Vegetative Plant Propagation

Master Gardener Training

What is Plant Propagation

• Plant propagation is the process of artificially or naturally propagating (distributing or spreading) plants

Vegetative Propagation

• Vegetative propagation methods include:

• Cuttings

• Layering

• Division

• Grafting and budding

• Tissue culture

PROPAGATION

of plants by Cuttingsof plants by Cuttings

Cuttings

• Cuttings involve removing a piece from the parent plant and that piece then regrows the lost parts or tissues.

• New plants can be grown from parts of plants because each living plant cell contains the ability to duplicate all plant parts and functions.

Stock Plants

• The parent plants used in asexual propagation.

• Herbaceous cuttings• Softwood cuttings• Hardwood cuttings• Other forms of cuttings

are leaf cuttings and root cuttings

Stock Plants (cont’d.)

• High humidity, indirect light and soil temperatures of 70 to 80 degrees F are best for most cuttings

Trademarks• Trademarked plants may be

marked by the symbols - ® and ™.

• Trademarks remain in effect for 10 years and may be renewed indefinitely in 10- year increments• Propagation of trademarked

plants may be done asexually by taking cuttings

• You can use the cultivar name but cannot use the trademarked name such as Wave Petunias

Trademarks• Rosa 'Korlanum' is marketed under three

different trademark names, each owned by a different company, SurreyTM, SommerwindTM, and Vente D'eteTM.

Surrey Summer Wind Vente D’ete

Plant Patents• Propagation of patented plants

in any way, shape or form without the owner's permission or until the patent term has expired, is strictly prohibited by federal law.

• Patents are for 17 or 20 years and are not renewable.

• Website with more plant patent details than you could need• http://www.uspto.gov/web/

offices/pac/plant/Jack Frost Brunnera

Cercis ‘Ruby Falls’ (USPP 22097)

List of plant patents held and applied for by Plant Havenhttp://www.planthaven.com/pdfs/planthavenpatentlist.pdf

Types of Cuttings

• Leaf cuttings• Root cuttings• Herbaceous stem

cuttings• Softwood cuttings• Semi-hardwood

cuttings• Hardwood cuttings

Leaf Cuttings

• Plants that can be propagated using leaf cuttings • include African violets, begonias, sedum, jade and

Peperomia.

Crassula streyi

Jade plant

Root Formation on Leaf Cuttings• Leaf Cuttings

• Must initiate both a new root and a new shoot system

(Cytokynins)

(Auxin)

Chimera• Cells of more than

one genotype (genetic makeup) are found growing adjacent in the tissues of that plant

Types Stem Cuttings

• Herbaceous• Softwood• Semi-Hardwood

(greenwood)• Hardwood

• Deciduous• Narrowleaf evergreen• Broadleaf evergreen

Stem Cuttings

• Houseplants • Callus• No flower buds• Cutting 2-4 inches long with 2-3 leaves• Remove lower leaves (not needed in media)• Poke hole in media/prevents shifting of hormone• Rooting hormone (auxin) in powder or liquid

form• Plastic Tent/Indirect light

Stem Cuttings (cont’d.)

Preparing the cutting

Planting the cutting

Herbaceous Cuttings• Made from non-woody,

herbaceous plants• Herbaceous perennials, annuals

• 3 to 5” piece of stem is cut from the parent plant

• Leaves on the lower one-third to one-half of the stem are removed

• High percentage of the cuttings root, and they do so quickly.

Softwood Cuttings• Softwood cuttings are taken from

first-year branches

• Late spring/early summer

• Emerging shoots

• However not so green that it wilts immediately after being cut

• Use diagonal cut

• Make cuttings 2 - 5” long with several nodes

• Cuts slightly below a leaf node

Softwood Cuttings

• Rooting time may vary from 7-10 days to 3-5 weeks or more depending on genus

• Tug test

• Reduce mist after rooting to prevent rot

Semi-Hardwood Cuttings• Broadleaf and needled

evergreens, deciduous trees/shrubs

• Time varies based on cutting type

• 3-6” long

Semi-Hardwood Cuttings

• Most needled evergreens benefit from cold temperatures

Type of Cutting Best Time to Cut

Broadleaf Evergreens Mid-July to early September

Deciduous Summer

Needled Evergreens September into Winter

Hardwood CuttingsTypes

• Deciduous• Lost leaves Oct./Nov. and

carry through to late winter• Last season’s growth• 6-20” long• See methods to right• Bottom heat beneficial

• Broadleaf Evergreen• Jan. - March

• Needled Evergreen• Late fall and winter –

greenhouse conditions• 4-8” long

Hardwood Cuttings

Hardwood cutting

Hardwood CuttingsManipulation

• Bottom heat• Plastic Bag• Winter treatment• Warm temperature• Outdoor ground beds

• w/bottom heat

Hardwood Cuttings – Winter Treatment• Cuts at a slant, 5 to 12 inches

long• Treat with rooting hormone• Bundle together buried

outside or in suitable structure with tops down in sand/sawdust or soil level

• Callus • In spring, plant cuttings in a

hotbed or other protected site with morning sun exposure or filtered light.

• Keep cuttings moist until a root system forms

Root Formation on Leaf-Bud, Herbaceous, Softwood and

Hardwood Cuttings• Only necessary

that a new adventitious root system be formed• Shoot system is

already present

Root Cuttings• Take cuttings from newer root

growth• Dormant season (Dec.-March)• Younger plants/closer to main

stems/trunk – better rooting• Roots can be dug, cleaned,

“fungicided” and stored• Must retain polarity while storing

• Closest to stem (proximal)– straight cut and planted “upright”

• Distal End – Slanted cut

Root Cuttings

• Store cuttings for 3 weeks in moist rooting medium at 40 degrees F.

