As the holidays loom, most of us aren't thinking about what our flowerbeds will look like next spring--but we should be. The planning and prep we do today will ensure that our gardens look magnificent by that first spring day.
I know you're busy. You've got a hectic work schedule. And then there's the shopping and cleaning, cooking and baking. If you're like me, you're buying plane tickets and airing out bedrooms for holiday guests. Yet if you live in the Northeast, there's one thing you're not doing much of: gardening. Why not take a few minutes from those bonus free hours to get next year's flowerbeds off to a good start?
Now's the perfect time to clip a few twigs from your beloved boxwoods so you can start that hedge you've been longing for, or propagate a few eryngiums (sea hollies) to place in that hole in the middle of your side border. According to the eminent horticulturist, the late Christopher Lloyd, propagating root cuttings is not an activity reserved for the professionals; we can all give it a whirl. And he advised that the dormant season is the "best time to set about it."
What does it require? Little more than a pair of sharp hand pruners or a knife, a few small plastic pots, a medium to plant in, a bottle of rooting powder, and the desire to begin the gardening process in December. Here's how:
Wash pots and pruners/knife in soapy water, then rinse the tools in a 10-percent bleach solution. This reduces the spread of plant disease. Poke holes in the bottom of the container with an ice pick if there are no drainage holes.
Mix together equal parts of sand and peat moss to create a soilless mix that drains well. Place the bottom of the plant pot in a container of room-temperature water until the top of the rooting mixture is damp.
Cut a 4- to 6-inch piece of stem from the terminal end of the branch. This type of cutting is taken from the current year’s growth that is starting to harden. Remove the leaves from the lower half of the cutting.
Dip the bottom 1/2-inch of the cutting into powdered rooting hormone. Do not dip the cutting directly in the hormone container, which can contaminate the entire supply of rooting hormone. Pour a little bit of hormone in a small container and dip the cutting. Discard the used hormone and reseal the larger container. Top off any excess powder from the cutting.
Slide the bottom of the cutting 1 inch into the rooting soil. Water the cutting with room temperature water and a spray bottle. Push three or four bamboo skewers into the edge of the plant pot. Drape a piece of clear plastic over the skewers and plant pot to form a mini-greenhouse. Secure the plastic with a rubber band around the container and plastic.
Place the cutting in an area in bright, indirect sunlight in a room with temperatures around 70 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit. Check for roots in eight to 10 weeks by gently tugging the cutting upwards. If the cutting does not slide out of the plant pot, then roots are starting to grow. Leave in the rooting container for two to three more weeks before transplanting into a larger container.
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