Easy cuttings – Gardening tips for May

I don’t think there is another month when a keen gardener is busier than in May! I can’t walk along the garden path without finding at least three more jobs to do.  I’m loving all the busy-ness as well, of course, including making free plants, re-potting some shrubs and tending to the summer bedding beauties……….

Easy softwood cuttings

Even with all the tempting offers around in garden centres and online, you must be aware of the rising cost of buying plants. Shrubs, perennials, bedding plants……they have all jumped in price in the last two or three years.  There is a way to reduce the dosh you fork out for them – you just need to be prepared to work a bit for it.  

At this time of year, plants of all kinds are throwing out fresh shoots, and these are perfect for snipping off and turning into cuttings which will give you free plants. Here are just a few of the plants you could take cuttings of right now: Penstemon, rosemary, lavender, perennial wallflowers, Buddleia, Fuchsia, Hydrangea, Aubrieta, Argyranthemum, Verbena, Anthemis, Pelargonium, Petunia, Osteospermum, Coleus (Solenostemum), Lavatera, Euonymus, Sambucus….. honestly is a very long list, and it’s worth trying just about anything. 

Buy one plant, or one tray of bedding, take cuttings from it – and end up with more for nothing!

Softwood cuttings are taken in early summer, and if you obey a few simple rules, they have the best chance of growing of any type of cutting.

You need fresh soft growth, and, especially given some of the heat we’ve been experiencing recently, go out early in the morning to collect your material while the shoots are still full of moisture.  If  you already own the parent plant and it is rather old, one trick to get some young fresh growth, is to give it a severe prune – that usually makes a plant stir its stumps and throw up some new shoots just right for this process – you’ll just have to wait a bit longer before you take your cuttings.

You’re after shoots about 10 cm (4”) long, preferably non-flowering ones (if they have got flower-buds on, nip them out with your thumb and forefinger – you want your cutting to concentrate on making roots not flowers). Try to cut just above a leaf-bud on the parent plant.

They must STAY full of water, so put them straight into a plastic bag. The quicker you deal with them, the better.

Tidy up your cutting by taking off all but the topmost leaves using a sharp knife. Also pinch out or cut the topmost soft tip.

Fill a pot with peat-free compost and make a hole with a pencil first if they are too soft to push in.  I push in 3-5 round the side of a small pot.  Water the pot, and put it in the plastic bag, fastened with a rubber band (or put the pot in an unheated propagator if you have one). Take off the plastic bag twice a week for a few minutes to give the cuttings some ventilation, and wipe away condensation, or turn the bag inside out before you put it back over the pot.

Put the pots of cuttings in a warm place but not blazing sunshine. High humidity is what you’re aiming for – your little plant pieces need to feel sufficiently pampered in a sauna to start making roots before they lose all their water and shrivel. If you think it’s too sunny, put some horticultural fleece over the top which sort of diffuses the light.  Most will root within a few weeks – hey presto! Lots of new plants to keep or give away, that cost you zilch.

One more thing: there is a group of herbaceous plants who have lots of new shoots coming from the base in spring – Salvia, Delphiniums, Lupins, Phlox, Asters, Chrysanthemums, etc. With these, you can increase your chances of success hugely by cutting 10 cm shoots right at the bottom with a titchy bit of the woody base attached and then treating the cuttings in just the same way as above.

PLEASE don’t think you can’t do this – even if you’re new to gardening, have never taken cuttings before or only have a tiny space.  It will save you a load of money, and the satisfaction of growing your own plants is immense. If you want to see a demonstration of what to do, just click on the link at the bottom and watch Laura and me showing how easy it is. 

Re-potting shrubs

This can be a good time to repot shrubs that you grow in pots which is a job that ought ideally to be done every 2-3 years. 

Go for one size up from the previous pot, allowing a couple of inches all the way round the plant. Fill the base of the pot with a fresh compost-mix suitable for the shrub – remember that acid-lovers like Pieris or Azalea will need an ericaceous compost.  

Ease the shrub out of its present pot – a container root and transplanting tool is really useful for this, especially if your plant has become constricted and root-bound – we have an excellent one in our online shop which has become one of our bestsellers.  Gently tease out any roots that are going round and round so that they will be ready to explore the soil in their new environment.

Place your shrub in the centre of the new pot so that the top of the rootball is just below the top rim of the pot and press more compost down around it to squeeze out air pockets – you want the roots to have good contact with the soil.

Water the pot thoroughly and leave it in a shaded place for a few days for the plant to get settled in its new home.

Gardening shorts

• With all the outside activity now, it’s easy to neglect houseplants.  These can gather dust like any other indoor surface, and this can affect their ability to grow well.  Wipe the leaves gently with a soft cloth while supporting the leaf or branch from underneath with your other palm. Use water or one of the many specialist wipes available these days which will also impart some shine. It’s a good way of checking that no little pests have snuck their way in too.

• I have been thrilled with the white cyclamen that I bought at Christmas to enhance a festive plant display in our frost-free porch. Look at this week’s feature pic – they haven’t even finished flowering after five months! But it’s time now to give them a rest – I’ll dry out the corms by leaving the pots outside on their sides in a shady place, and then start watering them again in August.

• Pinch out the tops of your half-hardy summer plants – Cosmos, tagetes etc. etc. – you will enjoy bushier, stronger plants with more flowers.

• For a healthy green lawn, water in some high-Nitrogen feed now.

• Keep heaping earth around the foliage and stems of the potato plants as they grow – it increases the chances of a bumper crop of spuds.

• If you are potting on or even planting out tomatoes, remember to plant them 1-2 inches deeper than they were before – it encourages them to make more roots from the section of buried stem and stronger roots will give you a better plant with a greater fruit yield.

There are hebes, and then there is THIS lovely Hebe! Find out why it was a must-have for Louise, and maybe should be for you as well……

Here is the fantastically handy container root and transplanting tool that I mentioned in this week’s blog. It will make any re-potting tasks so much easier:

Find out a bit more about How to take softwood cuttings by clicking on this short video that we made.

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We are finishing our run of grow-your-own with a look at how to grow herbs. It’s so much nicer to have your own fresh herbs to use in the kitchen. Many of them are a doddle to grow so do have a go!