‘Black Dragon’ cryptomeria (Cryptomeria japonica, USDA zones 6-9) is a beautiful evergreen tree for the garden. The foliage is a dark green with some twisting shapes that create an unusually contorted figure. It’s an amazing evergreen specimen for Japanese gardens or as focal points. This past spring I took some cuttings of our cryptomeria and this winter I found that they had finally rooted. Here is how I propagated our ‘Black Dragon’ Cryptomeria.
Rooting ‘Black Dragon’ Cryptomeria from Cuttings
In spring I made several cryptomeria cuttings about 3 inches long. I want to experiment with the length of the cutting in the future and see if longer cuttings may root faster. Then I placed the cuttings in a sand medium and put all of them under the shade of a tree. The shade slowed the transpiration of water and kept the cuttings from drying out too quickly.
Loss of water is one of the primary reasons for a cutting to fail.
I watered the cryptomeria whenever I watered my other cuttings with a light spray and checked on them periodically. Throughout the summer no roots formed. Several of the cuttings failed and then in January I checked this cutting and it had roots.
Since the root that formed is rather small I carefully put the cutting back into the sand mixture to let it form more roots. I’ll check it again in spring then pot it up. I’ll leave the other remaining cuttings alone until that point and hopefully have several cryptomeria cuttings to pot up at the same time.
Cryptomeria grows to about 10 feet tall and wide at maturity and prefers a full sun location.
You can see a little more of this cutting in the video below. I’ve cued it to the section on Cryptomeria.
Are you interested in learning more about plant propagation? Here are some past posts that may be interesting to you!
Layering a Viburnum, The Results!
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Asiatic Lily Propagation with Bulbils
Perhaps one of the easiest methods of plant propagation is through bulbils. Bulbils are simply baby plants produced along aerial stem of a plant. Lilies are well known for producing bubils and you can take advantage of this natural plant ability to create more lilies for your garden. Not all…
How to Propagate Plum Trees from Hardwood Cuttings
Last year my plum tree was the victim of a savage deer rubbing attack. The bark was stripped all the way around the trunk leaving no possibility of water passing toward the top of the tree through the cambium layer. It was frustrating to say the least. Two varieties of…
How to Propagate Grape Vines through Greenwood Cuttings
Last week I made some cuttings of my ‘Concord’ grape vine in an attempt to make a few more vines. Grapes are great edible plants to have in the garden whether you like eating them at the table, making juice, or even making wine. Grapes enjoy a full sun location….
How to Propagate a Deciduous Magnolia Through Layering
Layering is a fantastic way to make more free plants with very little risk. Propagating a plant through layering usually involves pinning down a branch to make contact with the soil so that the branch can begin forming roots. I’ve used layering to propagate more difficult to root plants like…
Plant By Plant Guide of How to Propagate Plants
Here is a little guide on various plants that you can propagate in your home garden. I’ve included the types of propagation where I’ve been successful (seeds, Layering, Division, Cuttings, etc.). If I can do it so can you! The links in the tables below will take you to posts…
