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How to grow pinks from cuttings

in Home : Projects: Seeds and bulbs

You will need

  • Pinks
  • Cuttings compost
  • Gardeners' knife
  • Secateurs
  • Small pots
Do it: June
Takes just: 20 minutes

Project categories

Overview

Summer is the ideal time for taking cuttings, as plant cells divide quickly, promoting root growth. Propagating plants by cuttings is an easy and cheap way of replacing straggly, old plants.

For best results, take cuttings first thing in the morning when the plants are less likely to wilt, and pot them up as soon as you can, keeping them out of strong sunlight.

How to do it

Harvesting shoots to propagate

1Snip 10cm lengths from the tops of healthy, non-flowering shoots and pinch off all the leaves from the bottom half.

Trimming off the bottom of the cutting with a knife

2Use a sharp knife to trim the stem just below a bud.

Pushing the cuttings into the compost

3Push the cuttings into pots filled with cuttings compost. Position them around the edge for best results.

Watering the cuttings

4Water the cuttings well and cover with a plastic bag. After a few weeks, when the cuttings are growing strongly, pot each one up individually to grow on.

Adam's tip

Other plants to take softwood cuttings from include potentilla, hydrangea, forsythia, philadelphus and fatsia.
Uncover the cuttings every few days. This will allow fresh air to circulate the plants and reduce the risk of fungal infection. When new leaves start to grow, leave the cover off permanently.

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Talkback: How to grow pinks from cuttings
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daphnemcf 24/11/2011 at 15:29

wrong heading so impossible to find

ablas 24/11/2011 at 15:29

worked fine for me and all cuttings are well rooted first time I have ever tried taking cuttings,fair pleased