Propagation: Pugh Bear's Propagation Thread, 1 by evelyn_inthegarden

evelyn_inthegarden wrote:
Thanks, Sharon!

JB ~ Let me know when you start your Hydrangea, as I would like to do mine as well. It did not start blooming until last week. I will try a couple of things and also look it up in some of my books. I will have to put in some soil sulfur as the Blue is now Pink. Still it matches the Lamium which has beautiful pink flowers now...(I do not use aluminum in my gardens.)

Ok, I found it, but I have to ask you, are you growing these outdoors, in your greenhouse or indoors? I know they can be grown as house plants.

They are recommending to take stem cuttings or by layering. I remember that Dave gave us a detailed description of how to do that. Truly layering is really the easiest, as you can just bring a branch to the ground and pin it there if you are growing it in the ground. I imagine you could also air-layer it as well, with sphagnum moss wrapped in plastic. Has anyone done this before? It can be done with a diagonal cut, held open with a toothpick and covered with 3" of soil.

My hydrangea is still quite small, so I will probably take some stem cuttings. They recommend "half-ripe", that is in between green/soft, and hard/brown. How do you usually propagate your gardenias?

Jan ~ I would think that bamboo would be easy to start as they are very difficult to eradicate if you do not want them, especially in Florida. I suppose it would be important to know what kind of bamboo it is as there are many different kinds. Still, I found out one year, the hard way, they must be kept moist.

According to the book, "How to Grow Almost Anything", by Stanley Shuler....

"Divide plants in spring or early fall in sun or light shade in average soil that is well-drained. Plant running types in containers or restricted garden pockets unless you want a forest. Water well until established. Fertilize in spring, especially if plants are container grown. cut excess canes when young; remove old canes in winter."

Hope this helps.