Carol Klein's favourite plants for softwood cuttings

September is the perfect time to take softwood cuttings. Many plants, including shrubs and tender perennials, have produced fresh green growth over summer, which can be used now to make new plants. They'll root faster than hardwood cuttings and can be planted out in spring.

You can try taking cuttings from any shrub or perennial that has suitable shoots, which for softwood cuttings is new, young shoots. Some are easier to root than others, including fuchsias, lavatera, philadelphus, physocarpus and viburnums, as well as hydrangeas and salvias.

Making new plants from cuttings gathered in your own garden is thrilling.

Buxus sempervirens 'Argenteo-variegata'

A box hedge needs uniform plants. Choose shoots of similar thickness. Remove bottom leaves and insert them in a shallow trench or around the edge of a pot.

Height x spread: 3m x 3m.

Pelargonium 'Lord Bute'

Take cuttings at any time during the growing season. Allow them to callus over for six hours before inserting around the side of a clay pot. Flowers May to November.

H x S: 40cm x 30cm.

Rosmarinus officinalis 'Prostratus'

Remove lower (basal) leaves without damaging stems – cut them or nip them off with your fingernails. Use a gritty, loam-based mix to root them. Flowers April to June.

H x S: 50cm x 150cm.

Sambucus nigra

Very easy to root from young, soft growth and from slightly more mature stems. The first root faster but tend to wilt rapidly. Mist foliage frequently to reduce transpiration. Flowers May to June.

H x S: 3m x 3m.

Hydrangea paniculata 'Limelight'

The new wood on hydrangeas should be green and strong in September, but ripe. Avoid taking long cuttings – two or three leaf joints is adequate. Flowers August to September.

H x S: 2.5m x 2.5m.

Penstemons

Take short side shoots or cut the leading shoot below a leaf joint. Both methods work best when the shoots are around 10-15cm long. Flowers July to October.

H x S: 100cm x 50cm.

Salvia 'Amistad'

This salvia produces multiple side shoots on tall stems. Detach carefully with a small piece of stem attached (the heel). Trim the heel neatly and remove any flower buds. Flowers May to October.

H x S: 1.5m x 50cm.

Viburnum carlesii

Take strong top shoots, bendy but not completely pliable, from which cuttings will root more easily. If the wood is old and tired, prune to encourage strong new growth next year. Flowers March to May.

H x S: 2m x 2m.

Taking your softwood cuttings

Get everything ready in advance. You’ll need pots or module trays, a sharp knife, plastic bags and an open, loam-based compost, such as John Innes No. 2 with added grit – mix one part grit to three parts compost. Cuttings take more readily in clay pots and are less likely to rot. Take cuttings early in the day when shoots are full of sap. Select young, strong shoots from your chosen plant. They should be whippy but still green, not woody. Always cut shoots off the plant directly above a leaf node to prevent rotting or die-back.

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