Re: taking cuttings was: Buddleia 'Sun Gold'

Well, Donna, I've not personally taken Buddleia cuttings, but they are
supposed to root readily and now is the time to take them - June thru'
August, according to Dirr.

New growth should be best this time of year if it isn't too soft.  If the
tips are really soft and succulent, cut them off - they will only wilt
badly.

I generally take woody cuttings about 6" long which allows for re-cutting
the end just before sticking them - you want to end up with about 4 to 6"
of cutting material.  Allow enough length so that you can re-cut just below
a pair of leaves.  Remove all but the end couple of leaves with an exacto
knife, or something sharp so you don't tear the stem bark, and if they are
too big, cut them in half.  Best to use a rooting hormone - liquid or
powder, whatever you can get and one for woody plants is best if you can
find it, if not good old Rootone will help.  Follow directions on the
rooting hormone - more is not better.

Sand and perlite or simply coarse sand should do - stick the cuttings so
only those last few leaves are above the pot rim, water them in and enclose
in a plastic bag - I blow the bags up and secure with twist-ties so they
don't touch the leaves.  Keep in warmth, but out of *any* direct sun or
they will cook in a flash.

Dirr says Buddleia should be removed from the "bench or taken off mist" as
soon as they root as "they deteriorate rapidly with excess moisture".  I
translate this into removing them from the plastic bag - in slow degrees
(open the bag a little, then next day some more, etc. until it's not around
them any more).  If they show signs of wilting during this process, pull
the bag back up and try again a bit later.

Personally, I always pot cutting material on for at least a year.  Or, if
you have no place to winter potted cuttings well, prepare a holding bed
like you'd do for a good veggie plot and transplant them into this for a
year before putting them in the border.  The holding bed ought to get shade
in afternoon, even though they like full sun - just because baby cuttings
need some protection until they get good roots going.

When you see sign of new leaf growth, it usually indicates rooting is
taking place.  A *very* gentle tug on the cuttings at that point will tell
the tale - if they offer any resistance they're rooting.  By the time
you've weaned them from their enclosed environment, they should have enough
roots to transplant into pots of holding bed.  Simply dump out the pot on a
bench or counter or other relatively clean surface and gently separate them
so as not to break any more roots than unavoidable.  If some only have one
or two measly roots, put them back in the pot - they need to have several
nice, strong roots to survive in a holding bed or do well in a pot.

Take more cuttings than you want plants as you are bound to lose some of
them in the process.  If they do die off, remove them from the cutting pot
immediately, as well as any leaves that die off.  You can put lots of
cuttings in one 6" pot, say...just space them so the leaves aren't touching
each other or the pot.  I poke holes in the medium with a pencil and then
insert the cutting and firm the medium around it with the same pencil. 
Some advocate only watering from below, but I water from above to help
settle the medium firmly around the cuttings - air spaces between cutting
and medium are not a good thing.

Have at it and happy cuttings!

Marge Talt, zone 7 Maryland
mtalt@clark.net
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----------
> From: James & Donna Davis <dsdavis@intop.net>
> Date: Wednesday, July 14, 1999 11:33 PM
> 
> Marge
> 
> your the lady I want to talk to about Buddleia.   I have a new one
> called Black Knight,  a beautiful dark purple.    I want to  root a
> cutting for my neice.   when I take a cutting,  do I just snip off new
> growth?    how tall should the cutting be?   is it ok to do a cutting at
> this time of the year when it's so hot and humid and then transplant
> later in the fall?     is it ok to root in sand and perlite?    and
> follow the other direction that you have described.
> 
> Donna in NE Mississippi    zone 7

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