How to take verbena cuttings

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How to take verbena cuttings

BBC Gardeners' World Magazine

Published: Sunday, 24 March 2019 at 3:00 pm

Learn how to propagate verbena from cuttings, in our detailed guide.

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Bedding verbenas are versatile and long-lasting, with many species flowering well into autumn. Native to South America, few are fully hardy, so it's a good idea to take cuttings to insure against winter losses.

Summer is the ideal time to take verbena cuttings. Overwinter them in a frost-free place and you'll have a fresh, healthy supply of verbena plants next year to replace any in the garden that have been killed by frost.

You Will Need

Verbena plants
Sharp knife
10cm pots
Multi-purpose compost
Hormone rooting powder
Polythene bag
Rubber bands
compo

Total time: 45 minutes

Step 1

How to take verbena cuttings - taking cuttings in the morning

Take cuttings in the morning when shoots are at their firmest. Choose non-flowering side shoots from either side of the main stem.

Step 2

How to take verbena cuttings - trimming the leaf joint

Trim below a leaf joint to take a cutting about 7.5cm long. Carefully remove lower leaves so that the cutting has a length of bare stem that can be cleanly inserted into the compost.

Step 3

How to take verbena cuttings - using hormone rooting powder

Dip the cut end of the stem into rooting hormone mixture to encourage root development.

Step 4

How to take verbena cuttings - inserting the cuttings into gritty compost

Fill a 7cm pot with gritty compost and insert up to five verbena cuttings into the compost around the edge of the pot. Water well.

Step 5

How to take verbena cuttings - covering with a clear polythene bag

Pop the pot inside a clear polythene bag and seal it with a rubber band. Place in a warm bright position, but protect from scorching sunshine. After six weeks, check for signs of white roots growing through the drainage holes in the base of the pot. When these are visible, pot each cutting up separately.

Pot on cuttings into 7.5cm pots, as these are a more convenient size to overwinter than larger plants and more successful than lifting established plants.

Plug plant cut out

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