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Tips for the transplanted gardener

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STUART —
If you are new to gardening in Florida, and aren’t sure how you are ever going to master the art of transplanting all of this, read on for some tips to help you get started.

Assuming you are from somewhere to the north, perhaps you are wondering how you’ll be able to do without such wonderful plants as forsythia, lilac and daffodils. Don’t be homesick. This is a gardener’s paradise! For every plant you can’t grow here, there is a new one to replace it. You can grow most of the annuals during the winter as well as some of the familiar perennials. And you can grow vegetables too.

This is the time of year to get started. It’s a reverse season. The cool season vegetables such as broccoli, peas, spinach, etc. can be planted starting in October. Tomatoes and the warm season vegetables can be started in August. In addition, we can grow oranges, lemons, limes, mangos, bananas and more that they can only dream of up north.

I come from Massachusetts and having gardened there for many years, I wondered how I would ever relearn all this. I am now 15 years into it and still learning, picking up new things every day. To speed up the process I first of all encourage all of you to read. There are large quantities of information available. The University of Florida website http://solutionsforyourlife.ufl.edu/ has a seemingly infinite amount of information on exactly the things you need to know. There are lots of wonderful books on Florida gardening in the libraries as well as at bookstores. Books are great sources for plant identifications.

Consider a subscription to Florida Gardening magazine. It has a calendar of all the upcoming gardening shows and plant sales around the state as well as pertinent articles by experts in the field.

The Stuart News has an informative and timely gardening article by Carol Cloud Bailey on Sundays in the At Home section. Look out for announcements in the paper on the Florida Yard lecture series and Master Gardener events at local libraries. There are several Florida Yards lectures scheduled on vegetable gardening in October. These are hosted by Fred Burkey, Florida Yards and Neighborhoods Agent. Burkey also hosts the television program, “Your Florida Yard,” which airs frequently on Martin County television, MCTV.

In addition, reach out to local gardeners. Come in and talk with the Master Gardeners at the Martin County Extension Service. We can help you with all your questions and solve the mystery of what disease or insect might be bothering your plants. Perhaps you’d like to work on becoming a Master Gardener, learn about native plants and help spread the word about good gardening practices that don’t harm the environment.

Go to plant shows. There are several wonderful plant shows coming up where you can meet experts in their field. One is at Heathcote Botanical Gardens in Fort Pierce November 17-18, and another is at the Mounts Botanical Garden in West Palm Beach on November 3- 4. The Tropical Ranch Botanical Gardens on Ranch Trail in Stuart is another option, they have year-round events with plants for sale.

In the near future, the Martin County Master Gardeners is having its annual plant sale on Oct. 13 at the Martin County Fairgrounds, where you can pick up some unusual specimens, talk with Master Gardeners, and check out a demonstration vegetable garden and displays on hydroponic gardening.

The sale starts at 9 a.m., plan to be there early as there’s a regular following and the plants go quickly. There will be other gardening-related items for sale as well. The website for information is http://martin.ifas.ufl.edu/.

Adapting to Florida gardening is easy and fun. Take my suggestions and before you know it, you’ll be a gardening addict, like me.

Tess Murphy is a Master Gardener with the Martin County Cooperative Extension Service. To reach the Extension Service staff, visit the office at 2614 SE Dixie Highway in Stuart or call 772 288-5654.

Amdavadis gear up for designer garba

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AHMEDABAD: Shikha Desai, a design graduate is readying to sport a haute new look this season- she has got herself a designer khadi chaniya choli. “It looks completely different and is bound to make a statement. I have been wearing street wear for Navratri every year and have opted for a look that will inspire, says the youngster.

With Navratri just round the corner, fashion designers are hosting fashion shows and exhibitions of their Navratri creations. The city’s fasionistas are making sure they are not left behind when it comes to making a style statement.

For Janki Patel, 25, the Law Garden market has become old fashioned now. “I have got my pair of chaniya choli this year from ‘aagney’ exhibition. I think it is better to have a unique pair than to go for the common patterns available at the Law garden market.” Traditional gamthi works have been replaced by contemporary elegant styles with minimal usage of heavy work patterns. Halter neck, tubes, backless and stringed cholis are in. Simple and classy is the new mantra this season.

