Azalea - propagation by cuttings at home
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Blooming azalea (azalea), also known as rhododendron, is sure to be a decoration of the garden. Over time, the number of plants on the site can be increased if you master the technique of bush propagation. Experienced gardeners are well aware that there are many ways to get new plants. However, each method used has subtleties that only connoisseurs of garden rhododendrons know about.
How to propagate an azalea at home
There are 4 methods of propagation of azaleas: seeds, cuttings, layering and division of the mother bush.
Seed propagation is a long and laborious process. It will take a lot of patience and time to see how an azalea grown from seed blooms. Therefore, flower growers prefer propagation by cuttings or layering, which is much faster.
Azalea bush in the garden
Growing azaleas from seeds
Experienced gardeners rarely use the azalea seed propagation method due to its laboriousness and low productivity. Having chosen this method of plant breeding, the following conditions must be strictly observed:
- create a greenhouse effect;
- use a special substrate;
- maintain a high level of humidity;
- provide constant lighting (especially from September to April).
An important stage in the cultivation of garden azalea seeds is to choose the right planting material.
In order for the reproduction of an azalea flower from seeds to be successful, when buying seeds, you should pay attention to the fact that the products must be certified, with good shelf life, and have a strong packaging without damage. Do not hesitate to get advice from the seller about the best variety and the number of seeds in the package in order to correctly calculate the required number of plants for growing.
Azalea seeds
It is better to sow seeds in spring (March-April), when daylight hours increase. If you start planting earlier (in February), you need to use phytolamps for continuous lighting at home. Any container is suitable for sowing (low containers, cups or special planting pots for seedlings), the main thing is to choose the right size depending on the number of seeds sown and pay attention to the presence of several drainage holes at the bottom of the container.
The substrate can be prepared independently from equal parts of sand, peat, humus, turf and deciduous soil. The soil is necessarily acidified (pH 4-4.5). It is allowed to buy a ready-made substrate for rhododendrons in specialized flower shops.
After preparing the container, the seeds are laid out in a thin layer on the soil surface and periodically sprayed with warm water from a spray bottle, not forgetting to cover the crops with glass or polyethylene.
After all the seeds have sprouted, the greenhouse is carefully removed and a dive is carried out. The hardened sprouts are gradually brought out to the balcony for further hardening.
Separation of cuttings from the mother bush
The easiest and fastest way to get a new plant is to divide the mother bush.This method is used exclusively for breeding street azalea varieties, but it will not work for indoor plants.
The essence of the method is that the side shoots are leaned against the ground, fixed and sprinkled with earth. With regular watering, such a shoot will begin to take root and the next spring the young plant can be separated from the mother bush.
Reproduction by layering
Garden azalea: reproduction by dividing the mother bush
This method of propagation of azaleas is also very rarely used. The fact is that it is extremely difficult to completely dig out a large rhododendron bush for division. And young plants do not have a powerful root system, which is not afraid of such manipulations.
The division of a small bush of azaleas is carried out in the spring, before the start of the movement of the juice. Separation of the roots is carried out using a sharp shovel or knife. The resulting cuttings are transplanted to a new place.
Growing azaleas by cuttings
The best time to propagate azaleas by cuttings is March or April. The grafting process takes 1.5 - 4 months. For this method, apical cuttings 7-10 cm long are used.
For the successful rooting of shoots, special conditions must be created.
The soil surface must always be moist. After about 1.5 months, the rooted shoots can be planted in open ground.
Azalea cuttings
What is grafting
The method of vegetative propagation of a plant, when a part (cuttings) separated from the parent plant is used, is called cuttings.
The method of cuttings has been used as propagation of plants for about 150 years. This method is widely used in indoor floriculture and ornamental gardening, forestry, etc.
Reproduction by stem cuttings is the main method of obtaining planting material for some fruit, berry and ornamental species (currants, grapes, etc.). this process of growing crops requires certain conditions. Cutting cuttings is best during active growth of shoots, and growth stimulants are used for rapid rooting of cuttings.
There are several techniques for cutting cuttings, depending on the plant's rooting capabilities. This can be a cut in internodes, hammer-like, nodal, etc.).
Features of growing various varieties of azalea cuttings
There are many similarities in how different varieties of azalea reproduce. The cut of the cutting can be either straight or oblique. For rooting, a mixture of peat substrate with sand is mainly used with the use of drugs that stimulate growth. It is also important to control the acidity of the substrate - it must be acidic. Before planting the petioles, the soil should be treated with fungicides to prevent the development of infectious diseases during the rooting process.
Cuttings of evergreen azalea shrubs must be ripe - if the shoot breaks with a characteristic crackle of wood, then it is suitable for cuttings. The cuttings should have a formed bud that has completed vegetative development, the leaves should also be formed, of normal size.
After separating the cuttings from the mother bush, they act as follows:
- The stalk is immersed in a solution with a growth stimulator for 10-15 hours.
- Then it is deepened into the substrate by 2-3 cm.
- The soil is well compacted and covered with foil.
Rooting of cuttings of evergreen rhododendrons continues for 4 months, after which they sit for another 2 months before they begin to grow. The film can be removed when the cuttings have grown.
Cuttings are carried out at a temperature of +22 .. + 27 ° C with good lighting. Evergreen azalea is capable of propagating by cuttings from mid-summer to mid-autumn (from July to October).
There is a slight difference in the rooting of deciduous azaleas - the growths of the current year are taken on the cuttings, which have not yet completed development (the vegetative bud continues to grow, the apical leaves should be small, not finished their formation).
Cuttings of deciduous azalea varieties have a limited time period (approximately late June - early July).
All further steps for rooting are similar to manipulations for evergreen azalea varieties. Cuttings are placed in an acidic substrate, creating a greenhouse effect, a stable air temperature and sufficient lighting are controlled. The rooting process takes 1.5 to 4 months.
Flowering, exactly the same as on the parent bush, in young plants obtained by cuttings, occurs 2 - 3 years after planting with proper care of the bush.
Rooted cuttings of azalea
Step-by-step instructions on how to propagate an azalea using cuttings
Propagation by cuttings is a laborious process that can sometimes take up to 4 months. But all other methods are even more complicated and require more effort from the owner.
The optimal time for cuttings is the beginning of spring, although this is not prohibited at any other period. Experienced gardeners recommend propagation by cuttings for the azalea bush according to the following algorithm of actions:
- Cut the cuttings at least 10 cm in length, removing the lower leaves.
- Treat the slices with a growth stimulant.
- Deepen all cuttings into the substrate by 3 cm and moisten it well.
- Create a mini greenhouse with a film or plastic cup.
- Start airing the plants after a week for 15 minutes a day.
After successful rooting, the seedlings are transferred to containers with suitable acidic soil, and a year later they are planted in open ground.
Rooting stalk
Difficulties and problems when breeding azaleas
When propagating azaleas at home, growers may face difficulties such as rotting cuttings, lack of rooting and growth, or the death of seed.
The reasons for decay may be that diseased shoots were used, or an unsuitable substrate infected with infections, a low temperature of air and water used for irrigation.
The lack of growth and rooting of the cuttings can occur if a cuttings with inappropriate vegetative development were taken for cultivation. As a rule, such offshoots are doomed to death.
Of all the methods of propagation of azaleas, cuttings are considered the most affordable, since the plant requires frequent pruning and formation of a bush, there will always be enough planting material. Subject to all the conditions and given the capricious nature of the plant, you can still propagate the azalea yourself at home and, thereby, decorate your site with beautiful bright bushes.
