Stefan Buczacki answers all your gardening questions
R. Henderson, by email
Stefan says: Both deciduous and evergreen ceanothus aren't too difficult to raise from cuttings and I'd hedge your bets by taking semi-ripe cuttings in the summer and hardwood cuttings in the winter; you could try the latter now.
Hardwood cuttings are those taken of wood that has already become fairly tough and woody, although don’t use truly hard, old wood from ancient branches. The shoot should be cut to a length of around 25cm (10in) and inserted to about two thirds of its length in either a cold frame or, better I always think, a V-shaped trench lined with sand in a sheltered spot in the garden.
There's no strict definition of when a cutting is semi-ripe but if it bends readily when you twist it between your fingers, and then it stays bent or oozes juice, it's still softwood. If it bends readily, but then springs back, it's semi-ripe.
There are two main ways of taking semi-ripe cuttings. The first is when a length of shoot is cut from the end of the stem and then trimmed cleanly to a length of 10cm (4in). The second is as a basal cutting, where a sideshoot is selected that's already about 10cm (4in) in length and then pulled or torn from its parent stem to leave a small piece of the older stem at the base to form what's called a heel.
No matter which way you take them, moisten the freshly-cut end of the cutting, dip it in hormonerooting powder and then knock off the excess. The cuttings should be rooted in a covered propagator or a covered cold frame. Maintain a moist atmosphere as they'll otherwise lose water through their leaves at a time when, having no roots, they're unable to replace it from below. Even with a covered propagator, pay careful attention to the moisture content of the rooting medium and use a hand sprayer regularly to mist over the cuttings.