The fabrics of yesteryears are a major inspiration for designers these days. Nehal Desai, a design student from NID, who owns design studio ‘Noya’ says, “I have used Khadi this year in my creations, as I feel nothing beats Khadi when it comes to making traditional outfits. I like to contemporize the fabric by making seasonal outfits and giving it that little modern edge. I have paired up an umbrella cut Khadi skirt along with a ‘Gajhi’ silk ‘kapdu’ blouse inspired by cholis of the past. And I am glad that my Khadi outfits are selling like hot cakes.”

Chanee Thakar, who has got a tailor made chaniya choli this year from one of the designers said, “I was tired of wearing the Law Garden stuff so I decided to go for a unique traditional wear this year. My designer knows my needs and she keeps the exact details in mind while making my outfits.”

Bright shades of turquoise, lemon yellow, olive green and silk black are a favourite of the designers when it comes to making traditional outfits. “I like to use plain bright coloured chaniyas with different borders to make it look classy. I have used ‘kota patti’ borders for this season” says designer Rajvi Fadia who is hosting her exhibition currently. “We have designed only dupattas and ghaghras this time though generally we make customized cholis on order,” adds the designer.

“My collection is based on the vibrancy of colours. Navratri is a bright and vibrant festival, so I like to play with colours and use different types of materials like chanderi silk, cotton pushmina and geometrical designs in colourful duppattas with traditional bordered velvet cholis to make a chic fashion statement “, says Radhika Gandhi of Styliesta Studio.

And if you thought these designer outfits were only for adults, you are mistaken. Ripal Patel who has got two pairs of designer chaniya cholis for her 11-year old daughter Dhruvi says, “My daughter has started doing garba since the last two years and she loves wearing traditional outfits, so I decided to get her simple yet unique ghaghra cholis. One of her chaniyas is made out of pure silk with a ‘jamavaram’ border along with a silk blouse and ‘leheriya’ dupatta decorated with a border of golden ‘buttas’. The other one is a simpler pattern made out of cotton with a small ‘kutchi bharat’ patch.”

These Navratri special chaniya cholis may cost anywhere between Rs 3,000 to Rs 10,000 per pair depending on the type of material used and the seniority and popularity of the designer.

How to achieve the Colonial Williamsburg garden look – The Virginian

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By Krys Stefansky
The Virginian-Pilot
© October 8, 2012

In the 1700s, more geometry was in play in Colonial Williamsburg than the orderly grid of streets lined with squares or rectangles of half-acre lots.

Behind the town’s individual garden gates lay flower beds, vegetable gardens, lawns and walkways, many carefully arranged in neat shapes that created balance, symmetry and a predictable beauty.

Colonists certainly had other things to think about besides topiaries and garden benches painted to match their houses. But the landscaping style they knew were the gardens either they or their ancestors had left behind in Europe.

By copying the details of those elaborate and formal installations, even on a much smaller scale, they telegraphed to visitors a civilized message about how well they were doing here in the Colonies.

“In the 18th century, gardens reflected status,” said Laura Viancour, Colonial Williamsburg’s manager of landscape services. “King William and Queen Mary had both loved horticulture. And here, Governor Spotswood thought the gardens should be grand.”

By the 1700s, London fashion had moved on to more naturalistic landscapes. But, when he arrived in Williamsburg in 1710, Lt. Gov. Alexander Spotswood lavished attention on the garden surrounding the governor’s mansion to make it look like a palatial European estate. Hedges enclosed these formal gardens and shrubbery was clipped and sheared into complicated shapes.

Today, at nearly every time of year, the gardens big and small re-created in Colonial Williamsburg from evidence found in old documents or archaeological digs draw crowds of enthusiasts.

When they leave, many visitors want to take what they’ve seen home with them. Remembering certain key elements will help a home gardener achieve the Colonial look and transform a little corner or an entire yard into a nod to the past.

Geometry

Colonial-era garden beds were built on a “quincunx:” a pattern of four squares or rectangles, and a fifth, or center, compartment. Today’s small lots are easy to divide up this way. To make a plan, stand at an upper-story window.

Taking a birds-eye view is both practical and of the period.

“Gardens were designed to be viewed from above,” Viancour said, indicating the second-floor windows of the Governor’s Palace, where the wealthiest spent time. This grand garden was the one the gentry would have emulated in their smaller parcels of land nearby.

Garden design can be very simple: a square space, enclosed by a fence, one boxwood in each corner and a lawn in the center. The overall effect is very green and serene.

