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Where in the world is Randy Lemmon…
This Weekend?
Here’s your chance to talk to Randy one-on-one, or bring your plant and pest samples by for Randy to look at. These are the upcoming appearances scheduled for Randy at local nurseries, garden centers and special occasions.(Subject to change!) The Talkradio 950 KPRC Prize Wheel will be at each of these locations! Some come on out and get you free KPRC goodies and get your gardening questions answered in person.
SATURDAY APRIL 6--
Half Price Books, 2537 University (Corner of University & Kirby) 1 - 3 p.m. Half Pint Book Drive - Bring used kids books and I’ll give you one of my gardening books for free!
WEDNESDAY APRIL 10--
Wal-Mart Garden Center 3040 College Park (In the Woodlands) Noon - 2 p.m.
SATURDAY APRIL 13--
Nelson’s Water Garden & Nursery - Live GardenLine Broadcast 8 a.m. - Noon. 1502 Katy Ft. Bend County Rd. (Exit 742 off the Katy Fwy.) 1 mile to the North.
SATURDAY APRIL 27--
Lowe's Home Improvement (Amdro Appearance),1 - 3 p.m.
1000 Gulfgate Center Mall on I-45 at the 610 Loop
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Propagation
Made Easy
Randy's rules...
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Quite often I get calls on GardenLine on how to propagate specific
plants. As simple as I try to make it sound, it often gets
complicated sounding in the details. Whether it is with a new
acquaintance you’ve just made or someone you have known all
your life, exchanging cuttings especially if they are from rare or
hard to find plants, is one of the most rewarding ways to add new
and interesting plants to your garden. Whether it is a favorite rose
in the garden you are moving away from, or that wonderful passion
vine from our grandmother’s arbor, or that uniquely colored
bougainvillea that you can’t seem to find at the nurseries anymore,
they can all be successfully started from cuttings. So, I have put
together some interesting steps to make it rather simple for you to
produce all the new plants you want by rooting stem sections cut
from existing plants.
To bring it back to some basic concepts, and quite possibly give
you the mind set on how easy it truly can be, think abut the
Pothos ivy you see everywhere stuck in a glass of water and sitting
in a window sill producing roots like crazy. You see, while that is
one way to root cuttings, it is definitely not the most efficient,
especially when it comes to woodier plants. However, think again
how easy those roots produce in water without any other help.
Taking cuttings need to be broken into categories:
Semi-
hardwood; Softwood; Herbaceous
Semi-hardwood
Semi-hardwood cuttings are usually taken from woody, broad-
leaved evergreen plants, but this type of cutting can also be taken
from woody deciduous plants if it is done during the late summer or
fall on shoots which are partially matured, having just gone through
a flush of new growth. Hollies, camellias, roses, wisteria and other
similar platens are just a few varieties, which can be rooted from
semi-hardwood cuttings.
Softwood
Softwood cuttings are taken from the tender new growth of woody
deciduous or evergreen plants. Pyracanthas, coral bean, oleander,
Arabian jasmine, spirea, and passion vine are among the plants,
which can be rooted from softwood cuttings taken in the spring.
Softwood cuttings may root easier than semi-hardwood cuttings,
but being tenderer, they can sometimes require a bit of extra
attention during the rooting process.
Herbaceous
You can also take herbaceous cuttings from soft, tender plants like
begonias, coleus, chrysanthemums or one of the many
succulents. Herbaceous cuttings are rooted much like softwood
cuttings, although the cut ends of the herbaceous plants like cacti
and succulents which exude a stocky sap should be allowed to
harder over for a day or so before they are planted so diseases will
be less likely to develop there.
Whether you are taking herbaceous, softwood or semi-hardwood
cuttings, be sure they all come from healthy, vigorously growing
stock plants. Avoid cuttings from weak, or diseased specimens. It
is also a good idea to get permission from the owner if you spot a
special variety on someone else’s property that you just have to
get a cutting from. (Just thought I would warn you!)
As you are taking your cuttings, avoid using shoots from the outer-
most, tip end of any branch. While you do not want really old,
extremely woody stems, you also do not want the growing tips
either, as these areas of new growth are more likely to wilt quickly
once they are cut. As a rule of thumb, stems from the diameter of
a pencil are usually the best candidates for rooting. Make sure
each cutting has at least two or three leaves or leaflets on it (an
average cutting should be about 4 to 6 inches long) and that the
bottom cut on each piece is made just below the spot where a leaf
joins the stem. Making this bottom cut at an angle, rather than
straight across, can help you tell at planting time, which is the
bottom end (cuttings do sometimes get jumbled up, especially if
you are out collecting a variety of cuttings away from your garden.
