Posts
Monday 7th March.
My most favorite plant has to be the Hydrangea.
I have been growing these plants for almost 25 years now...I worked for 6 months at a hydrangea nursery and collect quite a few rare and unusual varities...I have quite a good collection of them now and I propagate from all of them during the spring and summer..
My farvorite varity is called "quadricolor" and is very rare I usualy only take around 4 cutting a year from the plant which I have I grow that a large pot and repot it every 3-4 years as it is very slow growing and even now after 20 years the parent plant is only 3 ft tall with a 2ft spread, it only grow about 2 or 3 inches per year, it will grow taller in the ground, but if we have a hard frost I do like to be able to move it in to one of my greenhouses....
I have 2 greenhouses and a small polytunnel to propagate in...and a potting shed, I couldn't work with out that...tomorrow I'm am going to get another small green house just for growing cuttings in, as I've managed to out grow the other two...
I grow hollys and lots of herbaceous plants and I grow 35 diferent types of tree all from seeds some of which are microscopic some are quite large too...
I also like a challenge so I grow a few rare and unusual plants this year I have just germinated a dessert rose and a pumpkin tree which comes from Austrailia I also have a few tooth ache plants growing but I'm not sure where they orginate from probably Australian or African, as it says that if you rub the wierd flower on an aching tooth it relives the pain...I will have to try that next time I get tooth ache....
I also have several conifers which I grew from seed last year I have a 2 inch tall Picea abies growing in one greenhouse and I checked it today it's set up another layer of trunk and leaves so it might get to 3 or 4 inches by autumn this year I hope...
I find propagation a fasinating subject I could talk about it for hours but I wont tonight.....
I must remember to take some more photos tomorrow of the nursery to put on here I'm sure you'd like to see it...I really enjoy being out there with all the fresh air and plants and at long last some warm sunshine...
Lady Sarah.
My most favorite plant has to be the Hydrangea.
I have been growing these plants for almost 25 years now...I worked for 6 months at a hydrangea nursery and collect quite a few rare and unusual varities...I have quite a good collection of them now and I propagate from all of them during the spring and summer..
My farvorite varity is called "quadricolor" and is very rare I usualy only take around 4 cutting a year from the plant which I have I grow that a large pot and repot it every 3-4 years as it is very slow growing and even now after 20 years the parent plant is only 3 ft tall with a 2ft spread, it only grow about 2 or 3 inches per year, it will grow taller in the ground, but if we have a hard frost I do like to be able to move it in to one of my greenhouses....
I have 2 greenhouses and a small polytunnel to propagate in...and a potting shed, I couldn't work with out that...tomorrow I'm am going to get another small green house just for growing cuttings in, as I've managed to out grow the other two...
I grow hollys and lots of herbaceous plants and I grow 35 diferent types of tree all from seeds some of which are microscopic some are quite large too...
I also like a challenge so I grow a few rare and unusual plants this year I have just germinated a dessert rose and a pumpkin tree which comes from Austrailia I also have a few tooth ache plants growing but I'm not sure where they orginate from probably Australian or African, as it says that if you rub the wierd flower on an aching tooth it relives the pain...I will have to try that next time I get tooth ache....
I also have several conifers which I grew from seed last year I have a 2 inch tall Picea abies growing in one greenhouse and I checked it today it's set up another layer of trunk and leaves so it might get to 3 or 4 inches by autumn this year I hope...
I find propagation a fasinating subject I could talk about it for hours but I wont tonight.....
I must remember to take some more photos tomorrow of the nursery to put on here I'm sure you'd like to see it...I really enjoy being out there with all the fresh air and plants and at long last some warm sunshine...
Lady Sarah.
Wednesday 9th March.
ReplyDeletePropagating Hydrangeas is quite easy, you need to take cuttings between May and the end of September. You start with that years new shoots when they are around 4 inch of growth and have 2 or 3 sets of leaves on them.Fill a 10cm pot 3/4 full with multi-purpose compostfirstly and firm down. As with most cutting you take the just below a node (leave joint) dip it in water then shake the dip in hormone rooting powder make a small hole in the compost around the edge of the pot. place the cutting in the whole that you made and then gently firm in to place lightly water. you can get around 6-8 cuttings per pot. you do not need to place them in a clear bag during the summer as it'll be warm enough for them to root naturally...
Later in the year August, September it is a good idea to put them in a clear plastic bag to help rooting but make sure that the leaves are not touching the side of the bag, as they can rot and you don't want that to happen...
Once the cutting have rooted it is a good idea to pot them in to individual pots 10cm pots will do just fine again in multi-purpose compost...
I usually take my last cutting on 30th September and over winter them in the greenhouse out of the plastic bag when they've rooted, it can take up to 8 weeks for them to produce roots at that time of year from May to July it usually only takes a few weeks usually about 4 weeks...
I will be again this year be taking 4 or 5 more cuttings from hydrangea quadricolor hopefully in May or June..so they will be well rooted for the winter...
They will then spend there first winter in a cold frame before being potted up into bigger pots.
So there you have it quite easy to propagate, from cuttings...
Seed collection is a little more difficultwith Hydrangeas as they are so small.. I will tell you how to do this later on...Lady Sarah.
Wednesday 30th March.
ReplyDeleteWell all my hydrangeas have survived the rather harsh winter which we had, they have all grown lots of new shoots especially the Hyd. Quadricolor has produced lots of new leaves and shoots so I do hope that I will be able to get plenty of cuttings from my plant this year...
I will also be getting a few cuttings of another very rare Hydrangea called Quercifolia which has large oak shaped leaves and creamy white flowers,a very pretty hydrangea.
They will not be ready for sale until next year though,as they do take rather a long time to root... Lady Sarah.
Saturday 14th May.
ReplyDeleteWell it's getting time now to start thinking about taking cuttings of hydrangeas, I will be starting tomorrow, with my very rare hyd. macro. quadricolor, It has lots of nice young shoots to take cuttings off, but I will only be taking around 4 as my plant is very old and I don't want to weaken it or damage it in any way...
I will root them in the greenhouse not the propagator as I will have to keep a close eye on them... They will only take a few weeks to root and then they will be potted on and hopefully will be ready for sale next spring....
They are not difficult to propagate and should grow well during the summer but they will need some protection during the winter, as they will be very tender there first year....
I will also be photographing lots of my plants tomorrow to go on to my website, I need lots of my new plants and of some of my specimen plants too... Lady Sarah.