Take cuttings now!

Take softwood cuttings of perennials now and they may even give you a second flush of colour later in the summer. Remove 10cm of healthy new growth using sharp, clean secateurs.

Strip off the lower leaves and dip the cut ends in rooting compound.

Insert your cuttings around the edge of 10cm pots containing dampened compost and some perlite.

Seal these inside a plastic bag and then place them somewhere light and warm and the cuttings should soon begin to root and grow.

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