The early morning is usually the best time to take cuttings, but
whatever the hour, be sure to keep the cuttings you have taken
wrapped in a moist paper cloth which is then kept in a plastic bag
until you can get them set in a rooting medium. Be sure to keep
all your cuttings shaded and cool after you collect them; a hot,
closed-up car parked in the sun can spell death for tender cuttings.
Once they are collected, cuttings can be rooted in a variety of
containers. If you have a greenhouse where moisture and humidity
levels can be closely controlled, flats are probably the easiest
containers to use. If you do not have access to a greenhouse, or if
you are only going to be rooting a few cuttings, large Styrofoam
cups or large coffee-cans can just as easily be used. Just be sure
to carefully punch a few drainage holes into the bottom of these
containers before using them so your cuttings will not become
waterlogged.
While there are just about as many formulations for rooting
mediums, as there are gardeners, a 50-50 mix of perlite and peat
moss seems to get the job done dependably. Using fresh
materials each time you root cuttings can help to limit diseases,
which can kill your cutting before they, root. Other growing media,
which can be used, include sand, vermiculite, sterile potting soil or
a combination thereof. If reusing old flats, it is also a good idea to
first rinse out each one with a diluted bleach and water solution to
kill any disease causing organisms.
Fill each well-drained container with the sterile potting medium, and
then water thoroughly. Be sure the peat moss is well soaked—it
can be hard to moisten the first time it is watered. For further
protection from fungal diseases, and to encourage better rooting,
be sure to dip the bottom end of each cutting in both a fungicide
and a rooting hormone powder prior to setting it in the rooting
medium. For best results, slightly moisten the bottom end of each
cutting, and then dip in a small container of powdered fungicide
mixed with an equal amount of powdered rooting hormone. Look
for this rooting hormone in garden centers—the type containing the
indolebutyric acid usually works the best on the widest variety of
plants. Some rooting hormones are available already mixed with a
fungicide, making their use even easier.
Next, take an old pencil or small dowel and make one hole for each
of the cuttings in the containers or flats. Make the holes deep
enough so that the top half of each cutting will be left sticking out
of the growing
medium. Gently set each cutting into its planting hole, taking care not to
rub off the fungicide/rooting hormone powder. Firm the rooting medium
around each cutting, then water gently once each container is filled with
cuttings. Large Styrofoam cups and one pound coffee cans can usually
hold only one cutting per container but larger cans or containers will
hold more.
If you are not rooting your cuttings in a greenhouse equipped with an
intermittent misting apparatus, cover the top of each container with a
plastic bag, plastic soda bottle (2 liter or better) or glass. Be sure to
secure this “make-shift greenhouse” securely around each container so
the moisture and humidity so crucial to rooting will be trapped inside the
container. Large rubber bands are good for attaching large plastic bags
to cups or coffee cans. Inserting several straws around the edge of each
container prior to covering it with a bag will help to keep the plastic up
off the cutting as it is rooting.
Set your tiny “greenhouses” in a warm, bright spot, but be sure there are
out of direct sunlight. Twice a week, carefully remove the plastic and
check the potting medium to be sure it is still moist. If it feels like it is
drying out, be sure to soak it gently, taking care not to disturb the
cuttings. This is also a good time to remove any leaves which may have
yellowed or fallen off. Do not leave the plastic off any longer than you
have to, as it is important to keep the cuttings from wilting as they are
trying to root.
Once you have replaced the plastic as it was before, all there is left to do
is keep checking your cuttings on a regular basis and then wait. Some
plants root fairly quickly, sending out a few new leaves in just a couple
of weeks. Others may take several months to root. Thus, a large dose of
patience is in order. After your cuttings have put on new leaves, they no
longer need the plastic or glass “greenhouse” effect. However, it is still
important to leave the containers out of bright light and to make sure
they are watered on a regular basis until you new plants are well-
established and growing strongly, at which time they may be carefully
transplanted into larger containers for further development.
Until next week, here's to
Great Gardening from the GardenLine, heard
exclusively weekend mornings from 8 to noon
on Talkradio 950 KPRC.
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