. . . and guess who the crazy person is?
Me. Mike McGroarty.
This is what I did that appears to be so crazy, but this is a great lesson in pruning as well as a lesson in Plant Propagation.
I bought this one plant last summer and planted it in the yard. My only purpose for buying this Golden Curls Willow in the first place was to use it as a stock plant that I could take cuttings from.
When you grow and sell plants it’s extremely important that you know both the botanical and common name for all the plants that you are growing. This plant was clearly and properly labeled so I acquired it to use as a stock plant.
Since Golden Curls Willow are easy to grow as hardwood cuttings I went out during the winter and took a few cuttings from it.
Okay, so I took more than a few cuttings from it. I actually took every piece of wood that I could get without killing the plant. Most people would assume that I did kill it by cutting it back this hard. I did not kill it, it came back just fine and looks great now.
I did that crazy pruning job last winter and I just took this photo last week. As you can see, the plant looks great and has been pruned at least once this summer. And what about all of those cuttings I took? They are beautiful little plants that will sell like hotcakes at $4.97 each this fall and next spring.
After taking the cuttings I cut them into 3″ pieces, sticks really, stuck them in a flat in the dead of winter, I placed the flat outside in the cold and kept it watered as needed, which really wasn’t more than once or twice because of the rain and snow that fell over the winter. This summer we potted up the rooted cuttings and you can see them here.
I started with just one plant and I now have over 100 plants that I can get cuttings from this winter. Then come next spring I can sell all of the plants that you see here and I can take hundreds and hundreds of cuttings from the cuttings that I’ll take this winter. I know this sounds crazy, but that’s really how it works.
I did the same thing with this Dappled Willow. Look what I did to this poor plant.
Again, I took as much wood from this plant as I possibly could because . . . “I needed the cuttings!” But you can see that first thing this spring it started making new buds and now each one of those buds has become a branch at least 18″ to 24″ long.
The cuttings that I took?
The purpose of this post is to make you aware that many deciduous shrubs can be cut back really hard when they are dormant and they come back just fine and that you can get a lot of cuttings from a single plant. Actually, You Can Start a Nursery with Just One Plant!
A Single Plant could Change Your Life Forever!
You can Earn up to $93.60 in one Square Foot in Your Backyard.
Questions or comments? Post them below.
Mike–I have two kinds of roses from which I’d like to take cuttings.
One was brought up from Central Texas (I’m in Central OK) about 40-45 years ago by my beloved mother-in-law, now deceased. This is a kind of a trailing rose, I guess you’d say. It grows really long branches, looks great on a trellis or arbor, and blooms only once a year, usually around Mother’s Day. My mother-in-law used to propagate by burying part of one of the branches, but that’s too slow and too few for me.
The other is a red rose that blooms all spring and summer if I keep cutting it back after blooming. It’s pretty, and I like it, but it has less sentimental value than the Mema Roses.
Mickey,
Roses are tricky and the layering technique is actually pretty dependable. Use the search box on this site and just type in roses, we have a couple of articles. Winter and summer.
I would like to propagate some honey locusts from a tree we have (male plant (no pods) and no thorns). What works best, hardwood or softwood cuttings? It is now late August and maybe too late for softwood here in central Michigan. What do you say?
David,
I think your only bet is softwood cuttings or maybe layering or air layering.
Hi Mike,
How would you prune a rose bush and when. Love the videos, please keep them coming.
Leroy
Leroy,
You can prune a rose bush at any time but some like to leave them until early spring allowing that extra growth to protect from winter the part of the plant you want to keep. How? Just prune it to the size you like, keeping in mind that it will grow a great deal in the spring.
Thanks much, Mike–love your advice!! That has been the timing I use also for roses (Northern California, Zone 8 kind of). A great tip on Chrysanthemums (mums): My mom would do her last pruning (almost to the ground) of her mums in early August, then plant the cuttings in a shaded area and keep them damp so they would root out. That is just the right time for the parent mums to grow out another stem, about 15-18 inches long, and then bloom, just in time to make arrangements for fall/Thanksgiving. Zone 9, Fresno, CA area, anyway.
Hi Mike!
I live in North Central Alabama and wou I d like to plant 2c dwarf weeping willows in my front yard.
Any suggestions ?
Dwarf weeping willows? Golden Curls is smaller than other weeping willows, but still gets quite large. Make sure there are no sewer lines or septic lines near by.
For a purple willow how far do you need to plant away from Septic Tank Lines
Brenda,
A long, long way. Find out how big this tree is going to get. I’d say at least 100′.
We appreciate all your gardening tips. We lost an Arborvitae tree this spring. Would it be better to wait until spring to replace it? Or would it be safe to replace it this fall? John
John,
Fall is really the ideal time to plant. Roots actively grow all winter as long the soil temp is above 45 degrees. Fall is actually much better for planting because the tree has months to get established roots before it starts growing in the spring.
Hi Mike
I really enjoy your site, your stories and advice and ideas, my garden is very small and do not have the room for the things you are trying to promote, but I do need some help with something.
