.

Whentakingcuttings,usesharp,

cleanscissorsorsecateurstoremove

4in (10cm) of healthy new growth without

flowerbuds.Removeanylargeleaves.

Rootthecuttingsin dampenedseed

andcuttingcompostmixedwithperlite

orvermiculite.Thishelpsopenup

mpost,improving

tilationandmoisture

tentionaround

evelopingroots.

If youtookcuttingslast

autumn,theywillbeready

o moveintolargerpots

ow.Potthemonin multi-

rposeorJohnInnesNo

post,letthemgrowfora

ks,thenhardenthem

offandplantthemoutmid-summer.

Withtherightcareandconditions

theyshouldprovideyouwitha burstof

flowersslightlylaterthantheplantsthat

moved outside early in the summer.

Pottingonlastautumn’s

pelargoniumcuttingstomake

more plants for this year

Potting up last year’s pelargonium cuttings

1

Carefullyeasethe

cuttingsandtheir

compostoutofthepot,

makingsuretheplants

are not damaged.

Step

by step

Taking cuttings

Removelargerleavesfrom

the cuttings material

Ifoverwinteredperennials

developflowerbudswhile

undercover,pinchthem

outsoalltheirenergy

goesintoplantgrowth,

not blooming.

Usecompostmixed

with perlite

Healthycuttings

ready to move on

Create more plants with shoot tips

Penstemoncuttings

are easy to take

2

Gentlyteasetheroots

aparttoseparateeach

cutting.Checkthattheir

rootsandtopgrowth

are healthy.

3

Holdingthecuttingsby

theirfoliage,potthem

upin multipurposeorJohn

InnesNo2compost. Firm

them in.

4

Wateryournewplants

wellandletthemgrow

onforseveralweeksbefore

hardeningthemoffand

adding them to the garden.