How To Grow Gardenia From Cuttings: Learn With Easy Steps

How to grow gardenia from cuttings is easy so long as you follow the right steps to the process, and make sure to be detailed on the accomplishment. Knowing this, you must make sure that you have a healthy and mature gardenia; you can get new plants through its cutting.

When you plant the healthy gardenia cutting, constantly water and monitor it so that it can root properly in a few weeks. For a detailed guide, read this article.

How To Grow Gardenia From Cuttings Easily?

To grow gardenias from cuttings easily you must collect cuttings from a mature plant, dip the cuttings in a hormone to boost root production, water the cuttings, and regularly monitor them. In a few weeks, you will notice signs of growth, and then transplant the cuttings to a bigger pot.

1. Gather Your Needed Tools

To help your gardenias grow optimally, prepare your tools so that the task would be much easier for you, throughout the process. Some things that you need for the propagation of gardenias are a sharp knife to help you collect the cuttings from a healthy plant, and you will also need some rooting hormone, although this is optional, but helps to increase the chance of your cuttings rooting successfully.

Then, make sure that you also have some potting mix, one that suitable substrate for your cuttings, and small pots that are well-drained pots to start your cuttings with. You also need clear plastic wraps or bags so that you will use them to cover your cuttings to form a greenhouse effect. A watering can to water the roots of your cuttings through.

In addition, make sure that you have with you a spray bottle, to water your cuttings by misting them, larger pots as you need when your cuttings are mature enough, you transplant them into these pots. Ensure that your knife or pruning shear is sterilized so that you do not harm your plants.

2. Prepare Your Pots and Substrate

A suitable pot for your gardenia plant is one with drainage holes. Through the holes, excess water and liquid nutrients can leave the substrate. You can start your cuttings in small pots or even cups. However, get a medium-sized pot when it is time to transplant them. Clay or terracotta pots are optimal.

As for the substrate, go to a gardening store and buy a general potting mix for potted plants. If you’d love to grow your gardenia in the garden rather than in pots, mix the soil with vermiculite if it is not well-drained. Ensure that your gardenia substrate is rich in nutrients so that your plants can grow quickly.

3. Collect Cuttings From a Healthy Gardenia

When your pots—the little ones to start your cuttings with—and substrate are ready, use your clean knife to collect cuttings from the branch of a mature and healthy gardenia. The cuttings should be six inches long at least. If leaves are still attached to the cuttings, remove the lower ones, so no leaf will touch the soil when you plant the cutting, to simplify the task.

When to take gardenia cuttings depends on your gardening method and preferences. However, doing your gardening activities, especially propagation, in the morning is best. The morning hours are cool, and there is enough light to encourage the growth of the cuttings.

When you collect the cutting from a mature and healthy gardenia, keep it in water. Ensure that you cover two to three inches of the bottom end of your cuttings in water. Use clean water. You can collect more cuttings than you need to increase your chances of successfully rooted ones.

4. Use a Hormone for Rooting the Cuttings

Unlike some other crops that will root within ten days, gardenias can take weeks or months to become established. You wouldn’t want this process to be a failure because of different issues, and for this, if you wish to increase your chances of having well-rooted cuttings, consider using a hormone for the roots.

If you are wondering will gardenia cuttings root in water, you must know that yes, they will. However, you can increase your chances by using store-bought hormones to encourage quick root production, and would also increase the chances to have a successful result.

When you have this hormone, know that it is the product that will help encourage root production in your plants. Dip the bottom end of your cuttings in the hormone, as described in the product instructions. When the cutting absorbs a significant amount of the hormone, move on to the next step.

5. Plant the Cuttings

It is time to plant your cuttings, and now you should know that you must plant the cuttings so that the bottom end will be in the substrate. Ensure that three inches of the cutting are at least buried in the substrate, and to plant the cutting, use a pen to poke holes into the substrate. Dip the cuttings in the holes and then bury them with an extra substrate.

