Mid-Atlantic Gardening: Fall Swap at Sallys- DISCUSSION about your haves and wants, 1 by coleup

coleup wrote:
Critter, on the crepe myrtles...

I worked for several years with a small local grower of tropicals, tender perennials, water plants and other interesting plants which we distributed for sale to area Home Depots.

Our stock plants were about the size of yours and were wintered over in a cold greenhouse. When they broke dormancy and had new growth. we would take cuttings to stick, keep under our intermitant misting system and then pot up in 6" pots for sale in mid May-June as they began to bloom. Any leftovers were up potted to 3 gal to become next years stock plants. We also took cuttings later toward end of season and kept as cuttings in heated green house run cool which were potted up to 6" and then became our 3 gal sellers when they started to bloom a bit earlier than if grown outside or those in cold green house (unless we heated it to speed things along)

They are quite easy from semi-hardwood stem cuttings even taken now. Trick is keeping cuttings from drying out, but there are many ways to keep them moist.. If I were you I would take a few now, just to get a feel for them as you'll be waiting forever for them to break dormancy in the Spring. What takes will need some winter protection as they won't be ready to plant out til they have had a chance to put on some growth (cold frame?) Mama plant spent winter in a pile of shredded oak leaves with all my others stuff.

So, nix on dormant cuttings air layering and all that other trouble!