How to Take Shrub Cuttings & Plant Them

Shrubs such as lilac can be easily grown from cuttings.

With a few basic supplies and some practice, you can learning how to grow shrubs by taking cuttings from your home garden. Choosing deciduous shrubs that grow easily from cuttings is the first step. Popular varieties that propagate well with this method include deciduous azaleas, magnolia, lilac, forsythia and hydrangeas. According to veteran nursery grower Susan Grillo, the best time to take cuttings is early in the day in June and July, when the shrubs have plenty of new growth.

Things You'll Need

• Knife
• Plastic bowl
• Paper towel
• Six-cell planting tray
• Soilless potting mix
• Perlite
• Rooting compound
• Scissors
• Small wooden stakes
• Large sealable plastic bag

Instructions

1. Select your shrub and find a good stem by bending one of the shoots. If the shoot snaps with a popping sound, it is in the softwood stage of growth, perfect for cuttings. Green stems will bend without breaking and are too soft. Older, woody stems will be rigid and hard to break and should not be used for cuttings either.

2. Count the leaves back from the tip, and cut the stem 1 inch below the second leaf node. Place the cutting into the plastic bowl lined with a damp paper towel. Keep the bowl cool and out of the sunlight. The ideal cutting should be about 4 inches long. Take six cuttings for your planting tray.

3. Prepare the planting tray by filling the cells with a potting mixture containing 60 percent perlite and 40 percent soilless mix. Add just enough water to moisten the potting mix.

4. Cut away the lower leaves of the cutting to expose the stem at the node, and lightly peel away some of the bark at the base. Dip the cutting into the rooting compound so that it covers the exposed stem at the node and the base. The rooting compound contains plant hormones that stimulate root growth. Tap the cutting gently to remove any excess compound. Insert the cutting into the potting mix. Cut the remaining leaves in half with the scissors. Repeat the process with the other cuttings.

5. Place wooden stakes in the outside corners of the planting tray and add water to the tray. The stakes should be about 6 inches high. Place the tray inside the large plastic bag and seal. The stakes will hold up the top of the bag to create a tiny greenhouse for your cuttings. Put the bag in a cool place in the garden that receives filtered sunlight.

6. Wait four weeks and check the bottom of the tray for emerging root hairs. Transfer any cuttings that have rooted to 6-inch pots filled with a mix of potting soil and 20 percent perlite. Place the pots in a sunny location, and water from the bottom to keep the potting mix moist. If there are no signs of root hairs by the fourth week, keep checking the tray weekly until the cuttings have taken root.

Tips & Warnings

• If you want to plant more cuttings at once, make a wire frame to fit over a larger tray and cover with clear plastic cling wrap.

References

• Fine Gardening: Propagate Your Shrubs from Softwood Cuttings
• North Carolina State University: Plant Propagation by Stem Cuttings