Isn’t it great to have a few easy to propagate plants that you can grow to increase your garden? The plants in the video below are all easy to grow from cuttings. Salvia, catmint, creeping phlox, monarda, and lemon balm.
General Propagation Procedures for These Plants (and Many others)
Before you Start Taking Cuttings
As with all cuttings clean your pruners before taking cuttings to prevent disease issues from transferring to your new cuttings. I put rubbing alcohol on the blade with a cotton ball to disinfect the pruners then dry them off thoroughly.
Preparing the Cuttings
Take a cutting that is anywhere from 2-6 inches long and remove the lower leaves. Pinch the stem tip of any tip cuttings. This forces the plant to push energy toward root making rather than flowering or growing. It’s the apical bud. By removing it you signal to the other buds to begin growing. That can help with root formation.
Stick the Cuttings
Dip the cut end in rooting hormone, and plant it in a medium. (These plants don’t require rooting hormone to root but it can speed things along) In the video below I used shaved pine bark (soil conditioner) for the soil medium. You can use potting soil, peat, peat/sand, peat/vermiculite, or peat/perlite. Keep the container out of direct sunlight, and keep the soil moist. Spritzing the leaves with a mist setting on the garden hose can be helpful to reduce water loss especially on hot days!
Salvia, catmint, phlox, monarda, and lemon balm should all root in about 2 weeks. As long as the cuttings are still alive there is a good chance for rooting.
Useful in plant Propagation
I’ve used some Amazon Affiliate Links below but I’ve used all of these products successfully and frequently. My Propagating Plants book is an earlier version.
More Propagation Information from Growing the Home Garden
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