MORE GARDENING
NIGEL COLBORN’S ESSENTIAL JOBS FOR YOUR GARDEN THIS WEEK
TAKE cuttings now if you have any favourite tender plants outside and would like to overwinter them safely. They will root rapidly and develop into small, but healthy, specimens for keeping frost-free until spring.
This works well with pelargoniums (geraniums) fuchsias, lantanas and any tender perennial plants. It won’t work with annuals such as tagetes. Select young shoots, remove lower leaves and root these in a mix of compost and grit.
They’ll take rapidly if placed in a heated propagator. But you can also root them on a windowsill or shaded part of a conservatory if kept well watered. You can partially inflate a polythene bag and fix that over the pots to hasten rooting. Cuttings taken now will become substantial stock plants by next spring.
You can use them as a source of further cuttings during the coming six months if you want to build up numbers for next year’s planting schemes.
Always select healthy shoots when gathering soft cuttings. It’s also important to check each carefully for signs of pests such as aphids. If any are infested, treat them with an insecticide spray before bringing any part of them indoors.
A number of plants — scented leaf pelargoniums, and plectranthus for example — make excellent winter house plants. They will still provide useful cuttings for growing on next year as well as looking lovely on a windowsill.