Plant cuttings are pieces of plants taken from a stem, leaf or root which grow into a new plant. Take cuttings when the new growth is quite firm and its leaves have grown to their full size.
Have you ever found a plant in a friend’s garden or even your own, which you would love to strike for yourself from a cutting, but discarded the idea because you didn’t know how to go about it? Well it isn’t really all that difficult; you can propagate many plants from single plant cuttings, provided you follow a few simple guidelines.
Pieces of plants taken from a stem, leaf or root that will grow into a new plant are commonly referred as plant cuttings. The first thing to do is select a suitable piece to strike as a cutting. Take a look at the growing tips of the plant. Usually you will be able to notice differences in the stems – firm, hard, brown or grayish wood is usually last year’s growth, while bright green or reddish stems terminating in growing tips are the new season’s growth which should be used for plant cuttings, however, not when it is very fresh and soft and wilts rapidly when cut. The ideal stage to take plant cuttings is when the new growth is reasonably firm, and when its leaves have grown to their full size. Developed in Europe for use in horticultural laboratories, this unique deep-root propagation System is proven to grow healthier, more shock-resistant seedlings. Tapered cells are 50% deeper than similar seed-starting systems. Capillary mat and a 1 qt reservoir ensure your seedlings get the right amount of moisture. Deep cells mean more root mass.
Preparation of plant cuttings
The length of stem suitable for using as a cutting varies from plant to plant. For the blue-flowered streptocarpus plant, for example, it is best to take plant cuttings from it about 7.5cm (3”) in length. Cut just below a leaf junction or node at the lower end and gently clip out the tip of the shoot just above a pair of mature leaves – this will cause the growing plant cuttings to branch at the top rather than grow tall and spindly. If tiny buds cannot be seen where the leaves join the stem, you can leave the tip on the cutting if you prefer. Remove any flowers and all the leaves below the two at the top. Streptocarpus is particularly easy to strike fromplant cuttings.
Planting the plant cuttings
Place the plant cuttings in a mixture of 50:50 sand and peat moss – not dirt. Don’t use builders’ sand – buy some propagating sand, or river sand, and wash it thoroughly to remove any fine particles. Disease organisms will not survive in this mixture, but the tinyplant cuttingscertainly will. Put the mixture into either a brand new pot, or an old one cleaned out and washed in a solution of Dettol, or even some good old-fashioned household bleach. This will destroy any disease organisms. Jiffy peat pots are rapidly becoming the most popular choice of gardeners everywhere. They are the all natural approach to plant propagation.
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Before planting the tiny plant cuttings, dip the bottom of their stems into a root promoting hormone powder. When you buy this hormone check the use-by date on
the container carefully; it does not have a long shelf life. Make a hole in the potting mixture for each of the plant cuttings. Even if you hope to end up with only one plant, put lots of plant cuttings in one pot – maybe 20 streptocarpus in a 15cm (6”) pot. You can always choose the best one and throw the other unwanted plant cuttings away or give them to friends. After planting the plant cuttings, water them in with a very fine spray, so as not to dislodge them, until the potting mixture has settled.
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Next place the pot in a glasshouse. If you don’t have one you can make a mini-glasshouse using a clear plastic bag large enough to completely enclose the pot. Put the pot inside the bag and tie it tightly. An arch of wire can be pushed into the top of the pot to stop the bag from falling onto the plant cuttings. In six to eight weeks’ time the plant cuttings should have developed root-balls, and at this time they can be hardened off gradually by opening the bag and leaving it for several days. The small plants that have developed from tiny plant cuttings can then be planted out into larger individual containers. Take care to leave them in a protected, shady spot for a few weeks before exposing them to harsh sunlight.
streptocarpus plant, for example, it is best to take 
