How to Germinate Evergreen Trees From Cuttings
- 1). Prepare a rooting pot before gathering evergreen cuttings for propagation. Fill a 6-inch plastic pot with coarse sand. Wet the sand with 1 cup of water. Let the sand drain while gathering the evergreen cutting.
- 2). Gather cuttings in the winter when the evergreen tree is dormant. Choose a 4- to 6-inch portion of a thin, immature branch with a cluster of foliage at the tip. Determine if you need a tip or base cutting according to the species you are trying to grow. As a rule, most evergreen species root well from tip cuttings.
- 3). Make the cut at the base of the chosen cutting using a utility knife or pruning shears. Pluck off and discard all the needles from the entire lower half of the evergreen cutting.
- 4). Scrape off a portion of bark measuring 1 inch in length from the base of the evergreen cutting using the utility knife. Apply 0.5- to 0.8-percent IBA rooting hormone to the lower half of the cutting, depending on the species of evergreen. Stronger concentrations are needed for species such as Ponderosa pine and deodar cedar.
- 5). Pot the evergreen cutting in the prepared rooting pot. Stick it into the moistened sand up to the lowest needles. Press in the sand around the base.
- 6). Place the potted evergreen cutting in a cold frame or outdoors in a partially shaded spot if a cold frame is not available. Keep the sand lightly to moderately moist at all times during the rooting process.
- 7). Check for roots starting in 45 days, but do not be discouraged if it takes up to 10 months for certain species to root.
- 8). Transfer the rooted evergreen cutting into a 1-gallon nursery container filled with soil of the composition preferred by that particular species. Most evergreen trees will respond favorably to a generic mix of 2 parts sand, 1 part garden soil, 1 part shredded pine bark and 1 part compost.
- 9). Keep the rooted evergreen cutting in the nursery container for at least one growing season before planting it out in a permanent bed with the proper light, moisture and soil requirements for the species.
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