Thursday, April 18, 2013

An Attempt At Propagation



The science of plant propagation has always intrigued me - and intimidated me. So, this spring, I thought I would start with two plants that people have told me to 'just take a cutting and stick it in the ground.'

The above photo is a forsythia cutting - I cut it below the node, scraped a bit of the bark off with a knife, dipped it in rooting hormone and put it in compost-rich soil. I will also put a cloche over it - like a mini-greenhouse.

My other cutting is elderberry. There is a video on YouTube of someone over in England showing his accidental rooting of 87 elderberry plants - as he used bare branches from an elderberry tree as pea trellises. If I have that type of haphazard luck, I will be thrilled.

If I have any success with these two - I have two more items on my wishlist. The first is a fragrant, vintage rose from my brother's old Charlottesville city/farmhouse. The other is a pale pink flowering quince from down the road - which I may need to visit under the cover of dark. I have read of people that really get into collecting plants and haunt old cemeteries and abandoned properties in hot pursuit of the ultimate cutting collections. I can see that happening with me very easily. It is all about living on the edge, I tell you!

Here's a great article on propagating roses with a mason jar.

3 comments:

Becky said...

We have a dear friend who tends to wander through the neighborhood when he comes to visit and always leaves with a few buckets of plants he's acquired from his strolls. He's even been known to plant some things in our yard when we weren't looking....
By the same token, if you are in his yard and admire something, chances are you will leave with a cutting of it with instructions on how to make it grow in your own garden.

Ryan said...

I have a pink flowering quince - you are welcome to cuttings from it!

Edwin said...

Great idea.. Can't wait for the forsythia cutting to fully bloom.