If you’ve ever fallen in love with a particular bush of roses or simply wished to grow more of the same rose bushes you already have in your garden, there’s no need to head down to your local nursery to find the one you’re looking for. One simple way to grow roses is from cuttings as they root quite easily. Here’s how to successfully do so:
To ensure that you get it right the first time it’s best to wait until the cooler months of the year to take rose cuttings and begin the process of rooting them. You’ll want to ensure that the rose bush you choose to take cuttings from is well hydrated so the best time of the day to take rose cuttings is in the morning.
The stems that are best for rooting are ones that have already flowered. It’s important that your cuttings don’t have any flowers or buds. Remove the thorns from the bottom half of the stems as well. You’ll want to keep only a single pair of leaves on the stem so that it can photosynthesize.
Your cuttings should be around 7 inches in length and should be cut at a 45 degree angle. Make sure that you use a sharp pruner so that you don’t damage the stems in any way and place the cuttings in a container of water straight away. The blades of your pruner should also be clean so that your cuttings remain healthy and are not exposed to any fungal diseases. You can clean your pruning blades with rubbing alcohol.
When choosing the perfect spot in your garden to grow your new rose bush always go for an area that gets plenty of indirect sunlight.
Rooting your rose cuttings
Don’t wait too long to put your rose cuttings into soil so that they stay hydrated. The more hydrated your cuttings are the faster they will take to grow. To help your roots take even faster you can dip your cuttings in a rooting hormone powder or gel. Chat to the folks at your local nursery to help you out. You’ll also want to make sure that you have nutrient rich soil to plant your cuttings. Ideally, you’ll want to have the spot you’d like to grow your roses prepared in advance to ensure that your cuttings don’t dry out.
Loosen up the soil so that new roots don’t have to work too hard to grow and plant your cuttings at least 4 inches deep. Use a stick or pencil to create your planting hole and once you’ve planted your cutting you should firm up the soil around it so that it remains steady. Make sure to keep each cutting around 8 inches apart and water the soil thoroughly when you’re done. In order to ensure that your cuttings don’t dry out during rooting you can place jars or plastic bags over them in order to hold the moisture in. You’ll want to water the soil every other day to keep it moist. Avoid overwatering.
Roses are hungry plants so you should feed them well with a slow-release fertiliser. Your roses should begin to root in around 2 weeks.
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