Stem Cutting To Propagate New Plant
Gardening professionals often employ many methods for cutting to propagate new plants to grow. We will discuss the most commonly used methods here. Cutting stems and leafs, will allow you to increase your plant stock and it serves two purposes. Besides the more obvious one of giving you new plant growth, cuttings can also be a useful way to trim back an overgrown plants and bring it back under control.
The equipment needed can most often be found right at home. Pots of all different sizes are a necessity, so is a sharp knife or razor blade. A tamper and dibble can be useful but are not always essential.
The rules are the same and apply to setting cuttings from starting a seedling. The best mixture to use is vermiculite, there again, potting soil can also be used once the process has begun.
The same way as with seeds, the time needed for cuttings to grow and get new roots varies with both the type of plant and cutting. The smallest amount of time for roots to sprout, even with fast rooting plants, is about three weeks. Other types of plants may take a bit longer.
You can make a stem cutting by simply slicing off a piece of stem, you need roughly four to five inches in length, and make a diagonal cut directly below the leaf node. If your plant you are taking the cutting from is overgrown you can take several cuttings from it. The slips are another name for the cuttings, need to be made with a sharp knife or a razor. Do not use a scissor because you can crush the stem of the plant because if you bruise the fibers, you will cause them to rot. If there are any buds or lots of leaves on the slip, they will need to be cut off because they will slow down the growth process of the roots.
You should fill however many pots you will need with the starting mixture and with a pencil you can make a hole for each slip you want to plant. Placing the slip in the hole, then you need to press the soil down around the stem. The slips should not be forced into the soil, because this will cause them to bruise and rot. You need to be sure that the end of the slip is at the bottom of the hole and is in contact with the mix or it wont grow. Once they are planted, they need a complete soaking and this can be done from either below or above. The slips will need to be covered with a inverted glass jar, as shown.
It is necessary to do this to contain all the moisture for the plant to root. If you are using a terrarium or fishbowl, you have to drill holes and can save time of having to handle so many different pots. You can set out many different cuttings in one of these big containers.
Once the slips have been placed, put the containers in a spot out of direct sunlight and keep the soil moisturized. When the roots have formed, an are an inch or two long, you can then move them to separate pots with a mixture of common potting soil. As shown above, this stage will begin with 3-8 weeks from the time the slips have been cut, depending upon what type of plant it is.
Patience is required and will pay off when you do not need to dig them up to check on the progress of the roots, which may result in injury. How to propagate native plants from cuttings once the slips have been set out for about 3-4 weeks? You need to hold the stem at the base of your thumb and forefinger and tug it gently. If it comes loose easily, its fine, if not you need to dig up the roots and check them out. The roots should grow at about the same rate as the other ones that were cut at the same time, you can use this process to judge the progress of the entire group by checking just one plant as you propagate plants. Though you need to make sure you cuttings have needed moisture, if they are properly covered and cared for, they will probably not have the need to be watered very often.
It is probably a good idea to check them out once or twice a week and at that same time, give them a short airing out. When the time comes to transplant the slips, remove the covers and transplant the new plants and give them a good watering. The plants need to be kept in a light and sunshiny location. There is no definite season during which its best to do cuttings, but anytime from late February through August is best for most plants. Of the more popular plants, impatients, ivy, geraniums or philodendrons work best for this type of propagation.
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