Are olearia seeds a practical route to a hedge in the UK?

I cannot find a supplier, yet I'm told that the Olearia Traversii
grown here flower annually.

Regards

AB

On Wed, 16 May 2018 09:03:25 +0100, Chris Hogg wrote:

On Wed, 16 May 2018 08:21:13 +0100, Archibald Tarquin Blenkinsopp
wrote:

Are olearia seeds a practical route to a hedge in the UK?

I cannot find a supplier, yet I'm told that the Olearia Traversii
grown here flower annually.

Regards

AB

I have two substantial hedges of OT. While it produces flowers of a
sort, I'm not aware that they have ever set seed. The recommended
method of propagation is by cuttings of half-ripe growth, say 6-8"
long with a heel and with the lower leaves stripped off leaving only a
few at the top. Best taken in late summer.

Thanks, it probably explains why I have a cuttings success rate of
around 5-10%

Half ripe? I usually took about 4-6 cm from the top of a branch. I
thought I saw somewhere that a freshly growing tip was going to root
more readily than older wood.

What is half ripe? is it the point where the hard wood gives way to
the softer growth?

Sory but my ignorance of gardening matters is all inclusive :-(

Regards

AB

In article ,
says...

Are olearia seeds a practical route to a hedge in the UK?

I cannot find a supplier, yet I'm told that the Olearia Traversii
grown here flower annually.

Seedlings from mine occasionally self-set. Never where you'd want one,
of course.

Janet.

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On Wed, 16 May 2018 13:16:49 +0100, Chris Hogg wrote:

On Wed, 16 May 2018 12:00:27 +0100, Archibald Tarquin Blenkinsopp
wrote:

On Wed, 16 May 2018 09:03:25 +0100, Chris Hogg wrote:

On Wed, 16 May 2018 08:21:13 +0100, Archibald Tarquin Blenkinsopp
wrote:

Are olearia seeds a practical route to a hedge in the UK?

I cannot find a supplier, yet I'm told that the Olearia Traversii
grown here flower annually.

Regards

AB

I have two substantial hedges of OT. While it produces flowers of a
sort, I'm not aware that they have ever set seed. The recommended
method of propagation is by cuttings of half-ripe growth, say 6-8"
long with a heel and with the lower leaves stripped off leaving only a
few at the top. Best taken in late summer.

Thanks, it probably explains why I have a cuttings success rate of
around 5-10%

Half ripe? I usually took about 4-6 cm from the top of a branch. I
thought I saw somewhere that a freshly growing tip was going to root
more readily than older wood.

What is half ripe? is it the point where the hard wood gives way to
the softer growth?

Sory but my ignorance of gardening matters is all inclusive :-(

Regards

AB

When young shoots of shrubs etc first appear and grow, they are very
soft and green. Later in their existence they become woody and hard.
Half-ripe or semi-ripe growth is the transition stage between soft and
hard. It's not a length thing, but a texture thing. Soft growth is
just that: soft and floppy. Half-ripe or semi-ripe growth isn't
floppy, but neither is it rigid and brittle like hardwood.

Most shrubs put on growth during the spring and summer, but stop
growing towards the end of summer and the growth starts to harden up
in late summer through into autumn. By the end of the autumn they are
usually fairly hard, in preparation for the rigors of winter (cold,
frosty conditions, low light levels, short days, wind, etc).

While in that transition stage, they are still capable of making roots
fairly quickly, say a few weeks, and it's usually the best time to
take cuttings. Although soft cuttings can be taken for many shrubs
earlier in the year, IMO they are more prone to failing due disease.
Hardwood cuttings can also be taken, but they take a lot longer to
root, often several months over the winter period suffering the slings
and arrows of outrageous fortune all the while.

For many plants, a success rate of 5-10% isn't too bad for an amateur.
Hopeless for a professional of course who relies on a high rate of
success for his living. It rather depends on how many plants you want
to end up with. When I take cuttings, I always take far more than I
need. If they all root, they get given away to family and friends, but
as that situation seldom arises, ending up with two or three is
probably all I wanted anyway.

Many thanks, that was a very comprehensive explanation. It also
suggests that what I thought were random sproutings of roots over
time, were actually just a difference due to the time of planting and
hardness.

