Q How can I get a cutting from a rose that I can no longer buy?
Susan Tomes, by email
A CHRISTINE SAYS You are just at the far end of the season for taking hardwood cuttings (normally November to March) but it’s worth trying as they are the simplest to take and normally result in success.
Remove fully healthy, true-totype, defoliated stems, then trim with secateurs, stem sections of about 25cm long. Cuttings should be taken just below a bud at the base and just above a bud, at the top with a sloping cut – this makes identification of the top of the cutting easy.
Make a V-shaped trench in freedraining, gritty, weed-free soil to a depth of 15cm, in a sunny, open position. Insert the cuttings so they touch the base of the trench, spaced 10cm apart. Refill the soil around them, firming well. Keep well watered during the growing season and leave for a year before lifting them and planting out.