I love to grow my own flowers and seeds but lately I discovered I can grow them without using seeds. What, you say? No, I haven’t lost it. I just started using my own plants to make more plants. My kitchen window sill is my laboratory–a new plant propagation system. Want to learn how? Keep reading.
Oh, and watch my video below. You get an inside view of my “laboratory.”
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3 Ways to Propagate Plants.
New Seedlings in a Garden Bed
I have the perfect conditions–wind, pavers, and abundant plants. I have seedlings everywhere. Joe Pye Weed, spirea, feverfew, mint, fennel, chamomile, black eye susan, and echinacea are abundant new plants in my garden. The wind blows their seeds around and next season, they are growing everywhere. I simply move them to another location.
Pretty soon I am will run out of room and will have to sell them! Realize some of these plants can be thugs. Read HERE about my thug plants and be warned.
Tips–
- Move them in the fall or when it is cooler.
- Be sure to cut a third off of the plant. Allow the plant to put its energy into the roots.
- Be sure to water every day until the plant seems to be growing on its own without wilting.
Taking New Seedlings from Pavers
I have two paver decks and it is a hot bed for new plants. Unfortunately, when I gently pull the plants I want, I inevitably break the root. Generally you want at least 4 inches of plant stem for rooting. However, I have pulled much smaller plants but it can be tricky to root them. It depends on the plant.
Tips–
- Have glasses of water or a bucket of water next to you, so you can immediately put the seedling into the water. If you wait, the plant will die.
- Move it into the house and place in a sunny area. Leaving them outside might be too hot.
- Remove the lower leaves and place in water, making sure that the leaves aren’t in the water as well.
- Wait. It could take awhile.
- Change the water every couple of days.
Propagation from Cuttings
Take 4 to 6 inches from the tip of the plant. I have failed miserably in rooting hard wood stems. Maybe you may have better luck. Read HERE. It is best to take the tips of the woody plants in the spring. Tips–
- Use either water or a good quality soilless mix to root the plant.
- If you use a soilless mix, make sure you use a rooting hormone and place a bag over the plant to create a green house. Put a little in a bowl and dip a slightly wet stem into the solution so you don’t contaminate the jar. I have had success with this method. It depends on the plant.
- Try your hand at rooting them in water. What is the worse that can happen? They die?
General Notes: The Virginia Cooperative Extension suggests
“Dip the cutting tool in rubbing alcohol or a mixture of one part bleach to nine parts water to prevent transmitting diseases from infected plant parts to healthy ones.”
Further Reading:
My goal is to propagate from root cutting. To learn how in the meantime, read below.
- How to propagation from root cutting. (I haven’t tried this but sounds really interesting.) Propagation is done in the winter, early spring or fall.
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Or alternatively, read Roots on Roots: Propogating From Cuttings. According to Mother Earth News the following plants are great to propagate from roots: “bayberry, sassafras, horehound, bee balm, butterfly weed, purple coneflower, violets, salvias, sea holly, perennial mullein, Oriental poppies, and sea lavender.” I have tried to take butterfly weed cuttings and it didn’t work.
- How to root a broken seedling {complete with video.}
Join the conversation:
Do you propagate plants from cuttings?
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Jenny says
These are so cool! I want to get some of these plants to grow without seeds. I often find it hard to maintain a healthy flower bed and garden because I neglect many tips while planting the seeds. Thanks for the tips!
Anna@Green Talk says
Jenny, sometimes it is easier to propagate then using seed since some plants take forever to get large enough to plant. Anna
O'Boy! Organic says
This is why I love perennials because you can easily transplant once they get too big. I don’t mind spending a bit more for a good plant when I know eventually I can make it into 5 plants.
Anna@Green Talk says
Trina, I love the way you think!!! Anna
Green Bean says
You are speaking my language, sister! I have been busy over the last month doing exactly this. Moving volunteers from beds and paths to more appropriate places and propagating plants. This is the first time I’ve done the former and I wonder why the heck I haven’t done it before! It is so easy and has nicely filled in a flower bed that I have not wanted to spend any money on because I know we are going to redo the retaining wall just in front of it.
I’ve also been propagating plants bit by bit. I also have been digging up plants that spread by rhizomes. I have a very hefty, very drought tolerant native mallow. First, I took a few of its rhizomed volunteers to spread through out my garden. This past year, I’ve been sharing them with friends and schools in my area. The plant is SO drought tolerant and so very pollinator friendly (it is a butterfly host plant on top of its flowers’ nectar value), that I figure I am doing a very good deed by passing its babies along instead of dumping them into the compost pile. Loved this post! 🙂
Anna@Green Talk says
I split all of my rhizomed volunteers and the wind gives me new plants every season.
I just moved my mallows and I hope I didn’t kill them. I grew them from seed. They lost all their leaves and no new growth is showing. *fingers crossed* they come back next year. Anna.
PS I am moving goldenrod this week.
Lindsay says
I have a huge peace lily plant that I need to split up into smaller plants, it’s getting out of control!