By Allanchilds
United Kingdom
We have taken cuttings from an Hydrangea, they are now in a pot in our greenhouse. Looking at the picture do you feel they are doing ok. Took cuttings at the end of September and put in the pots straight away with rooting powder.
- 30 Oct, 2013
Answers
Many thanks for your comments
30 Oct, 2013
If you meant do you feed them the answer is no - there will be enough food in the compost and anyway nothing much gets fed in the winter as plants don't feed when they are dormant.
30 Oct, 2013
From my experience Hydrangea as easy to root, if slow. My biggest problem is keeping them over winter as they will have little or no roots. When frosts hit them the leaves will begin to fall off quickly. So I suggest keeping in a frost free greenhouse.
30 Oct, 2013
I don't think i read the question properly and read feed for feel. Sorry!
30 Oct, 2013
The yellowing of the leaves is not a good sign. It could be attributed to a number of factors, namely overwatering, not enough sun, lack of nutrients to name a few.
31 Oct, 2013
Many thanks for your comments, most helpful
31 Oct, 2013
In the past I've put hydrangea cuttings on a warm windowsill sealed in a clear plastic bag cloche - no need to water then as the water recycles within the bag. I'm becoming a fan of mycorrhizal fungi - could be worth, even at this stage, sprinkling some onto the compost and watering it in before wrapping the plant up again.
31 Oct, 2013
They also seem to root readily in water - a vaseful I had on the hearth for a couple of weeks had lots of roots by the time they were finished as house flowers.
31 Oct, 2013
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Hi, they look healthy enough, they obviously haven't died off, but I doubt if they will have formed many roots yet, I would leave them as they are for another 2-3 weeks, then carefully place your hand over the top of the pot, turn it upside down to tip the soil out onto your hand, and see if there are any roots showing, if not carefully replace and leave them a bit longer, if you see quite a few roots, pot them up individually, I usually use a 3 1/2" pot for this, then you can either keep them in your greenhouse, or put them in a cold frame, Derek.
30 Oct, 2013