I live in southern Ontario and we had very cold weather this winter -40 with the wind chill. I have 7 rododendrons in my back yard and 6 are frozen by the looks of it, the leaves are not bouncing back when it gets warmer. My question is if I prune the branches from the frozen plants will they sprout new shoots or not, or is the whole plant dead, or just the leaves. It just pains me to know that they might be gone because they were my gardenbaby’s
Francien,
It’s really too early to determine how much winter damage was done to any particular plant. I’d just leave them be and see what they look like in mid May then prune out any dead wood at that time. As long as they have not died completely back to the ground they should come back vigorously.
Hi Mike,
Thanks for another great post. When I prune, I PRUNE….like you do as well. I don’t usually sell my plants (yet), but I have been playing with propagating new from the cuttings thanks to you. The first time I pruned a tree in our yard, I thought my husband would go insane. He just KNEW I had killed it!! The following spring, it flowered for the first time ever since we lived there, and it was so bushy and gorgeous, he had to admit, I knew what I was doing. He still won’t let me cut the grass, but hey if I have my way we won’t have much grass left to cut, as I will have it all covered with gardens. Thanks for all your great tips. I sincerely hope to be able to buy your system and give it a whirl next spring, if for no other reason but to say thank you for all you’ve taught me. Have a wonderful week, and have fun playing in the dirt.
You are doing great, be adventurist but b careful, If the plant you are trimming has a hollow stem,
It could take on water over the cold season and that could freeze causing some damage. that’s all I have to comment on. Keep having fun growing things!
I get the idea of drastic pruning–someone did it to several shrubs at the house we bought and over ten years, the very old Rhodos, for example, went from about 2′ high to 13-15′!
Still, I prefer natural forms, and sinuous looks, so I often do no pruning on plants like these–preferring it NOT to look like a topiary!
The one plant I would advocate pruning for strength is the Rose of Sharon or Hibiscus syriaca. I let mine get too long and this summer, it finally flopped over…losing it’s beautiful, cascading look. Time to prune!
Still, it’s amazing how interesting plants can get, and beautiful, if just left alone. It’s often a matter of aesthetics.
So is aggressive pruning ok for 90-year-old boxwoods that are WAY overgrown? I’ve always been told I’d kill them if I cut them back to far. I’m scared to do anything to them!
Clint,
This message comes with a disclaimer. Plants are living things and things can and do go wrong. Will pruning kill them? Probably not, but there are never any guarantees with plants, animals or people. With that said, wait until they are dormant, after Thanksgiving and cut them back. Chances are they’ll come back nice and full, nice and green with more vigor than ever. They are an evergreen so the comeback will be slow, but they should come back nicely. You have to ask yourself, am I will to take that chance? Are they so unsightly now that loosing them would be better than keeping them unpruned?
Mike
I have tried to propagate potentilla with 100% failure rate. It is the bush with the yellow flowers on it…
Taken the cuttings and stripped them entirely then stuck them in mix. Left a few leaves on and stuck in mix (potting mix). stuck them in coarse sand,. stuck them in perlite.
Any other suggestions?
Essie,
I have to say this but, Potentilla is very easy to root. Do some this winter as hardwood cuttings. Or do some now with this http://www.freeplants.com/homemade-plant-propagation.htm. Leave the leaves on the top two thirds and just strip the bottom. Make sure they are in the shade.
It also works to take softwood or green cuttings in June. I took cuttings 20 years ago from the only one I have purchased, and gave most away. I left the original behind when I moved. Repeat in 2012. I kept one, and gave the rest away. (If I had thought of selling, I would have.) One hint: keep the soil damp to wet, and not too much sun. I used a rooting hormone both times – I don’t know if it was necessary.
Hey Mike ….I just ordered my program ! i am sooooo jazzed !!!!
Thank you so much for all the information and help.
Rue
Hello mike,
this is the 1st time I’ve tried to contact you through your blog. I have not purchased your system yet.
I’m just reading everything for now. looks very interesting. I’m in Zone 10. weird looking plants here. well, Tropical – but WEIRD.
especially some of the polypods, like a staghorn fern and “airplants” and elephant ears, Bottlebrush, Poinciana, Natal Plum,
Leather Fern, Fiddlewood, seagrape, Laurelleaf Snailseed, Florida Privet, Hibiscus, Pittosporum, Florida flamevine,
Cardboard Plant, and many succulents as well. re:Aloe. well you get the idea. I’m 4 days into cuttings from 1 plant and 1 tree. a pink Bougainvillea and a southern “live” oak. neither of while look very promising at this point. 2 days ago the Bo looked like it might but yesterday,,, i don’t know. anyway I thought I’d say hi.
Mark,
Zone 10 is an interesting place to grow plants because of all of the tropicals you have. But I can also assure it’s a great place to grow and sell plants. One of my most successful customers does tropical plants. Your advantage is that you can do them year round. Just mimmick the techniques here: http://www.freeplants.com/homemade-plant-propagation.htm
Mike…I took the courage to take your advice and I pruned my potentilla bush. It was 4 yrs. old and had never been pruned and frankly, it looked terrible. Way over grown and it looked like no one cared. So, I took my shears and cut it down to about 18″ high. PHEW!!! That was so scary. But within 1 week I noticed new growth and it’s going to be just fine. I would never have done this without you because I never dreamed I could do it in the heat of the summer. It looked terrible before, with no hope of looking better and now it looks terrible, but at least now there is hope. Oh, and I got a bunch of cuttings that are in sand and growing roots. Thanks, Mike!