• Remove from storage and plant upright in the growing medium or horizontally in flats covered with ½” of medium

• Bottom heat may prove beneficial

Root Cuttings

• If root cuttings are taken during active growth, skip the storage period and place cuttings directly in the rooting medium.

• For smaller plants, take 1- to 2-inch sections and place cuttings horizontally a half inch below the surface of the rooting medium.

Root Formation in Root Cuttings• Must initiate both a new

shoot system from an adventitious bud as well as adventitious roots

• Used to propagate plants that naturally produce suckers (new shoots) from their roots

• Naturally free of foliar pests or nematodes

Plants that can be propagated by root cuttings

• Acanthus mollis• Amsonia• Brugmansia • Chaenomeles speciosa\• Cornus stolonifera • Dicentra species• Echinops• Epimedium• Ficus carica• Geranium spp. • Hydrangea spp. • Malus spp. • Phlox spp.• Populus alba• Rhus spp. • Rosa spp. • Syringa vulgaris

•               

Layering

• Layering causes roots to develop on shoots that are still attached to the parent plant.

• The stem is not cut from the main plant until it has rooted.

• Simple layering is done by bending a branch to the ground and burying a portion of it while the tip remains uncovered.

• Treatment with rooting hormone is helpful.

Layering, continued

• Layering is done in early spring while plants are still dormant or in late summer on wood that has not become woody.

• Other types of layering include compound, trench and mound layering.

Air Layering

• Air layering can be used to propagate large, overgrown house plants such as rubber plants.

• Woody ornamentals such as azalea, camellia, magnolia, oleander, and holly can also be propagated by air layering.

Air Layering, continued

• For optimum rooting, make air layers in the spring on shoots produced during the previous season or in mid to late summer on shoots from the current season’s growth.

• For woody plants, stems of pencil size diameter or larger are best.

• Choose an area just below a node and remove leaves and twigs on the stem 3 to 4 inches above and below this point.

Air Layering, continued

• With a sharp knife, make two parallel cuts about an inch apart around the stem and through the bark and cambium layer.

• Connect the two parallel cuts with one long cut and remove the ring of bark, leaving the inner woody tissue exposed.

• Scrape the newly bared ring to remove the cambial tissue to prevent a bridge of callus tissue from forming.

Air Layering, continued

• Surround the wound with moist, unmilled sphagnum moss (about a handful) that has been soaked in water and squeezed to remove excess moisture.

• Wrap the moss with plastic and hold in place with twist ties or electrician’s tape.

• Fasten each end of the plastic securely, to retain moisture and to prevent water from entering.

• After the rooting medium is filled with roots, sever the stem below the medium and pot the layer.

Division

• Division is the cutting or breaking up of a crown or clump of suckers into segments.

• Each segment must have a bud and some roots.

• These segments are replanted and grow into new plants identical to the parent.

Division

• Most perennials should be lifted and divided when they become overgrown and begin to lose vigor.

• Vigorous growth in most perennials occurs on the outer segments of the clump.

• Carefully dig the plant, loosening the roots and lifting the plant from the soil.

• Split apart the main clump with two spades or forks or chop with a shovel or hatchet if the clump is firmly massed.

Division

• In some cases outside segments of the plant can be removed and replanted without disturbing the rest of the plant.

• A good rule of thumb is to divide fall-flowering perennials in spring and spring- and summer-flowering perennials in fall.

Bulbs and Corms• Bulbs can be propagated by

removing small bulblets or offsets that form at the base of the parent bulb.

• These small bulbs take 2 or 3 years to mature into plants that flower.

• Many lilies can be multiplied by removing scales from the mature bulb.

Bulb (Tulips)

Corm (Crocus)

Bulbs and Corms

• Place offsets in rich, light soil for their development, and this same procedure should be followed for plants which form from corms, such as gladiolus.

• Dust the scale with a fungicide and place, base end down, in a moist growing medium in a warm, protected area. Bulblets will form at the base of the scale.

• In 1 to 4 years these bulblets will grow and be ready to flower.

Tubers and Rhizomes

• Tuberous plants can be dug up and the tubers separated.

• In separating the tubers, each must have a segment of the crown that contains at least one eye or bud.

• Rhizomes grow and develop buds along their length.

• The rhizomes can be dug and cut into sections that each contain at least one eye or bud.

Tubers

Rhizomes

Grafting

• Grafting involves the joining of different segments of two different plants of the same species.

• Grafting is usually done in the spring and involves collecting small branches called scion wood

• In grafting, the cambium layers of the two different segments are aligned and grow together.

Grafting (cont’d.)• Grafting allows gardeners to

produce plants identical to a parent plant.

• It also allows growers to control size and shape of a tree or shrub.

• On the negative side, some grafting attempts will be rejected.

• Some grafted trees or plants produce large numbers of suckers which can crowd out the desired plant or tree and are unsightly.

Budding or Bud Grafting

• Bud grafting is faster, easier and less messy than other forms of grafting. Cambium layers do not need to be aligned.

• Bud grafting is done from early July through early August.

• This method uses a newly developed latent bud, taken from under a live leaf.

Micropropagation or Tissue Culture

• Each plant cell has the potential to grow into a new plant exactly like the parent.

• In tissue culture, individual or small groups of plant cells are manipulated so they each produce a new plant.

• A tiny piece of bud, leaf or stem can produce incredible numbers of new plants in a small space in a short time.

Micropropagation or Tissue Culture• The advantages of tissue culture, in addition to speed

and efficiency of propagation, include production of disease-free plants and new plants can be made available to the public more quickly because of tissue culture.

• Absolutely sterile conditions must be maintained, and temperature, light, humidity and atmosphere are strictly controlled with electronic sensors and computerized controls.

Questions?