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The West Dorset Magazine, April 8, 2022
Gardening
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Horticulture...
...with botanist Dr Dave Aplin
Born and bred in West Dorset, Dave has worked in horticulture and botany locally and internationally, notably in Belgium, Jordan and the UAE. He brings a wealth of practical knowledge with its underlying principles to his writing
Try taking cuttings – I’m rooting for you! One of my favorite gardening activities is taking cuttings. The art of producing an entirely separate plant from a shoot severed from another by tempting root growth is magical. I first became fascinated as a child, propagating exhibition dahlia cuttings with dad, and dispatching them rooted across the country. If you have never attempted to take cuttings, then why not give it a go, it’s child’s play! Propagation allows you to increase numbers of some of your favourite plants or save money by purchasing half the number you need and doubling them within weeks. April is a perfect month for taking softwood cuttings. Softwood refers to young, flexible growth often only a few weeks old. This type of shoot has actively dividing cells that allow plants to readily produce roots when treated in an appropriate way. The success rate is normally high, but this rather depends on the plant in question and the technique adopted. The prerequisite though is the plant must produce leafbearing stems so those forming rosettes that sit tight to the ground such as primulas, spider plants, most ferns and grasses are propagated by different methods. This leaves a vast array of plants that lend themselves perfectly to being multiplied from softwood cuttings. These include most
Small cuttings maximise space in the propagator. Here are 16 rooted chrysanthemum cuttings
houseplants, bedding plants, herbaceous perennials, climbers, shrubs, wildflowers and even some trees. The procedure is straightforward. Look for healthy, sturdy growth that is typical of the plant you are propagating. Using a sharp knife, remove the shoot from the parent plant just above a leaf joint. Trim the severed shoot just below a set of leaves and carefully remove them. You want to achieve a cutting between 3 and 10cm in length. I prefer cuttings on the small side, often smaller than gardening books describe, because I think they root quicker, and it allows you to pack more cuttings into the same sized space. If your chosen plant has large leaves then reduce their size using a sharp knife. The art of successful propagation is to create conditions for the cutting to
A dahlia cutting ready to be taken
survive and root as quickly as possible because the severed shoot is extremely vulnerable, especially to drying out. The base of the cutting needs to be warm, damp and aerated, achieve this and cell division and subsequently root growth is maximised. Choose a peat-free cutting compost or make your own mixture combining a 50:50 mix of sharp sand and coir. Carefully place the cuttings into the compost, gently firm, water in and allow them to drain. The cuttings are then best placed into a heated propagator (at this time of year) because it provides gentle warmth stimulating cell division and root growth. Propagators come in all sizes and budgets or can be homemade using horticultural heat mats or soil warming cables. Importantly,
most cuttings need humid conditions that reduces loss of water until rooted. Rooting times vary, if you root tomatoes then you will have plants in under a week, but two to three weeks is typical for other plants, although some shrubs take longer. Some might notice I have yet to mention rooting hormone, often applied to the base of cuttings. This product comes in powder, gel or liquid form. It contains tiny amounts of a synthetic rooting chemical and fungicide that stimulate roots and reduces fungal infection. They can be very helpful, especially for cuttings that are a bit more stubborn, I don’t always use it because the vital factor for success is achieving the right environment.
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