With autumn slipping into our consciousness, we gardeners sometimes examine our gardens for ways to make things even lovelier next season. Let me suggest three useful activities—moving shrubs and plants for optimum beauty, and two simple methods for creating new plants from our faithful dears by propagation.
So, here are three useful suggestions for expanding and enhancing your garden now that September is here:
Transplanting:
Survey your garden. Those beautiful hostas have doubled in size. That white peony overflows her part of the flowerbed. And what about those irises? They’ve begun to encroach on their neighboring phlox.
- Take a look at your shrubs and plants. If they’re too large or clash in color or foliage with the rest of their bedmates, move them. (They’ll be fine with it.)
- Choose a site with appropriate sunlight and dig a hole.
- Around the plant to be moved, carefully dig in a circle about 6” from the stem.
- Gently lift out the root ball and loosen roots from any tightly packed soil.
- In the new hole place a handful of Epsom salt crystals and drop in the root ball. Backfill around the plant, gently tapping down the soil. (Do not pack the soil too tightly.)
- Water thoroughly and continue to watch that the relocated plant gets sufficient moisture and light.
- Avoid fertilizing now. The plant is settling in and recovering; we want to encourage growth in the root system, not more leaves and blossoms.
Propagating by Dividing:
Plants that are particularly happy to be divided: hosta, astilbe, peony, iris, coral bells, hellebores, phlox, canna, daylilies
This is a great way to keep a beautiful specimen in your garden. Look for those healthy, full plants and shrubs—they may even be the ones that are getting a bit too big for their setting.
- Begin by digging up the plant as you would for moving. (See above.)
- Gently remove it from the ground and lay it on its side so you can see the root ball.
- Using your hands, loosen the roots as much as possible without damaging them.
- With a sharp knife or small spade, start from the bottom of the root ball and cut upward toward the plant’s foliage. Be careful to avoid cutting major roots. You’re looking to create two root balls and plants.
- Add some Epsom salt to the bottom of the original hole, then return one of the halves to its hole. Backfill and thoroughly water the plant.
- Now that you can see the size of the new root ball, decide on a new location and dig a hole. Be sure you’ve considered the amount of daily light and proximity of other plants. Your newly-created plant will undergo separation anxiety for a while.
- Drop in a few crystals of Epsom salt and the root ball. Follow the same procedure as with the “mother” plant—backfill and thoroughly water.
- Until the first frost, keep an eye on the separated plants. Be sure they’re getting sufficient water (but not soggy.) There may be some drooping leaves, but don’t be dismayed. They’ll perk up before long.
- The particular joy of “dividing” plants is that you keep these happy plants growing as a family. There’s a history developing among the sister plants.
Propagating with Cuttings:
Outdoor Plants that are easily propagated with cuttings: Geraniums, Spirea, Basil, Fuschia, Dahlia, Azalea, Hydrangea
Indoor plants that are easily propagated with cuttings: Pothos, Philodendron, Snake plants, Begonia, Succulents, Spider plants, Cacti
There are other forms, such as grafting, that can be used to create new plants from old, but they’re a bit too complicated for my kind of gardening time and interest. So, let me give you a rundown on this easy and almost foolproof method of adding favorite plants to your garden next spring.
Simple steps-by-step for propagation with cuttings:
- Tools needed: sharp knife or garden scissors, pot, loose soil (possibly mixed with Vermiculite or Perlite for drainage), water
- Choose a sturdy stem of a healthy plant or shrub.
- Cut a 4–6” section of stem, or for succulents a plump leaf is sufficient.
- Remove leaves on the lower half of the piece
- For succulents only: leave the leaf or stem to harden or seal for 24 hrs. before setting it in sand or very dry soil. (Sometimes tiny pebbles will work as the growing medium.)
- Gently immerse the section of stem in damp, loose soil or in water. (If you’re trying the water method, be sure to use a container that will allow only the lower 1/3 to 1/2 of the stem to be submerged.) Be sure the soil is not wet but keep it slightly damp.
- Set the cutting in its medium in diffused light. Be patient! This will take a while. Within 4–6 weeks, sometimes sooner, you’ll have tiny roots growing. (That’s why the water method is fun. You can watch as the roots begin to emerge from the stem.)
- When the roots seem sufficiently developed, set the cutting into a pot of the appropriate size. Use clean, fresh soil, not too compacted. Cover only the lower 1/3 of the stem and roots with soil. (Be careful not to let the cutting sit too long in the water; it will eventually rot.)
- Watch your lovely new plant grow and flourish. You can pinch off too-long stems to shape the plant as it grows.
These small projects in our gardens will not only enhance the beauty and strength of our plants, but the relocated shrub, the sister hostas, and the family of young begonias from last fall’s garden will brighten our gardens next spring.
