If you want to get more plants from your existing flowering plants, a good way is to take cuttings.
This type of plant propagation is easy but remember that softwood cuttings and small cuttings root the fastest. Herbs are especially good for cuttings, and they take about a month to root.
If you are taking cuttings from annuals, do not take the leading shoot from bedding plants, but use a side shoot to encourage branching. Coleus cuttings are easy to root in water if you remove all the leaves except for a few on top. Use a glass container so that you can monitor the water level and replenish it often and then too you can also see the little roots grow.
If you root cuttings in soil, add a few drops of hydrogen peroxide to the water you use to keep the roots moist, and, also when you mist, to reduce infection. Tent a plastic bag over the pot to increase moisture retention and always keep cuttings in the shade and never let the soil dry out. However, if the cuttings rot, remove the plastic bag over the pot regularly to reduce excess water.
Softwood cuttings of shrubs, such as hydrangeas, azaleas, and lilacs, should have all the lower leaves removed and should be put in pots in the spring before the end of June in zones 5 and 6.
Experiment with about six cuttings at a time to be sure that some root.
This is Moya Andrews, and today we focused on cuttings.
