Landscape Plants for Pennies
(Page 3 of 4)
When the tiny shrubs have had time to become acclimated to
the outside world, they're ready to transplant. Just invert
the pot and tap its edge firmly on a wood surface: The
entire ball of plants and roots will fall into your hand.
Separate the plants carefully and quickly . . . working out
of the direct sun or wind to prevent drying, which would
injure the roots.
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Whether you pot the plants individually or move them to a
nursery bed is a matter of personal preference. I pot mine
directly in one-gallon cans which I obtain free from
restaurants and institutional kitchens. (Wash the cans and
punch four holes in the bottom with a church-key opener.)
Regardless of where you plant, however, be sure to use a
good potting soil (equal parts soil, garden compost, and
coarse organic matter such as ground bark or chunk peat
moss), water the bushes frequently—but not so often
as to waterlog the soil—and protect the foliage from
bright sun until the plants are established. (An "umbrella"
of wood lath or window screening will provide shade when
placed above a sunny cold frame.)
After a year or so of active growth, the cuttings may be
planted in their permanent locations. Continue babying
them, though, against drought, excessive sun, and cold
until they're well settled.
FROM DORMANT TO DELIGHTFUL
Grapes—a prime example of plants that can be grown
from dormant cuttings—are best propagated from mature
wood . . . cut after the leaves have dropped in the fall.
As a matter of fact, grape cuttings can be made when the
vines receive their annual pruning.
A good grape cutting should be about the diameter of a
pencil and approximately 12 inches long. It must have four
leaf buds: two to be buried beneath the soil and two that
are left exposed. (You'll want to plant your grapevine
"right side up", so make a slanted cut at its base and a
straight slice at the top . . . to help you remember which
end is which.)
In climates where the soil freezes, cuttings are best made
in the fall ... then bundled and buried in loose,
welldrained soil until spring. Some propagators like to
bury their cuttings horizontally . . . while others put 'em
in the ground vertically but "upside down", on the theory
that spring warmth near the surface will stimulate root
development from basal buds before the cooler "tops" leaf
out.
