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Propagating boxwood by cuttings at home is not a difficult task, and even a novice gardener can handle it. By following the breeding rules, you can grow a strong and healthy specimen that will decorate your garden plot. Boxwood is ideal for forming a hedge; it looks beautiful in rock gardens, among bright perennials, in single and group plantings.
Features of propagating boxwood by cuttings at home
Boxwood is an unpretentious, evergreen plant that is widely used in landscape design. When purchasing one specimen, gardeners often want to propagate it in order to grow a green hedge, create a beautiful border and make their summer cottage more attractive. Propagation of boxwood is possible using cuttings and seeds, but experienced gardeners recommend cuttings, as this is a simple and effective method. To propagate boxwood by cuttings at home, you need to follow simple rules:
- cuttings are taken from a healthy, non-lignified shoot;
- Prepare light, well-drained soil for planting;
- for rapid rooting, a favorable microclimate is created for the cuttings;
- care consists of watering and maintaining temperature and humidity conditions.
When to take boxwood cuttings
You can cut boxwood in spring and autumn, it all depends on climatic conditions. To grow a beautiful, ornamental shrub, you need to know:
- when to take cuttings for propagation;
- what time to plant;
- how to properly root and care.
Boxwood cuttings in spring
You can propagate boxwood by cuttings in the spring right away in your garden plot. The planting material, cut and treated in a root formation stimulator, is placed in a well-lit, carefully dug place with fertile, well-drained soil. To create a favorable microclimate, seedlings are covered with bottles or plastic bags. Spring propagation can also be carried out in containers at home. For quick rooting, the soil should not dry out, so the seedlings must be shaded from direct sunlight. In the evening, the microgreenhouse is ventilated, and the plant is sprayed with warm, settled water.
Over the course of the season, the boxwood will get stronger, form roots and be ready to move to a permanent place by autumn. After transplantation, the tree trunk circle is mulched, and the young, fragile plant is covered with burlap or agrofibre.
To have an idea of how to carry out boxwood cuttings in the spring, you need to watch a video for novice gardeners:
Boxwood cuttings in autumn
Since boxwood blooms in the spring, propagation by cuttings can be done in the fall. Cuttings are taken from healthy shoots in early September so that the wounds on the bush heal before the onset of frost. Planting material should be 10-15 cm long and have well-developed buds. For planting, nutritious soil is prepared, the cuttings are buried to the top foliage and covered with a jar or plastic bag to create a greenhouse effect.
Rooted boxwood seedlings are planted in separate containers, trying not to damage the earthen ball. The container with the planting is placed in an insulated greenhouse or a warm place with artificial lighting. Caring for seedlings at home includes regular watering, spraying and fertilizing once every 10 days, using a mineral fertilizer complex.
With the onset of spring, the cuttings need to be hardened off. To do this, they are taken out into the fresh air, increasing their exposure time daily. After the end of spring frosts and the soil warming up to + 10 °C, boxwood can be planted in a prepared place.
Boxwood cuttings in winter
After the end of the dacha season, gardeners often use the greenhouse as a place to store land and dacha equipment. But the greenhouse can be used to advantage, for example, for winter propagation of boxwood by cuttings. In the fall, 2 weeks before frost, the ground is dug up, turf or leaf soil mixed with peat is poured on top, compacted and leveled with a rake. Then pour river sand in a layer of about 2 cm. The soil for propagation should be light and well-drained.
For winter propagation, planting material cut from 2-3-year-old shoots is suitable.After removing the lower foliage and treating the cut with a root formation stimulator, the cuttings are planted at a distance of 20 cm from each other. After planting, the plant is watered and covered with polyethylene, which is stretched over a wire support.
Throughout the winter, it is necessary to ensure that the soil is always moist. By spring, the cuttings will take root, and after the onset of warm days they can be planted in the selected area. In order for them to quickly take root and adapt to a new place, they must be protected from direct sunlight for the first week. Caring for the plant after propagation consists of watering, fertilizing and removing weeds.
