Your rhododendron delights every year with its impressive blooms and are you now considering adding another specimen to your garden? You may be thinking about trying propagation yourself by using your own plant instead of buying a new one. Or maybe you know someone who has this shrub in their garden and would like to try it with their help? Today we will explain to you how you can propagate a rhododendron and whether the effort is actually worth it.
Can you propagate rhododendrons?
Yes, you can reproduce the pretty plants wonderfully and there are a number of ways to do this. However, not everyone is optimal and sometimes it depends on the rhododendron variety. We have summarized the most common variants for you. How can you propagate rhododendrons?
Use seeds of the plant
The option to propagate your rhododendron through seeds is probably pretty obvious. Even beginners can try it, but you should know that this process takes a little more time than other methods. On the one hand, of course, because you are starting to grow a completely new plant from scratch.
Propagate rhododendrons with seeds – instructions:
It is best to use fresh seeds if possible, as they germinate better than others, and plant them in substrate consisting of peat, sand and perlite. Keep the container in a warm, bright location and the soil moist but not too wet. The seeds should germinate after 4 to 6 weeks. From now on the growth will be quite slow.
Only after about a year is it time to prick out the young plants. You also decide which plants you want to keep. From now on you can also use the plants sparingly, butfertilize regularlyto promote growth. The good news is that you can expect the first flowers after just 2 years.
Cuttings are an easy method
The time until germination and untilfor prickingYou can save money if you have a mother plant from which you can take cuttings. If you want to propagate the rhododendron through cuttings, all you have to do is cut off the tip of a shoot. Make sure it is about the width of your hand.
Then remove the lower leaves (but not all) as well as any buds or other plant parts that grow from the main shoot. Prepare a pot of potting soil that is low in nutrients. You can do that toomake yourself. Moisten the substrate and insert the cuttings into it. Keep the soil moist and warm. The greenhouse is a good place. Rhododendron bushes grown from cuttings are not allowed in the garden until next year. So overwinter them in a suitable place.
Cuttings, including rhododendron cuttings, are often rooted with the help of a potato. If you would like to propagate the rhododendron with potatoes, simply pierce a hole lengthwise in the middle of the potato and insert the cutting into it. Then dig the potato into soil in a pot with the cutting still sticking out. The potato provides the branch with moisture and stimulates root formation.
Cut offshoots after flowering
This method is well suited for older specimens as they have already formed suitable shoots. Here, too, you need to allow a little more time. Wait until after flowering and then choose one of the side shoots. This should be near the ground. You then cut this shoot or its bark with a sharp knife, about 15 centimeters below the group of leaves. To keep the cut open, stick a match in it.
Now you have to wait. The wound promotes root growth, so you should already find them next spring. Then carefully separate the shoot and its roots and plant it in the garden. Choosea partially shaded locationand don't forget to water the plant well immediately after planting.
Lowering to propagate the rhododendron bush
This variant is similar to the procedure for offshoots. Here too, use a side shoot close to the ground that you cut at an angle. This interface is then placed in a peat bed, solowered. Over time, the roots grow directly into the soil and if you then cut the shoot off the mother plant, you get a new plant right next to the old one.
Multiply rhododendrons – how does removing moss work?
For theAbmoosenThe interface is not placed in the ground, but rather wrapped with spaghnum moss. A cuff made of plastic is then tied to the top and bottom of the moss using wire and the moss is moistened well. Now you should make sure that the moss is always kept moist. New roots should form at the interface within one to two months. You then simply cut the branch off the mother plant and place it in a pot until next spring.
As an alternative to moss and cuffs, some gardeners simply use potting soil and a plastic bag to wrap the cut area.
Find out how to properly care for the shrubin this article.
