Geranium & Pelargonium Society of Western Australia
  • Home
    • About Us
    • Sale Days
    • Contact Us
  • Plant Types
    • Geranium or Pelargonium
    • Pelargonium Types
    • Pelargonium History
    • Plant descriptions >
      • Ivy Pelargoniums >
        • Variegated Ivies
    • Image Gallerys >
      • Regals A - H
      • Regals L - Z
      • Zonal Pelargoniums >
        • Coloured Leaf zonals
      • Ivy Leaved Pelargoniums
    • Video Descriptions
  • Articles
    • Breeding Deacons
    • Geelong Botanical Gardens
    • Gold Coin Nursery
    • Cascading Pelargoniums
    • Scrambling Pelargoniums
    • P. Peltatum & Heat Tolerance
  • Plant Care
    • Geranium rust
    • Pelargonium Propagations >
      • Ivy cuttings video
      • Growing Plants
      • My Propagation Method
      • Hybridising Pelargoniums
      • Growing from seeds
    • Low pH deficiencies
  • Links
    • Garden Events
    • Web Links
    • Facebook Links
  • Members Only
    • Mr Pelargonium Videos >
      • Beginners Corner
      • Shaping young plants
      • Trimming back Regals
      • Big Pot Clean up
      • Neglected plants
      • Want Bushy Zonal
      • Zonal Stopping
      • Pelargoniums early winter
      • Potting young plants
      • Angels in winter
      • Planting baskets
      • Pruning roots hard
      • Some Favorites
    • Plants/cuttings wanted
    • Garden Archives
    • For Sale/Wanted
    • Past Events
  • Society Archives
    • GAPSWA Library >
      • Book Reviews
    • GAPSWA Notes
    • Newsletters
    • Meeting Minutes >
      • General meeting minutes
      • Archived minutes
      • Horticultural Council
    • The Rules
  • Library review template
  • Non-clickable Page

My Geranium & Pelargonium Propagation Method


by Jane Fletcher
​

INTRODUCTION:  This is a distillation of lots of experimentation (and lots of failures) and reading around the subject of cloning and propagation of geraniums and pelargoniums over the last two years. 
​This method has worked for me, over and over again, with good results. 
Supplies:  Small clean pots Generally the smaller the better.  Usually 7cm x 5 cm pre-fill pots and put them in a quarter filled with potting mix kitty litter tray.

Propagation mixture  I use 50% finest Perlite and 50% Osmocote Seed Raising Mix.  (Wear mask when using Perlite) Wet mixture with water BEFORE planting the cuttings.  Moist but not dripping. 

​Kitty Litter Tray $3-$4 from Kmart, Red Dot, Reject Shop etc.  Put 3 cm of propagation mixture in the bottom of the kitty litter tray.  The benefit this deep tray with propagation mix in the bottom is that if you over water the cuttings the water drains away from the small pot and they don’t sit in water.  The small cuttings seem to survive much better when they are all together in the deep tray.  There must never be wet propagation mixture under the cuttings, damp only.

​
Stanley Knife with a fresh SHARP blade.  NEVER BLUNT (Crushes the stem and then plant dies) To clean blade wipe with methylated spirits between cuttings.
Picture
Picture
Take Cuttings: Ideally, you want to end up with cuttings that are 10cm-15cm (4-6”) long with 2-4 healthy leaves up top.  Choose a new stem that is green and fresh and the nodes are relatively close together.  Cut just below the leaf node on a slight angle with a clean blade.  Try to have two nodes above ground and two nodes below ground.
Picture
Prepare for Planting:  Remove any flower and bud stems. 
Remove leaves from the bottom 6-8 cm (2-3”). 
Keep at least 2-4 leaves at top of plant. 
​Dip the base in white willow bark powder (my preference only) 
​
Picture
knock off excess powder, dust any wounds on stem from where leaves were removed and flower stems removed with Dusting Sulphur. 
 
Planting:  Using a dibber make a hole in the propagation mixture in the tube and insert the prepared plant stem gently.  Gently press down the mixture to secure the cutting.  Bury deep enough so that at least two bare leaf nodes are in the propagation mixture. 
 
First location after being planting:  I place kitty litter tray full of cuttings on a table in an undercover al fresco area (no rain, no sun, no wind), in a BRIGHTLY lit area for one week.  Then on a table closer to morning sun (no afternoon sun/heat, no wind) for another two weeks (approx.) then on a table which receives morning sun until roots appear at base of pot.
 
Watering your cuttings:  As the propagation mixture is ALREADY MOIST there is no need to water after planting.  Generally, I don’t water for about 5 days after planting unless it is very hot.  Then, when the little pot looks dry on the top and feels light,  I water with about 20ml of water per little pot.  If a pot still looks damp or feels heavy, I don’t water it.  I have lost more cuttings to over watering than to under watering.  As temperatures increase watch the cuttings closely ie a few times a week and water sparingly as needed.  When temperatures are over 30°C spray mist the cuttings with water every couple of hours during the hottest part of the day as well.
 
Fertilizing your cuttings: When I see tiny new growth on the top of the cuttings, and the plants are dry enough to warrant a watering, I use a  weak solution of Thrive.  Thereafter, I use this  weak Thrive solution to water the cuttings. 
 
Potting on:  When your plant is growing plenty of new leaves and also roots are starting to grow out the bottom of the little pots and into the soil at the base of the tray then it is time to pot on to the next size up.  Only ever pot up in small increments otherwise it is easy for your little plant to be over watered and not survive. 
Picture

  About Us                    Facebook                  Links                       Contact us                             


​All images on this website are © Copyright, and may not be used without permission.