Rules for taking cuttings
Cutting boxwood cuttings for propagation is carried out from a healthy, mature, but not lignified shoot, 10-15 cm long. It is better to cut boxwood cuttings with a knife, at an acute angle, to increase the area for the formation of roots. Additionally, shallow, circular grooves are made on the lower part. The lower leaves of the cutting are removed to reduce moisture evaporation, and for rapid propagation, the cut is treated in a root formation stimulator.
How to plant boxwood from a branch
Boxwood can be grown from branches. To do this, select a healthy, non-lignified shoot and cut or separate cuttings no longer than 15 cm. When tearing off the planting material, it is necessary to leave a lignified “heel”. Thanks to it, the area for the emergence of the root system will increase.
Preparation of planting containers and soil
To root boxwood with cuttings at home, any container that has been previously washed and disinfected is suitable. To prevent water from stagnating after watering, drainage holes are made at the bottom of the pot.
For high-quality propagation, purchased soil or self-prepared soil is suitable. To do this, mix turf or leaf soil with sand in a 1:1 ratio and add complex mineral fertilizers. The mixture should be light, loose and nutritious.
How to root boxwood from cuttings
The prepared soil is poured into containers, a depression is made and the cutting is placed at an acute angle so that a small part with leaves remains on the surface. When propagating boxwood at home, before the root system appears, the planted plant is not watered, but slightly moistened. This is explained by the fact that swampy soil leads to rotting of the cut cuttings.
To keep the soil always moist, you can place a wick under the soil mixture. To do this, place a thick rope or twisted cotton fabric at the bottom of the pot. Cover with soil so that the opposite end can be lowered into a jar of water. Thanks to this simple method, irrigation will occur automatically and in the right quantity. In order for the root formation process to occur much faster, it is necessary to create favorable greenhouse conditions for the cuttings. To maintain temperature and humidity conditions, the planted seedling is covered with a plastic bag or glass jar.
Caring for cuttings
Caring for seedlings at home is not difficult, the main thing is to maintain the required soil and air humidity. For this:
- Spray with warm, settled water several times a day;
- regular ventilation of the mini-greenhouse;
- make sure that the cuttings do not come into contact with each other or with the covering material, since rot and black fungus often develop at the point of contact;
- after 14 days, the cuttings will begin to take root and can be fed with mineral fertilizers;
- if there is a lack of lighting, install artificial light;
- after a month, the cutting will grow a powerful root system, and then it will be possible to remove the shelter and carry out further care as for an adult plant (regular watering, fertilizing once every 10 days, in hot weather, spraying in the morning or evening hours).
Transplantation into open ground
Boxwood cuttings are planted in fertile, well-drained soil, in a sunny or partial shade location. The place should be protected from drafts and gusty winds. The area for boxwood propagation is prepared 2 weeks before planting. To do this, dig up the soil using a spade and add rotted compost, peat, sand and mineral fertilizers. Reproduction technique:
- In the selected area, dig a planting hole the size of the plant’s root system.
- For better water permeability, a 15 cm layer of drainage (broken brick, pebbles, expanded clay) is laid on the bottom.
- The boxwood seedling is shed generously and removed from the pot with a lump of earth.
- The plant is planted using the transshipment method, filling each layer, trying not to leave air voids.
- I compact the soil, pour it with warm, settled water and mulch.
After transplantation, the boxwood seedling is not fed, but constantly moistened, since the soil under the plant should not dry out.To retain moisture and stop the growth of weeds, the soil around the planted plant is mulched. Rotted humus or compost, dry leaves or hay are used as mulch. Mulch will also be a good organic fertilizer.
2 weeks before the onset of frost, the propagated boxwood is shed generously, fed with wood ash and covered with agrofibre or non-woven material. To prevent the plant from being damaged by the spring sun, the cover is removed after the snow melts and the onset of warm days.
To obtain rapid growth of side shoots, after propagation, a young plant can be trimmed to a stump, and the cut site can be treated with garden varnish or any antiseptic.
Conclusion
Even a novice gardener can propagate boxwood by cuttings at home. If you follow the rooting rules, the plant can be quickly propagated and planted throughout your garden plot. Boxwood looks beautiful among bright perennials, in single and group plantings, when creating borders and hedges.
Thank you. Very competent and accessible. I'll definitely try it.