Here is a list of topics about propagating plants for your home landscape that I’ve written about here on Growing The Home Garden. The first four posts have some important information on propagating plants while the individual plant posts offer information about propagating the plant in question as well as my own experiences with them. Enjoy!
Plant Propagation Techniques
What is Plant Propagation?
Plant propagation has to be my favorite subject! Plant propagation is one of the most inexpensive ways to make more plants and expand your gardens. There are several methods of propagating plants and three of the most common ways are through through division, through layering, and through cuttings. Each of these methods has a few advantages that are worth looking at. Some of these methods will work for some plants but may not be effective for others. Here is a short summary of these methods.
Plant Propagation Method: Division
Dividing plants is a very good method of propagation for many clump forming species of plants. Hostas, heucheras, daylilies, ornamental grasses, and many other perennials will not only tolerate but sometimes need to be divided. It is better to divide most plants in the spring when they are actively growing and the roots can take some abuse but some will successfully divide in the fall. You don’t have to divide plants until they have developed a dead hole toward the center, but if you would like more plants faster, divide away!
Plant Propagation Method: Layering
Layering is a safe strategy for many plants. It involves burying a length of a low growing stem underneath the soil until it develops roots. Then the gardener can sever the new plant from the mother plant and plant somewhere else in the garden. To speed up the process the stem can be wounded and applied with rooting hormone but many plants naturally layer by themselves. Viburnums, forsythias, and azaleas are good candidates for layering along with many other shrubs. This is a safe method of propagation since the stem remains attached to the main plant until roots are formed. There is very little risk involved for the cuttings. The biggest disadvantage is that you can’t make as many plants as you can with cuttings.
Plant Propagation Method: Cuttings
This is probably the area I have the most fun experimenting with in my garden. There are several different types of cuttings you can take from stem tips to basal root cuttings. Some plants take to cuttings readily while others can be a difficult challenge. Most perennials will easily work with stem tip cuttings or basal stem cuttings. Trees and shrubs can be more difficult, but if the plant creates suckers there may be good rooting material. My favorite shrub for propagating through cuttings is the red twig dogwood. I’ve found that they work best as hardwood cuttings done over winter. Salvias, verbena, Russian sage, catmint and many other perennials work well as stem tip cuttings.
More Information on Plant Propagation for Home Gardens
The links below will give you some solid information about the process and procedures for propagating plants.
- Propagating Plants: The Basics of Cuttings
- Plant Propagation through Hardwood Cuttings
- 10 Easy Plants to Propagate for Your Home Garden
- What in the World are Plant Patents?
- Division: Divide and Conquer!
- Layering
- Building a Plant Holding Bed
Propagating Shrubs and Trees
The links below will give you specifics from my experience on how I’ve propagated various plants. Many of the techniques cross over to other plants.
- Birch Tree (Betula nigra) from cuttings
- Caryopteris (Blue Mist Shrub)
- Crape Myrtle Propagation by Cuttings
- Red Twig Dogwood
- Beautyberry from Cuttings
- Deciduous Magnolia through layering (‘Jane’ magnolia)
- Dwarf English Laurel
- Pyracanthus augustifolia (Firethorn)
- Ninebark Propagation from Cuttings
- Japanese Dappled Willow (Salix integra) Cuttings Water Method
- Butterfly Bush Cuttings Making Progress
- Butterfly Bush Propagation Progress Update (Progress report on Butterfly Bush Cuttings)
- Grape Vines from Greenwood Cuttings
- Holly Cuttings
- Hydrangeas: Variegated (macrophylla), Update
- Hydrangeas: Oak Leaf (Hydrangea quercifolia)
- Hydrangeas: More on Oak Leaf Hydrangea
- Burning Bush (Euonymous alata)
- Purple Leaf Plum Propagation
- Densiformis Yew
- Leyland Cypress
- Viburnum Cuttings
- Viburnum, Arrowwood (Viburnum dentatum)
Propagating Perennials and Annuals
- Russian Sage Cuttings (Plant Propagation Update)
- Achillea millifolium
- Coleus Cuttings
- Catmint Cuttings (Nepeta faassinii)
- Propagating: Russian Sage, Salvia, and Coneflower
- Asiatic Lily Propagation
- Artemsia ‘Powis Castle’
- Persian Shield (Strobinlanthus dyerianus)
- Salvia
- Husker’s Red Penstemon Propagation
Rooting Leaf Cuttings of Sedums
Every now and then there is a plant that will root from the leaves, like Asiatic lilies I wrote about earlier in the year. Sedums are another one of those kinds of plants. Recently I rooted several cuttings of ‘Autumn Joy’ sedum and another sedum…
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…
Plant Propagation Bench for Seedlings and Cuttings
I’ll continue with the Seed Starting 101 Series tomorrow but I thought I would use today’s post to share with you a related project. Recently I purchased a seedling heatmat that I’ve been testing in the garage to see how seedlings will grow out there. …
How to Root and Grow Russian Sage from Cuttings (Plant Propagation)
I’ve propagated many plants over the years and one of my favorite plants to propagate is Russian sage. Yesterday I was able to transplant several Russian sage cuttings (Perovskia atriplicifolia*) into pots to grow for a little while until I can plant them in the…
How to Propagate Ninebark (Physocarpus opulifolius)
Ninebark (Physocarpus) is a beautiful garden shrub that grows up to around 10 ft tall in the right location. Many varieties of ninebark have been developed for gardeners including ‘Diabolo’™/’Diablo’™ and ‘Coppertina’™ and can be a great addition to add a nice copper color to…
Crape Myrtle Propagation by Cuttings
One of the great flowering summer trees of the south is the crape myrtle (Lagerstroemia indica). They typically grow well in zones 6-9 (Tennessee generally falls in the zone 6 area with a few areas in the 7). One of the growing traits of a…
Growing a Beautiful Japanese Dappled Willow (Salix integra) in the Garden
Several weeks ago I wrote a post about one of my favorite shrubs, the Japanese Dappled Willow ‘Hakuro Nishiki’ (Salix integra). It’s a fast growing variegated willow that works well as a privacy screen and is hardy in zones 4-9. It’s deciduous so it will…
How to Grow Buckeye from Seed (Aesculus pavia)
A couple years ago I bought a fantastic native plant at a local native plant nursery. It was a red buckeye (Aesculus pavia) and is great for attracting everyone’s favorite tiny garden visitor, the hummingbird. The flower clusters are red (you probably expected that from…
How to Propagate Asiatic Lilies From Leaves
Asiatic lilies are a plant that in the right conditions can develop roots from leaf cuttings. Not all plants work this way but some lilies develop bulbils from the leaf area. This technique below uses that trait to help stimulate root growth from the ends…
How to Make a Simple DIY Home Plant Propagation System
Making your own plant propagation chamber is not a difficult task at all. For the home gardener who is only doing a few cuttings at a time propagate plants for friends and family a plant propagation chamber can be a VERY simple project. In fact…