Topic: How to take a cutting from a bush?

[Digitalis]

I have a large, colourful bush behind my shed on the allotment......but I've no idea what it is. However, it is very attractive, and I'd like to take a cutting for my own back garden.

How do I do this successfully?

I took a cutting earlier from a branch, cut it at an angle, and put the bottom of the stem in a pot of compost. Yet, when I got home, it had shrivelled up and looked dead.

Any tips?

[ceres]

Really need to know what it is or post a picture.  Some plants work with hardwood cuttings, some with softwood, some at different times of the year.  Give us a clue!

[Digitalis]

I'll get a picture up asap.

It has purple/red-ish flowers, and sprawls out at quite a distance. It has long stems, and many flowers.

[ceres]

Are the leaves large and hairy and does it have a lot of bees on the flowers?

[PurpleHeather]

Well there are a few ways to get cuttings one is to peg a new branch into soil and hope that roots come, It can take a year to do that. Then you take that cutting off the main bush as a new plant.

Another is to take a side shoot off, remove and big leaves and dip it in rooting hormone and place in to compost. Best tried in Spring when the new shoots start

With roses it is best to take a branch off completely and put that into the ground in autumn. It will start to grow in Spring.

I would do more than one 'cutting' because they do not all always take.

It is even possible with some plants to cut a leaf in half and plant the top bit upwards into compost.

That is the best I can offer as I do not know the variety or species.

[shirlton]

Is this the plant. If so its weigela. Easy to take cuttings. Choose lots of non flowering shoots and just stick em all in a pot of compo.They are very easy to propogate

[daileg]

The best way to give you your answer is to have a look at the root system if the roots are like tap roots go down  then can take a cutting  from the root and plant vertically if the root system run horizontally then they would need to be taking a cutting and sowing the same way //

the other way is to take a four to five inch cutting place in a plastic bag with a little wet newspaper wrapped up remove all but two new leaves from the cutting re cut with a sharp knife just below the node the joint on the cutting looks like a ring around place the end of the cutting in some rooting compound this will encourage a faster response with new root growth and also provides the cutting with hormones to encourage a good heath and no bacteria then place in 50%vermiculite 50%potting compost water in cover with a plastic bag or place in a heated propergator

there is many other ways to do this this tends to be the most fruitfull to speak of, this also tends to be the way i do it others might not i can only say it works for me

[Digitalis]

This is the photograph of the bush:


Very pretty.....would look great in my garden.