How to cultivate plants thanks to a technique, that of cuttings called “vegetative cloning”.
When it comes to cultivation, almost all of us imagine the standard technique, that is the traditional one. The one that provides for the seed and the care of the plant.
In this article we will highlight another way and therefore another technique that can come in very handy. Useful if we talk about cultivating and multiplying a plant.
Obviously you need to know how to act and take into consideration some main aspects that can make the difference in the success of the technique itself. In this article we will try to do just that, to understand how to implement it and therefore its procedure.
The cutting technique: an alternative method
From an early age we all learn that to cultivate and multiply a plant it is necessary to plant the seed and then take care of it. This is surely a valid basic principle in agriculture as it is true.
In order to grow plants it is necessary to start from their seed. Undoubtedly it is a rather expensive and above all demanding method as it is necessary to take care of the plant in every step.
The way of planting a plant from seed is the most widespread but it is certainly not the only existing way. An alternative method is what is referred to as cuttings ; it is a rather widespread vegetative multiplication technique as it is very quick and simple. The results are optimal and guaranteed: you will be able to see your plants multiplied even quite quickly.
The rapid times, however, is not the only advantage of this technique. Another advantage of the cutting technique is that of obtaining new specimens genetically identical to the mother plant.
Here it can be defined, therefore, a vegetative cloning . Precisely for this advantage, this technique is used above all when you have a rare plant; the cutting allows to multiply it in a safe way.
For all these reasons it is certainly a technique to know and to put into practice even with your own plants. How to do? This article will talk about the cutting technique in all its steps.
Cuttings: what do we need to know?
The advantages of the cutting technique have been mentioned in the previous part of the article. This certainly makes this technique quite fascinating for those who want to multiply their plant, without necessarily using the seed.
At this point one might ask: how is the cutting carried out? If the plant doesn’t come from the seed, what does it come from? This technique consists in taking the twigs of the chosen plant. To do this, you need to eliminate the basal leaves and obtain, in fact, the twig. This sprig must have a length of about 10-15 cm therefore not very long; they will need to be longer only in the case of olive or fig branches.
Once cut, therefore, it will be necessary to place these twigs in small jars or in some other container that has soil inside. Once placed in these containers, it will be necessary to place them in a lighted place and according to the season it can also be placed in the open air or in a sheltered place.
Once this is done you will have to wait. Over time, in fact, the twigs will produce roots as rooting hormones will be produced.
Obviously the time required for rooting will depend on the season and also on the type of branch that you want to multiply.
The number of twigs to be pruned and then placed in the jars will depend on your needs. The advice, however, is to proceed with a higher number than desired.
Because? Because not all twigs are said to be able to take root. In this way, therefore, it will still be possible to multiply the desired plant.
There is no best time to practice cutting as it is an operation that can be performed at various times of the year. Surely the full summer season should be avoided, due to the excessive heat, and also the full winter due to the low temperatures.
What should be the mother plant?
Surely it must be specified that it is not possible to proceed with the multiplication of any type of plant; this is because it’s results may be less than satisfactory.
Furthermore, as mentioned, with cuttings the plants obtained are identical to the mother plants . Also for this reason it will be necessary to choose the plant to choose optimally. For example, you can choose to exploit this technique for aromatic plants such as rosemary, sage, mint and lavender.
Another typology that certainly makes excellent use of cuttings is the fruit and ornamental one. For the latter type, for example, a plant often chosen for cutting is buddleia, forsythia, rose and also wisteria.
For example, another type of cutting that is often implemented is the tomato one. It is implemented when the females are eliminated which can therefore be used to extend them and create new ones. The females are very useful as they are used to create extracts that are used for pesticides.
- Cutting: how to multiply plants from a twig (ortodacoltivare.it)
