Now is the ‘perfect time’ to get a free hydrangea plant by doing a 10-minute gardening job
Now is the "perfect time" to take hydrangea cuttings, which is a quick and easy gardening job that will multiply the amount of flowers in your garden.
Hydrangeas are one of the most popular flowers due to their breathtaking big blooms and it is incredibly easy to get more of them at no cost if you wish to have a colourful garden.
Late July and August are the best times to propagate hydrangeas, which means taking a small cutting from a hydrangea plant that will grow into a replica of that flower.
This is a very simple and fuss-free way to get more hydrangeas for your garden without having to spend money on buying new plants.
Michael Griffiths, a gardener who goes by The Mediterranean Gardener online, has explained how to take a hydrangea cutting and make it grow into a plant.
He said: “Do you love your hydrangea and want another plant that’s exactly the same? Well, now in late summer is the perfect time to take cuttings.
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“It’s the perfect time because these cuttings will be semi-ripe, meaning it’s this season’s growth that has a woody base but they’ll still be soft at the tip.”
How to take hydrangea cuttings
You will need:
- Secateurs
- Knife
- Gardening pot
- Gritty propagation compost
- Plastic bag or cold frame or greenhouse
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Method
Cutting the plant
To begin, examine the hydrangea plant you wish to take the cutting from and look for a flowerless stem.
Michael said: “The ideal candidate for a cutting is something straight with strong growth that doesn't have a flower or bud attached. We want the cutting to be around six inches or three sets of leaves in length.”
A cutting with flowers will spend energy trying to sustain the flowers rather than focusing on developing new roots and will be less likely to be successful than a flowerless stem.
Once you have found the ideal stem, measure it out to be around six inches or three sets of leaves in length and then cut it with a pair of secateurs.
Planting the hydrangea cutting
After you have your cutting, remove the leaves from the sides so it only has one set of leaves, and if the leaves are quite big then cut them in half with a sharp knife.
Place the gritty propagation compost in a pot and place it on the side of the pot and the compost, then your cutting is ready to be stored someplace safe.
Michael said: "You want to put this [cutting] in a slightly sheltered position, maybe a cold frame or greenhouse. If you don’t have something that can accommodate those factors then use a plastic bag and just place it over the top and that will act as a miniature greenhouse.”
After that, water the cutting with a light mist spray once or twice a day when needed, and you will soon have a healthy new hydrangea plant ready to plant outdoors or put in a bigger pot.
Michael said: “In four to six weeks you will see some new leaves starting to form which means this plant has taken root and you have an exact replica of the plant you took the cutting from.”
