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From late Autumn through
to Winter is the time to take Hardwood Cuttings of deciduous and
evergreen shrubs or trees. Hardwood Cuttings refer to the young shoots
that were produced during the current season, not old and woody growths.
The ideal material will
be roughly the thickness of a pencil and 8-9in (20-23cm) long after
trimming. Take care
to remove your cuttings by severing them from the parent plant just above
a bud, as though you were doing some pruning.
Preparing your
cuttings is simply a matter of cutting just below a leaf joint, removing
any excess leaves and trimming off any soft sappy growth at the top, this
time paring back to just above a leaf joint. As always it has to be
stressed that only a sharp knife is suitable for this task, since a blunt
tool will crush the cells that you want to encourage to produce roots.
Find a cool sheltered
spot that will remain undisturbed over the next year, and cut a shallow
slit using your spade, line the slit with coarse grit or sand, and you are
now ready to dip the ends of your cuttings in rooting compound and insert
them into the shallow trench. After filling the trench with cuttings simply close the trench by pressing the
soil back with your foot.
Weed and water your
cuttings through the coming season and by next Autumn you should have new young
plants ready to be transplanted.
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