One of my gardening goals this year was to learn how to take cuttings. I have always been envious of more experienced gardeners taking (or stealing) cutting from other people’s gardens – they’ve always given the impression of really knowing what they’re doing! The ultimate step to “you’re not an amateur anymore”. Plus it’s a really cheap way to get more plants! I must admit, I have tried cuttings in the past – but they never worked. In fairness I did absolutely no research into the type of cuttings I had, or the best time of year to try. I did try a little rooting powder but just stuck them in a pot & hoped nature would do the rest… nature didn’t.
So this year I decided I really wanted to learn how to take cuttings in order to move up the imaginary ladder of experience that is in my head. I decided to try again with the variety of correas I have, as I would really like multiples of the ones that are growing well. A little research found the best time to try correa cuttings is in autumn, and also that correas are supposed to be very easy to take cuttings – perfect! Back in March I filled a seedling tray of potting mix, cut tips off a few different correas, dipped them into a cutting rooting gel – and voila my work was done. I kept them covered with the seedling tray lid and all that was left to do was wait…
Several died extremely quickly. Way faster than I would have expected. It really didn’t get my hopes up. However I kept watering the ones that had survived every now and again, and after a while, when I’d really forgotten about them – I realised most of the remaining ones had started to grow!! With a joyful little jump and cheer I raced for the camera, and while the growth is small (considering I started them 4 months ago), the only way is up! I’ve now learnt that cuttings can be quite easy – I just needed a little research – and a lot of patience.