“Boxwood is pretty much Williamsburg,” Viancour said. “King William liked boxwood, sempervirens ‘Suffructicosa’.”

Mirroring is important: What happened on one side of a garden was mirrored or reflected on the other. So, if three trees or shrubs lined one property line, the same would be repeated on the opposite side.

Garden designers of the time created an axis with walkways – a center walkway with crosswalks. The walk provided a place to stroll as well as divided the garden into small, plantable sections. Paths were grassy, gravel, or paved with crushed shells.

And since being able to have a garden reflected a person’s social status, the use of brick could also be a clue about owner’s wallet.

“Bricks were sometimes used as edging,” Viancour said. “They were often broken pieces of brick but, still, it showed they could afford it.”

Enclosure

Hedges or fences enclosed or compartmentalized gardens. They defined spaces, kept unwanted animals out and divided flower gardens from vegetable gardens.

Fencing, more costly than live hedging, was built and painted to be similar to the house or main structure immediately nearby. Beauty and harmony were created by using similar materials. Simple garden benches, also painted to blend with the existing color scheme, were an architectural element as well as a place to rest or admire the view.

Brick walls were also typical of the time. They were expensive but, just like today, required no maintenance once installed.

Ornate gates provided a way in and out of a garden and were sometimes flanked by single trees, answering the need for balance and symmetry.

Topiary

Vertical interest came from clipping a hedge into a formal shape or pruning plants into gumdrop or ball shapes. They would also have signaled to passersby that the owner of a Colonial garden could afford help.

Large columnar shapes, yaupon holly, can be seen in the garden behind the Governor’s Palace. In a more modest garden, that sort of vertical accent might have been created by a repetition of fig or other fruit trees on either side of a garden space.

Pleached arbors, or young American beech saplings, for example, planted in two parallel rows, then woven together and where they met overhead, were another feature that required establishing, then maintaining. Their need for regular pruning by a gardener again certainly reflected an owner’s status.

“You could take this idea,” Viancour said, indicating a long arbor, “and make it smaller for a home garden and use just two trees.”

Or, as in Colonial times, plant a simple allee – two rows of trees to walk between.

Espalier, a gardening technique in which plants are trained against a vertical surface, was common in England at the time. It would have been done here to take advantage of the warming effect of the wall as well as to show affluence, since a gardener would have constantly had to keep the plant in check.

And even though today’s gardeners can buy all kinds of statuary or birdbaths to decorate their spaces, garden ornaments were not common in the average Colonial garden.

Only in the lavish garden of the Governor’s Palace did urns or stone finials top brick columns or line a path.

“You had to have resources,” Viancour said, for luxuries such as these.

The gentry’s twig trellises, wattle fences, and twig tripods provided vertical accent and plant support or containment in their small gardens. All are easy and inexpensive to copy today.

And bell jars were a practical element that protected tender plants at night but, today, would have the effect of a quaint and useful garden ornament.

Plants

“There was a big, active plant exchange in the 18th century,” Viancour said.

Getting plant cuttings or slips or even seeds from a friend or neighbor was less chancy than waiting for seeds to arrive by boat. “They had to rely on someone to ship seed over here. Seeds were often eaten by rats or damaged by saltwater before they arrived.”

Colonists mingled edibles and ornamentals, Viancour said. They did not segregate plants, which still helps today with pest problems.

Flower beds mixed colors and fruit trees did double duty as small shade trees outside of vegetable gardens.

 

Krys Stefansky, 757-446-2043, krys.stefansky@pilotonline.com

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Fresh off the vine: Tips for harvesting, storing squash

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acorn-squash.JPGAcorn squash will last up to two months if stored in 50-degree temperatures with 50 to 75 percent humidity.hubbard.JPGCourtesy PhotoHubbard squash is a winter gourd, meaning it can be stored well into the winter months.

Michigan gardeners ended September with the fall harvest still going strong, thanks to overnight cloud cover and breezes that kept the mercury from dropping below freezing.
From Garden City to Gould City, backyard gardens still are going strong.

In some respects, Cindy Neighbors welcomes a hard freeze — at least a selective freeze.

“I’ve got too many zucchinis,’’ said Neighbors, who tends a backyard garden in Gould City, about an hour west of the Mackinac Bridge in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.

Located off U.S. 2, its proximity to Lake Michigan helped keep overnight lows in September above freezing, at least in her yard.