You can pat the soil around your cuttings to help keep the cuttings firm. When the cuttings can stand on the soil without you holding them, carefully water them. You can water the cuttings by misting them. If the substrate is dry, gently water it so that it stays moist for your cuttings.

6. Cover the Cuttings

When you cover the cutting, this given is an optional but highly recommended step so that the plant would feel properly developing, in the long run. Cover your recently planted cuttings with plastic or use clear wrap to prevent active airflow in and out of the pot.

This will create a greenhouse effect and help increase the humidity while stabilizing the temperature, and you should remember that these two factors, the humidity and temperature that are created inside, are important for the speedy growth of your cuttings.

When covering the cuttings, don’t use any covering that will touch the leaves of the cutting or the cutting itself. If the wrap or covering touches the cutting, it can build up too much moisture on the cutting and expose the cuttings to microbes. Also, ensure that the pot remains well-drained so that excess water can drain off instead of filling the covering with trapped vapor.

7. Keep the Cuttings in a Good Spot

After planting and arranging your cuttings in their pot, keep the pot in a good spot. The ideal place for your gardenias has temperatures ranging from 70 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit. While gardenias love direct sunlight, there is a better time to expose them to direct sunlight.

Keep them in a spot where they can get bright but indirect light, and for this you should regularly rotate the container so that every part of your plants can get access to sunlight. Also, keep the plants far from every heat-emitting appliance, to avoid any stress.

8. Mist the Cuttings as Needed

If you notice that the gardenia container is dry, mist and water the plants. Cuttings need consistent moisture in their substrate to grow. Therefore, ensure that your cuttings never grow in dry soil. Note that if you properly cover the cuttings with a clear wrap, the substrate will always have moisture.

9. Continue Monitoring the Cuttings

While you wait for your cuttings to root, check for signs of growth or death. It can take weeks to months for your cuttings to show any sign of life or growth, but you can quickly see signs of death. The presence of yellow leaves and stems is a sign that your cuttings are dying.

How long does it take for gardenia cuttings to root? It can take as much as four to eight weeks. If you used any hormone to boost root production, you will see signs of growth quickly.

Just as in the case of cuttings growing with a soil-based substrate, regularly monitor your cuttings growing. You can easily see signs of growth for these cuttings, as their roots are well exposed.

10. Transplant the Cuttings

At least eight weeks after planting your cuttings in water, transfer them to the large pot. Ensure that they have a lengthy root system and at least two pairs of leaves. They will grow just fine in their new substrate so long as you give them enough time to develop their roots and leaves.

Eight to twelve weeks after planting your cuttings, they will be ready for transplanting. You can tell that they are ready when you see at least two pairs of new leaves. When you are ready, transplant the cuttings into a larger pot.

Please be careful with the roots when handling your rooted cuttings. Wet the soil properly before you remove your plants. When burying the roots in the new substrate, completely bury them.

You can care for your propagated gardenia by feeding them when needed, regularly watering them, turning their pots often to provide light for every part of the plants, and keeping pests and weeds off your plants. Which is why as long as you take these plant care tips seriously, you’ll face zero challenges.

Some problems you just face when growing your gardenias are plant diseases such as powdery mildew and the leaves turning yellow. These are signs that you are overwatering your plants. Your plants can also lack some nutrients if you fail to feed them occasionally, and you must be giving the right care for this issue to disappear.

Conclusion

Now, you can easily propagate gardenias, so remember some important points from this article:

• Collect at least six inches of cutting from healthy growing gardenias.
• To help your plant grow successfully, consider using a hormone to increase your chances of the cuttings rooting.
• Covering the cutting to make a mini greenhouse will keep it safe from pests and will stabilize the temperature and humidity.
• The presence of root rot and other diseases are signs that your gardenia or the cutting is dying.
• When you have two or more pairs of leaves in your gardenia jasminoides, transfer the plant cutting into a bigger pot.

Go collect healthy cuttings and get started immediately, but keep in mind to stick to the steps and use the tips in this article to successfully propagate your plants.