Growing Roots: A Journey into Taking Cuttings

Growing Roots: A Journey into Taking Cuttings

Life has always had a way of making me question my place in the world, and sometimes the answers are elusive, hiding like soft rays of sunlight in a dense forest. It was during one of these soul-searching moments, wandering through my garden of memories, that I stumbled upon an answer – in the simple act of taking cuttings.

Have you ever paused to watch a plant sway with the wind, leaves trembling, trying to capture the essence of its silent song? Each stem holds a story, a fragment of time frozen in its fibers. To take a cutting is to believe in the possibility of new life, a testament to resilience in the face of fragility.

There are several types of cuttings, each symbolizing a distinct stage in the life of a plant: softwood, semi-ripe, and hardwood. Softwood cuttings are the most tender of them all, taken from the youngest part of the stem, teeming with potential and a fierce urgency to survive. Perhaps it is no coincidence that these are the easiest to root, the ones most suited for someone standing at the precipice of doubt like I once was.

May and June – months that carry the promise of summer, months when the world feels a bit kinder – these are the times to seek out softwood cuttings. Within just 4 to 8 weeks, they find their footing, embedding themselves into their new reality. But they are delicate, easily drained of moisture, longing for warmth and a gentle touch. Imagine a world without propagators; you'd need to emulate that embrace. A humble polythene bag can serve this purpose, a simple cocoon for a budding life.

The age-old debate about hormone rooting powder can feel like a quiet war within oneself. I remember using it with a wavering hand, wondering if this powder could truly influence destiny. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it did not – like life itself, filled with victories and defeats. Whether you choose the powder or not, the journey remains open-ended, a pathway traced by hope.

Certain plants are generous; they offer themselves willingly to the art of cuttings – fuchsias, pelargoniums, hebes, lupins, hydrangeas, chrysanthemums. They are metaphors for the friends who stand by you, the ones who make the rocky paths seem walkable.

And here's how you do it, how you take a piece of life and give it another chance:

1. The First Cut: With a sharp knife or secateurs, cut about half a dozen tips from the plant, each about 4 inches long. These snips are not just physical but emotional – a severing, a moment of vulnerability, akin to exposing your heart to the world.
2. The Polythene Bag: As soon as you make the cut, put it inside a polythene bag. Picture this as capturing a breath, a fleeting moment, ensuring the nascent life doesn't wither away.
3. The Perfect Mix: Use a specific cuttings compost or make your own blend – a mix of multi-purpose compost and vermiculite or sharp sand. Imagine creating the right environment for growth, a nurturing ground where roots can explore their existence.
4. Potting the Cuttings: Use small pots, about 3 inches, or larger ones where you can place multiple cuttings. Trim each cutting so the bottom is just below a leaf joint, and make it a slanted cut if you can. Slanted, like the thoughts we carry, nuanced and never entirely straightforward.
5. Prepare the Cuttings: Strip the bottom leaves, leaving only a few at the crown. Pinch out the growing tip, that tender part. If you believe in the assistance of rooting powder, dip the base in water, then the powder, shaking off the excess.
6. In the Compost They Go: Gently press each cutting into the compost, about a third of its length. Water them, not with haste, but with the kindness that fragile things demand.
7. A Polythene Bag Cocoon: Cover the pot with a clear polythene bag, a makeshift greenhouse. Ensure the bag doesn't weigh upon the leaves, allowing light and warmth to filter through. Place the pot on a sunlight-bathed window ledge or in a greenhouse, a space where the cuttings can bask in cautiously optimistic radiance.
8. Faith and Patience: Every few days, check on them. They won't demand much water, just your attention. When new leaves pierce the surface, embrace the signal – the cutting has rooted. Re-pot the new plant into normal compost, watching it integrate into its new life.

Softwood cuttings can also root in a glass of water, a simpler yet equally miraculous method. Within weeks, roots will spiral out, like dreams that gently unfurl when given space and time.

Our lives orbit in cycles of severances and new beginnings. The act of taking cuttings is beautifully cathartic – a reminder that from every cut, a new life can stem, that every ending holds the promise of a fresh start. In the silences that envelop our day-to-day struggles, it is this act of nurturing life that whispers the loudest.

So, take the plunge. Create life from life, and let your garden become a canvas of your resilience. When you share these new plants with family and friends, know that you're passing on stories of patience, hope, and quiet determination.

In every rooted cutting lies a part of you, and perhaps, amidst the green, you'll find fragments of the answers you've been seeking.