“I have more zucchini than I know what to do with,’’ Neighbors lamented. “I bought seeds from a Farmer’s Co-Op that I thought were cucumber seeds.

“They weren’t cucumbers at all. You know what rabbits do? Well, zucchini does that also.’’
Neighbors is referring to the proliferation of baby bunnies in spring; cute furry critters that wreak havoc on gardens.

Like countless other gardeners with a surplus of zucchini, Neighbors shares the bounty with friends, neighbors and just about anyone who will take them.

Given the bountiful harvest, Neighbors even hands them out to regulars at McNeil’s Bar, which she runs in the picturesque Mackinac County community founded in 1886 and named after a lumberman.

Share the bounty

Neighbors has given away bushels of zucchini, but couldn’t pawn off her excess to Mary and Dale Lee, who stopped by McNeil’s Bar on Sept. 29 to watch the Michigan State vs. Ohio State football game.

Zucchini is one of the more prolific producers in their 80-foot by 80-foot garden in Gulliver, located in Schoolcraft County in Michigan’s U.P. They also grow potatoes, tomatoes, sweet corn, radishes, cucumbers, green beans and sunflowers.

Mary Lee is not unsympathetic to Neighbors’ plight — she had acorn squash coming out of her ears years ago when she had a garden in the Lenawee County town of Tecumseh, at the other end of the state.

“I had eight to 10 acorn squash plants and, truthfully, at the time, I was overwhelmed,’’ she said. “A lot of it we gave away, and what we had left was stored in a crawl space.’’
Good move. Acorn squash, along with butternut and hubbard are winter squash, meaning they can be stored well into the winter months.

Mature fruits have a dry, dull skin and are ready for picking when the skin cannot be punctured by a thumbnail.

Butternut and hubbard squash can be stored for more than three months. Acorn squash will last two months if stored at 50 degrees with humidity of at least 50 percent. The higher humidity helps prevent squash from shriveling.

A dark, sandy crawl space like the one beneath Lee’s home offered the perfect location.

Storage wars

“You keep them in a crawl space, and they’ll last through the winter,’’ Lee said. “We had a good dug-out with sandy soil.’’

squash.jpg

Even after three months, the flavor was just as good as the day they were harvested.
“I don’t think I noticed a difference in the taste at all,’’ Mary Lee said. “So long as they stay cool and dry, they’re fine.’’

Don’t assume your squash are ready for harvest if the vines are dead. Vines can die prematurely from disease, stress and early frost. If the fruits are immature, they will not store as well as those coming from healthy vines that die naturally.

When harvest time arrives, make sure you don’t scratch, cut or bruise the fruit; it provides an easy entrance for rot-producing organisms.

It is best to harvest winter squash when it is dry, the rind is hard and night temperatures drop below 40 degrees — but before a hard freeze.

When cutting, leave about one-inch of stem connected to the squash. And don’t pick them up by the stem; if it breaks off, you’re opening the door for rot.

Use a rag or towel to wipe dirt from skins rather than hosing them down. Winter squash must be stored dry.

If daytime temperatures are in the 70s, let them cure in a sunny, dry location for a few days before carting them inside for storage.

Storing winter squash next to apples and other ripening fruit is a no-no; tree fruits release ethylene gas which shortens the storage life of squash.

And if you have too much to store, try freezing it.

It was a godsend for Neighbors, with her errant, excess zucchini.

“I skin it, remove the seeds and grate it to use for zucchini bread or to add to other recipes,’’ she said. “It freezes well.

“I don’t do a lot of baking, but I have a lot of girlfriends who bake, so I give it away — especially when I grow it by accident.’’

Email: jjhogan001@gmail.com

Shanghai Yu Garden

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<!–enpproperty 2012-10-08 15:29:42.0Shanghai Yu Gardenshanghai, Yu Garden, travel11059095Shanghai2@webnews/enpproperty–>

    

Yu Garden, a classical garden in downtown Shanghai, boasts a history over 400 years. Each pavilion, hall, stone and stream in the garden is expressing the quintessence of South China landscape design from Ming and Qing Dynasty. Over forty spots, divided by dragon walls, wound corridors and beautiful flowers, form an unique picture featuring “one step, one beauty; every step, every beauty.”

Yu garden is reputed to be the most beautiful garden south of the Yangtze River. Built beside the Temple of the City God and covering only fives acres, it follows the Suzhou garden design of a world in microcosm, with 30 pavillions linked by corridors, artificial hills, bridges over lotus pools, groves of bamboo and walls occupied by stone dragons. The surrpounding bazaar is packed with traditional and modern shops, restaurants and temples.

