Taking plant cuttings

It is almost my favourite time of the year. I just love autumn. The deciduous trees colour up before losing their leaves. The days are still warm but the nights start to get colder, but best of all, its the best time to take cuttings. From late February until early May, semi-hardwood cuttings (Northern Hemisphere) strike the best. The best material for taking cuttings, has high carbohydrate levels and low nitrogen levels. To test this, use the snap test. If the piece of stem cutting snaps when you bend it rather than just bend, then it has low nitrogen levels and would have made a good piece of cutting wood until you just broke it. (she laughs)

The next selection criterion is the age of the stock plant. Cuttings form roots much quicker when the material is taken from a young plant. Cuttings taken from older plants do not form roots as readily. The area on the stock plant where the cutting is taken from is also important. As a general rule, lateral growth (side shoots) is better than terminal growth (shoot tips). The lateral growth can often be removed with a heel. This provides a larger surface area for roots to develop from. The size of the cutting will depend on the individual plant and how far apart the nodes are along the stem. For small plants whose nodes are close together, a typical cutting would be 35mm to 60mm. Larger plants may need the cutting length to be 60mm to 80mm. But if you are taking cuttings from a plant like the Tree Dahlia well, the nodes can be as much as 40mm or 50mm apart, so the cuttings will be quite long.

Non flowering material is best. If the plant has not quite finished flowering wait for it to finish. If it is just starting to flower, forget about taking cuttings until flowering has stopped. The time of year that you would take a cutting, is specific to each species of plant. Try a few cuttings throughout the seasons and see which works the best. Time of day can also be important. Cuttings should be taken in the shade or on a cool day, not in the heat of a warm afternoon. Make sure your secateurs or cutting implement is sharp and clean. Hygiene is important in the propagation area. If you cannot deal with the cuttings immediately and need to store them for a while; wrap the cuttings in damp newspaper rather than leaving them in a plastic bag. Root promoting hormones can be applied to the end of the cutting if you are not certified organic. The most common are IBA (indolbutyric acid), IAA (indoleacetic acid) and NAA (napthaleneacetic acid). These root promoting hormones can be purchased as a liquid, gel or powder. If you are a bit clumsy, use the gel. Local rose growers tell me they have great success with rose cuttings after soaking them in a bucket containing a solution of water and Willow twigs and leaves. The environmental conditions where the cuttings are housed, is also important. Moisture levels and humidity levels need to be correct for the species being propagated. Temperature is also important and for most plants grown in warm temperate regions, the day temperature should be around 21C to 27C and the night temperature between 15C and 18C for best results. If you can provide bottom heat near the base of your cuttings and ensure that the difference in temperature between the root zone and the air near the top of the cutting is around 10C, then you will surely have success. One last thing make sure you put the cutting in the pot, the right way up.