High-quality boxwood from the nursery is expensive, which is why a longer edging or hedge in the garden can be expensive. With a little patience, however, you can grow the plants you need yourself. All you need is a healthy mother plant.

Propagation from cuttings is the fastest

Boxwood can be propagated by cuttings

Boxwood is best propagated from cuttings or buds, which are relatively easy to root. All you need is a little patience, because it can take six or more months for the slow-growing boxwood to develop the first tender roots. In principle, propagation via seeds is also possible, although this is complicated and too tedious for the layman. The perfect time for cutting cuttings is from June to August: by this time, the new shoots are already well mature and less susceptible to fungal infections. Shoots that have been inserted now usually only take root in the following spring and then sprout for the first time.

Propagation of cuttings in boxwood - step by step

The easiest way is for so-called cracklings to take root, which you win and pocket as follows:

  • First select some stronger shoots with many side shoots.
  • The side shoots should be at least two years old and ten centimeters long.
  • Tear off the side shoots so that the branch ring remains on the cutting.
  • This is where the roots develop.
  • All leaves are plucked off in the lower third of the cutting.
  • Dip the lower end first in a glass of water and then in a rooting preparation.
  • You can put large cuttings directly into a prepared garden bed.
  • Loosen this thoroughly and improve the soil with mature compost.
  • The soil should always be kept slightly moist.
  • Too much moisture, however, causes the cuttings to rot.
  • The lower third of the cuttings should be completely buried in the ground.
  • A cover with fir branches is sufficient as winter protection against frost.

Very small cuttings are best rooted in a mini greenhouse, which you place either on the windowsill or in a spot in the garden that is not too sunny. These plants will root more easily if you cover the planter with a transparent hood to keep the humidity high. Regular airing and watering is important for root growth and should therefore not be forgotten.

tips

Choose the cuttings as large as possible, as boxwood grows very slowly and otherwise takes an extremely long time to reach an acceptable height for borders or hedges. Lengths between 20 and 30 centimeters are ideal.

Category:

Vegetable garden