Three Must-Visit Shops for Design Books

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Hey you design devotees, check this out: Salt Lake City not only has some great independent bookstores, but also a number of non-bookstore shops offering special selections of must-have hardbacks ranging in topics from interior design and gardening to cuisine and art. Here are three of my favorites. Not only are the selections and books must-sees, but so are these shops offering them.

Tabula Rasa

Sure Tabula Rasa boasts an exquisite and broad selection of stunning stationary, writing tools and other finery, but table after table of beautifully displayed, brilliantly selected books also dazzles those who visit this elegant Trolley Square store. Make certain your coffee table is ready for the stack of lux page-turners you’ll be lugging home.

Ward Child

If you dig gardening, chances are you frequently visit Ward Child—The Garden Store. This shop and its adjoining garden are heaven for green thumbs and outdoor-living lovers alike. For interior design enthusiasts, the south wing of the store filled with chic furnishings and accessories is equally enchanting. Here’s the tip: Don’t miss the large book table loaded with titles on gardening, landscaping and architecture. It’s nearly impossible to leave this store without bringing something special home and the books make it even more so. 678 S. 700 East, Salt Lake City, 801-595-6622

Details

Details. There’s nothing hard-edged about this charming Sugarhouse home furnishings and custom bedding shop—that is except the interior design books that cover a trestle table spanning the entire width of the front room. Surrounded by lovely vignettes of accessories, furniture, pillows and bedding (as well as gifts and bath items), this table of books is equally alluring.

This post was originally published on utahstyleanddesign.com.

Litchfield Garden Club to host author, designer Bunny Williams Oct. 19

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UNITY

Unity in the Foothills

102 Prospect Street, Torrington, Ct 06790

www.unityinthefoothills.org

A Course in Miracles Tuesday evenings 7 p.m.

Transformational Prayer Group Thursday 1:15 p.m. and Sunday 9 a.m.

METHODIST

First United Methodist Church

21 Fern Drive, Torrington, CT 06790

Rev. Barbara B. Shaffer, Pastor

860-489-8084 www.fumctorr.org

Email fumctorr@sbcglobal.net

Sunday Service at 9:30 a.m.

Sunday School from 10:45 a.m. to 11:45 a.m.

Pre-K thru Adult

EVANGELICAL

Northfield Bible Church

10 Camp Hill Road, Northfield, CT 06778

860-283-9598 www.nccindependent.org

Bible Doctrines Class: Sunday at 9:00 a.m.

Sunday Service at 10:00 a.m.

Bible Study: Wednesday at 7:00 p.m.

Pot Luck Supper every 4th Friday of the Month at 6:15 p.m.

ASSEMBLIES OF GOD

First Assembly of God

387 New Harwinton Road, Torrington, CT 06790

860-482-7464 www.firstagtorr.org

Sunday School for all ages 9:30 a.m.

Sunday Worship Service at 10:45 a.m.

Family Night Thursday at 7:00 p.m.

Adult Bible Study Prayer Service: Saturday at 9:15 a.m.

Cable 5 Sundays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at 3 p.m.

CONGREGATIONAL CHRISTIAN CHURCHES

Founders Congregational Church

41 Birge Park Road, Harwinton, CT 06791

860-485-1120

www.founderscongregationalchurch.com

Sunday School and Services 10:00 a.m.

Bible Study: Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. and Thursday at 10:00 a.m.

Center Congregational Church

155 Main Street, Torrington, CT 06790

860-489-8301

www.centerchurchtor.org

Email info@centerchurchtor.org

Sunday Services and Church School at 10:00 a.m.

Second Congregational Church of Winsted

Biblical, Traditional, Protestant Worship

800 Main Street, Winsted, CT 06098

860-379-4766

http://sccwinsted.org

Baptist and Congregational

Worship 10:00 a.m.

Sunday School 9:00 a.m.

July – August Worship 9:30 a.m.

Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday – Thursday

8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Friday

email info@sccwinsted.org

Tips for Fall weather gardening

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By: Newsroom
8@klkntv.com

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) – Now that fall has arrived and cooler temperatures are becoming the norm, it’s time for Nebraska gardeners to determine what to harvest and when.

