If you fancy filling your garden with a flourish of free plants then follow this expert hack.
Whilst many of us are quick to hang up the gardening gloves once summer has ended, early autumn can be a brilliant time for plants, as the soil remains warm and there’s plenty of rain to keep your buds hydrated.
Even better, an expert has revealed a method to plant them for free.
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According to BBC presenter and horticulturalist Monty Don, September is an excellent time to get free plants by taking cuttings.
If you haven’t taken a cutting before, Monty reassures gardeners not to be daunted, reports the Mirror.
He wrote in his blog: “[Cuttings] are easy, mostly successful and the gateway to producing scores of new plants for free. They also enable you to be very specific about what you want.”
He explains that this is because a plant grown from a cutting will always be “exactly the same” as its parent plant – allowing you to control what your garden looks like.
Monty says you can take semi-ripe cuttings from the current season’s wood, which means that it will be slower to make new roots but will also take longer to die back.
This allows for more flexibility and means gardeners are under less time pressure. You should proceed with taking cuttings using a sharp knife and secateurs.
Monty suggests placing the cuttings directly into a plastic bag to minimise moisture loss. He also recommends taking cuttings in the morning when the plant is most hydrated – however, this can be done at your convenience.
He further advises gardeners to select plants that exhibit “healthy, strong, straight growth” for cutting material. The chosen plant should be free from any flowers or flower buds.
Once you’ve collected material from the plant and placed it in the plastic bag, Monty instructs you to pot them up immediately. He emphasised: “The quicker you can do this, the more likely you are to have success.”
To prepare the plant for potting, he suggests stripping off all lower leaves and side shoots, leaving only an inch or less of foliage. Then cut the bare stem “to size” with a sharp knife just below a node, before planting it in a container filled with very gritty or sandy compost.
Monty further advises that you should position the cuttings around the edge of a pot, and place it somewhere warm and bright. However, he cautions against placing it on a south-facing windowsill as it may scorch.
Once potted, you should water it thoroughly and maintain it just moist. Monty suggests a daily spray with a mister will help prevent the leaves from drying out before new roots have had a chance to grow.
He clarifies that when you notice fresh new growth, it’s a sign that the roots have formed. At this stage, the cuttings can be taken out of the pot and put into separate pots, ready to be planted outdoors the following spring.
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