How is chrysanthemum cuttings carried out?

Gardeners love chrysanthemums because their flowering continues when the rest of the flora is already dormant. This plant can be easily propagated using several methods: seed, bush division and cuttings. Our today's material will be devoted to the last mentioned method.

So, what is attractive about cutting garden chrysanthemums? The advantage of this breeding option is to obtain a seedling even from a rare spherical bouquet. Unlike seed sowing, the culture will be able to preserve absolutely all varietal characteristics.

Features of rooting cuttings of garden chrysanthemum:

• rooting of a small-flowered representative is faster than a large-flowered one;
• rooting is much worse in chrysanthemums, which have a thick and fleshy stem;
• the period of cuttings has a direct effect on the size of the crop, therefore, the previously planted planting material is a guarantee of high chrysanthemum.

Chrysanthemum can be cut at different times of the year. The term has a direct dependence on the type of plant, therefore, when grafting, it is worth considering whether this plant is single-stem, multi-stem, small-flowered or large-flowered.

This breeding method has 2 ways of implementation.

• Harvesting in the fall of the uterine shrub, from which you can get shoots in the spring. Often the large-flowered variety is capable of producing from 8 to 16 cuttings, and the small-flowered variety - from 20 to 30. To prepare a mother culture, it is necessary to cut off the above-ground part of the plant before frost sets in. The cut should be at a height of 5 centimeters from the soil. The chrysanthemum is dug up and placed in an appropriate container. The root system should be covered with substrate or sand and sent to a cool place, for example, a cellar.
• Repeated pruning of the stems in the summer.

Spring cuttings are carried out in accordance with the ripening of flowers, namely from March to May. Early varieties should be planted as early as possible. Cuttings are separated from the mother culture and placed in the ground throughout the summer. In the fall, the bush is dug up before the onset of frost.

To carry out spring cuttings, it is worth choosing a strong shoot and freeing its lower half of foliage. The leaves that remain should be made shorter by a third, preventing the plant from decaying. In order for the chrysanthemum to delight with beauty and abundant flowering, it is worth choosing a plant with a healthy root system. A bush that was dug up in the fall must be prepared for the winter and stored at a temperature no higher than 4 degrees Celsius, otherwise unwanted shoots will appear.

The duration of rooting in a culture is as follows:

• landing January-March - from 20 to 25 days;
• landing April-May - from 16 to 17 days.

For the reproduction procedure, it is necessary to break off stem cuttings of the required size with developed leaves in the amount of 4 pieces. Do not take a weak, lignified branch with nearby internodes. It is best to choose a shank that does not have a hard or overly soft base.

The size of the cutting is directly influenced by the state of the chrysanthemum:

• at early stages of reproduction, a soft, non-lignified stalk should be 7 centimeters long, if you take the process shorter, then the development of decay processes is possible;
• at a late breeding period, 5-centimeter cuttings are chosen.

In order for the rooting of chrysanthemum cuttings at home to be successful, you will need to choose a suitable container. In this case, it is worth giving preference to shallow wide pots. Such a capacity contributes to the normal development of the root system, and also prevents its decay. After transplanting a flower into a large flowerpot, you can observe its active growth.

When planting chrysanthemum cuttings, do not use soil from the garden or vegetable garden, as it may contain parasite larvae or bacteria. This culture likes loose, nutritious soil; you should not take poor, dense and heavy soil for cultivation. It is better to buy the substrate in the store, but if this is not possible, then you can cook it yourself. For this purpose, the following components are mixed:

• universal soil for indoor vegetation with perlite;
• sand;
• coconut fiber.

A box with plantings should be stored at a temperature of 15 to 18 degrees Celsius. The room should have good illumination, since a lack of light can lead to the death of the planting material. Artificial light sources can be used if necessary.

In order for future flowers to take root well, they need high humidity. To increase it, the box with cuttings should be covered with a film. The coating is removed after the appearance of young roots on the crop.

If it is necessary to cut off the broken off shoot, it is recommended to disinfect the equipment before planting. Such an event prevents the spread of infections. If the breeding time is early, then the cut should be sprinkled with talc, which is mixed with growth stimulants. In this case, 1 g of talc falls on 3–6 mg of the substance. For late planting, the above procedures are not required.

For planting a cutting, it is worth preparing a soil with good air and water permeability. The best option is the use of peat mixed with sand, perlite, vermiculite with sand, as well as the following mixtures:

• in equal parts sod land, sand, peat;
• turf, leafy soil, sand in a ratio of 2: 1: 1;
• a mixture of thoroughly rotted sandy compost soil and peat, while maintaining a ratio of 1: 3.

For propagation by cuttings and planting, the gardener should level the 10-centimeter layer of the substrate, compact it and cover it with 2 centimeters of washed sand. Before and after planting, the soil is well moistened.

To root chrysanthemum cuttings, they should be planted to a depth of no more than 15 millimeters. Thus, the resulting root system will be in the fed layer. During planting, you need to use a peg, thanks to which the base will not be injured. Do not forget about keeping the distance between the cuttings:

• landing from January to March - 5 by 5 centimeters;
• landing from April to May - 4 by 4 centimeters.

In order for the planting material to take root well, it is necessary to maintain an optimal and constant microclimate in the room with a temperature of 18 to 20 degrees Celsius. It is best to build a plastic wrap dome over the landing. Such a greenhouse will be able to provide the plants with the necessary moisture.

While keeping young chrysanthemums under a film shelter, they do not need abundant irrigation. Gardeners who decide to grow a flower should observe that the soil is moist, but not wet. Waterlogging can cause the development of a fungal disease. After rooting the cuttings, their intensive growth is observed, so that the plants do not interfere with each other, they are dived.In this case, the distance between the chrysanthemums must be at least 8 centimeters. Excess vegetation should be planted separately.

Also, young chrysanthemums need watering and fertilization every 7 days. Do not forget that after rooting, you need to remove the film. It is worth sheltering the culture at night and in excessive heat. A month after planting, the flowers can be fed with fertilizers with a nitrogen base in the amount of 1 tbsp. l. for 10 liters of water.

According to gardeners' reviews, it is not difficult to grow a chrysanthemum and propagate it by cuttings. In this case, the use of growth stimulants is optional, since the root system of the plant is capable of growing independently. With the proper organization of a variety of chrysanthemum beds, you can become the owner of a beautiful and bright island. Reproduction of this flower using cuttings is not a difficult process, everyone can cope with this task. And planting chrysanthemums with different flowering periods is an opportunity to breed a blooming flower bed, which will delight with its originality before the onset of frost.

For information on how to carry out cuttings, see the next video.