Some crops will need to be harvested before a frost, while others can withstand colder temperatures.

Warm weather loving crops that do not tolerate frost and low temperatures include tomatoes, peppers, sweet potatoes, okra, eggplant, cucumbers and summer squash. Watermelon, cantaloupe, pumpkin, corn and eggplant also are sensitive to cool temperatures and can result in plant damage or death.     

Crops that withstand a light frost between down to 30 degrees include beets, mustard, Chinese cabbage, radishes, collards, spinach, potatoes, Swiss chard, Bibb lettuce, green onions and leaf lettuce.

Crops that can withstand several freezes include cabbage, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, rutabagas, Brussels sprouts, and kale.

Propagation tips for home gardeners

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by PU Chien. Posted on October 7, 2012, Sunday

GARDENERS are always looking for new materials for new plantings and also multiplication. Beautiful and healthy plants really depend on the initial planting materials. There are several ways of getting your own planting materials so that you can be sure of the quality and type of plants.

Technical steps

Take softwood and semi-hardwood cuttings when the mother plant is actively growing. Don’t take cuttings that have flowers as you want all the new planting’s energy to go into forming roots.

Softwood cuttings are best taken from young or newly-matured shrubs. For herbaceous plants such as begonia, dahlia and chrysanthemum, cuttings can be done at any time.

Semi-hardwood cuttings should be taken from either deciduous or evergreen plants at a time when newly matured stems or branches are at the base.

All cuttings must be done with sharp tools so that the cambium cells are not damaged unnecessarily and hopefully remain intact.

FOR PROPAGATION: Take softwood and semi-hardwood cuttings when the mother plant is actively growing. (Inset) Use sharp tools so that the cambium cells are not damaged unnecessarily

Do not add fertiliser to the fresh medium – be it fresh top soil with compost or sand plus soil and compost, or just rooting compost. Cuttings won’t need a lot of nutrients to start rooting.

You can use river sand but not sand from from the sea unless the salt has been removed.

Please remember that fresh cuttings haven’t got roots to absorb water for growth, so the medium should never be too wet or waterlogged as this will only kill the cuttings because the freshly-injured cambium cells and bark would easily rot away.

However, moisture is still a must for new growth. Nurture cuttings by slowing down
natural loss of moisture from the leaves. One way of giving it moisture is to use a plastic bag or container with drips of water. Remember to cut off most of the leaves or at least half of the leaves attached to reduce the transpiration rate.

Some seeding boxes have covers that allow ventilation but prevent transpiration. Some gardeners just invert a transparent plastic drinking cup or bag over small pots to help retain moisture within the micro-sphere. This method is good enough for softwood cuttings.

Allow the cuttings to sit just above the top level of water in the container, just to wet the cut. It is handy to use polystyrene packing materials as the plants can float and not get too wet or drown. Insert cuttings of coleus, fuchsia, begonia or impatiens thorough holes punctured using a stick or screwdriver. Don’t let the leaves touch the water.

Hormones and rock phosphate fertiliser will encourage rooting. Today there are mixed hormones suitable for both softwood and hardwood cuttings. Phosphate is essential for root initiation in plants.

Don’t forget that newly-developed leaves can easily catch the fungal disease Botrytis. The rotting of fresh leaves would be the end of new plantlets and this tends to spread easily in nursery beds. It is therefore vital to find a balance between moisture supply and disease emergence.

Once the cuttings have developed healthy roots, take them out for field or pot planting.

Succulent plants

Succulent plants are great because they have enough food reserve in their thick leaves. Examples include Crassula spp, Kalanchoe spp as well as some euphorbia and cacti.

Take a cutting and carefully remove a mature leaf making sure there is a piece of the main stem attached at the base for good propagation. It is best to use sharp secateurs or cutting blades.

PROTECT PLANTINGS: A bag can be used to cover small pots to help retain moisture for new plantings.

Next leave the cutting in a dry and warm place for a day or two to drain any sap or liquid. Sometimes the cutting will develop new ‘eyes’ known as calli. Make sure the callus touches the medium for rooting.

Leave in partial shade and have just a little moisture to keep it damp. New plantlets should be allowed to develop until they are big enough to be handled for potting in a general purpose potting mix.

This method works well with even delicate plants such as African violets and begonias, provided that you can maintain a high humidity.

I hope you will find these tips helpful and be able to propagate plants in your garden on your own.

Happy gardening. Do send me an email for details.