A final query, I can't help but notice the cuttings with rooting
compound have an almost zero success rate. To be honest I didn't
follow the instructions to the letter and wipe the excess off, I just
planted them with what was left sticking to the cutting after dipping.

My none coated cuttings seem to have a better survival rate.

Is rooting compound worth the effort, or should I give it a miss?

AB

On 16/05/2018 15:52, Chris Hogg wrote:
On Wed, 16 May 2018 13:49:14 +0100, Archibald Tarquin Blenkinsopp
wrote:


A final query, I can't help but notice the cuttings with rooting
compound have an almost zero success rate. To be honest I didn't
follow the instructions to the letter and wipe the excess off, I just
planted them with what was left sticking to the cutting after dipping.

I never wipe off the excess either; I just touch the end of the
cutting onto the rim of the bottle to allow the drip to run off, but
never actually wipe.

I suspect the main effect of the rooting compounds on public sale is as
an antifungal agent rather than a root promoter but it can still help.
More important is a nice sharp blade cut just below a node that doesn't
crush the plant tissue. Nodes are typically keen to form roots.
(as ever there are always some exceptions)

My none coated cuttings seem to have a better survival rate.

Is rooting compound worth the effort, or should I give it a miss?

AB

It's a moot point. Some swear by it, some say they don't see any
benefit. I usually use it, but I make sure it's fresh, rather than
having sat in the fridge for several years. Whether it helps, I don't
know as I've never done a back-to-back comparison.

It doesn't seem to make much difference to outcome for me. Basically it
ran out still got reasonable success and didn't bother buying any more.

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

On 19/05/18 09:34, Martin Brown wrote:
On 16/05/2018 15:52, Chris Hogg wrote:
On Wed, 16 May 2018 13:49:14 +0100, Archibald Tarquin Blenkinsopp
wrote:

A final query, I can't help but notice the cuttings with rooting
compound have an almost zero success rate. To be honest I didn't
follow the instructions to the letter and wipe the excess off, I just
planted them with what was left sticking to the cutting after dipping.

I never wipe off the excess either; I just touch the end of the
cutting onto the rim of the bottle to allow the drip to run off, but
never actually wipe.

I suspect the main effect of the rooting compounds on public sale is as
an antifungal agent rather than a root promoter but it can still help.
More important is a nice sharp blade cut just below a node that doesn't
crush the plant tissue. Nodes are typically keen to form roots.
(as ever there are always some exceptions)

The exceptions being the most desirable plants which are always
difficult to propagate!

But it does not seem to be that simple. In late February I decided to
prune the roses; I'd given up waiting for really cold weather so just
went ahead. Never wanting to waste anything I cut the pruned branches
into 30 cm lengths. All were treated with HRP and put into a couple of
20cm "long tom" pots with around 22 cm of compost/sand mix in them, and
pushed down almost to the bottom. As I had only two pots, I decided to
divide the cuttings into two cultivars per pot, with a gap between them.
There were between 6 and 10 cuttings in each half. The pots were left
out over winter in the shade, and watered when needed.

The result surprised me; of the 4 types of rose, there was a range of no
cuttings surviving to all cuttings surviving (I make no claim that they
have actually formed roots, just that the stems were still green, and
leaves have appeared. The dead cuttings were all dark brown).

Survivors:
Pot 1
Deep Secret 0/9
Chris Beardshaw 5/8

Pot 2
Golden Wedding 2/10 ( soon, I believe, to be 0/10!)
Margaret Merrill 6/6

Now I know that it is best to take hardwood cuttings in summer, but even
allowing for that, why should there be such a difference in survival
rate between these HT roses?

--

Jeff

On Wed, 16 May 2018 15:52:11 +0100, Chris Hogg wrote:

On Wed, 16 May 2018 13:49:14 +0100, Archibald Tarquin Blenkinsopp

Thank you Chris and everyone else for being so helpful.

I have a lot of books on gardening and usually go straight in to the
theory.

They dont quite provide the experience or answers to what seem to be
fairly obvious questions.

Thank you all, I have quite a potential forest on the go currently. At
least I dont have the slug and snail population tucking in, probably
because they are full to bursting on everything else im trying to
grow:-(

Thanks


AB