Taking cuttings from shrubs and transplanting them into new pots of dirt might just work or not!
The thing is, I was asked to lop off the tops of the high shrubs that run along the front room window.
So, I figured, after lopping off a considerable amount and allowing a full view outside from the window, I took only one of those tops and poked it into a pot of dirt and watered it well.
Now, I don't know if that top will grow or die, but it's worth a try.
I managed to do this before with my cast iron plant. I now have managed also to plant a seed pod from it and it also took root and a leaf came up. It did take several weeks to germinate before coming up with it's first leaf. I find it interesting that certain plants can be topped off and then that top put in a pot of dirt, watered and over time either takes root or dies in a few days.
If I can get this to work, I have a place in the back yard I want to start some cuttings growing before cold weather. But in the process of topping or lopping off some of the bush in the front of the house, I realize I need to get some window spackling and do some puttying of that front room window and give it some paint to prevent the old window from exposure to the elements when things go from hot to cooler weather sometime in October.
Image Credit » https://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2016/03/31/15/31/bush-1293374_960_720.png
Comments
MegL wrote on August 4, 2018, 5:26 AM
This is the best time of year to take cuttings to grow new plants. The best cuttings are green growth (not woody) and broken off at a node, ie where a twig joins the main stem. You can get hormone rooting powder to encourage rooting. It also helps if you put a plastic bag over the pot to stop the cutting losing too much water before it grows roots for uptake. Keep the plastic bag tied on with an elastic band around the rim of the pot, making a miniature greenhouse and keep out of direct sunlight.
VinceSummers wrote on August 4, 2018, 7:27 AM
I have a theory that if we try to root a plant, say in water, and we immerse the tip of the stem in water in a vessel, then encase the whole works in a plastic bag, not in the sun, some plants not inclined to root "in time" ordinarily, might root this way.
MegL wrote on August 4, 2018, 12:59 PM
Yes, the water keeps it alive, the plastic bag stops it wilting. When plants are cut, the hormones coming from the leaves change. If you can keep them alive long enough, those hormones encourage root growth.
lookatdesktop wrote on August 4, 2018, 6:47 PM
I'll give it a try. Thanks.
lookatdesktop wrote on August 4, 2018, 6:49 PM
Okay, thank you for the good tips.
VinceSummers wrote on August 4, 2018, 7:40 PM
It's weird, but I didn't see your comment before mine, yet yours has the early time-stamp! Great (or should it be grate?) minds think alike.
MegL wrote on August 5, 2018, 1:32 AM
That happens to me too. I think it's deliberate on the part of the software, to encourage more interaction.