Mike what about pattent rights and selling of plants like these?
Robert,
There are so, so many plants that are not patented and you and I are free to propagate them all we want. You would be amazed at how many plants we are free to propagate and sell. Patented plants we can buy liners or rooted cuttings and pay the royalty at that time which is usually one dollar or less. We can grow them on and sell them, but not propagate them. But truth be told, 99.9% of the plants that I grow are in the public domain and I am free to propagate them. Details about how to know which are which are in the book that come with my system. http://freeplants.com/wanted.htm
I have some cuttings that should be ready to re-pot. Can you tell me how to get them out? I used your newer method of sand in a plastic container. I’m afraid if I dump it out, I’ll break the little cuttings.
Sheryl,
Hold your fingers over and between the cuttings, tip the container upside down and let them slide out. The sand should shake off easily and you can pot your cuttings. http://freeplants.com/wanted.htm
Hi Mike,
Just a quick one. Your container area? What do you use to line it so the roots of plants don’t root out the bottom of the container into the ground.
Love reading your blog by the way.
Regards
Philip
Mike, I have asked this a number of time, not just here but other places but never get an answer
Could you please help? I have a Hydranger that hasn’t boomed since I got it at least 5 or 6 yrs.
ago. It was potted and blooming when I got it and I put it in the ground. I’ve pruned it all, I’ve done
nothing on a different year. still no flowers. For the last 4 yrs I’ve let it go, it is about thigh high.
good size leave but still no blossoms. It has more sun then shade come to think of it. do they
need mostly shade? Help, please. It was so beautiful. I’d love to see it again no matter what color.
I’m not Mike. (by any stretch) But we have Hydrangeas. We had one that wouldn’t bloom. We have about 120 that bloom incredibly each year. The one that didn’t bloom was in full sun. But we have others in full sun which bloom, but noticeable smaller heads than the ones with part shade, and a quarter of the ones in full shade.
When ours didn’t bloom, I cut it way back (in winter just before snow) Literally a stick coming out of the ground with 2 or three sticks coming off that union. I cut everything else off. ( I didn’t care if it died) Next year it grew to 2 feet. about half the size it was wen I pruned it. It bloomed with skimpy flowers This year it’s 5 feet high about 4 feet wide and has blooms the size of a human head. So maybe a hard pruning. would help. Another idea is to plant some bee balm next to it. To be sure you are getting pollination. Hope this helps.
I have lot of Hydrandeas in my Himalayas house. But I got a gud tip tip today of pruning and flowering. Aluminium sulphate. Great
Mike I want to buy your program but I live in the high desert at 4300 feet altt. where it can be over 100 deg. in summer and drops to 10 deg. at least a few times each winter with lots of high winds. the dirt is not rich at all …just sand areas along with other white type dirt that’s heavier. I can only grow cactus and a few desert trees
Can your program work for this area if I used the enclosed boxes to grow in ?
thanks Rue
Rue,
We have lots of people that have 100 degree days much of the summer and most of us have really cold winters. There are lots of things you can do. It’s important to note what people in your area are buying, what the garden stores are carry etc.
Thank so much for your reply Mike !
I just ordered your program ….yeepeee !!!! I’m So excitied ! I’ve already downloaded the online stuff.
Thanks Mike !!!!
Rue
I’m a beginner at this. Are there any lists of plants that come back easily, or that don’t recover easily, from this type of pruning?
I moved from the northeast to a climate where most plants aren’t familiar to me, but here in Texas when someone prunes the heck out of a crepe myrtle, it’s referred to as “crepe murder”. I recall my landlady in New England pruning the apple, pear, and peach trees down to almost nothing but the main trunk with a few branch stubs every year, and they grew into full trees with plenty of fruit.
Will boxwood and/or rosemary root from woody cuttings in the fall? I lost some of the boxwood hedge in the 2 yrs drought prior to this, and would like to eventually replace the cedar shrubs with rosemary, because my husband is allergic to cedar pollen.
MJ,
Go ahead and take those boxwood cuttings now. If you are not sure about a plant don’t prune it as severely as I did, but do prune it.
Great inspiring post. I have your propagation course, just haven’t put it to use yet. Collected four sliding glass doors to make a couple of cold frames, in the climate I live in, I should be able to grow tropicals. Thanks for all your posts, you are doing far more for America than all these other preppers and doomsday marketeers. Thanks!
Thanks John, I truly appreciate that. And best of success to you!
I’m a beginner at this. Are there any lists of plants that come back easily, or that don’t recover easily, from this type of pruning?
I moved from the northeast to a climate where most plants aren’t familiar to me, but here in Texas when someone prunes the heck out of a crepe myrtle, it’s referred to as “crepe murder”. I recall my landlady in New England pruning the apple, pear, and peach trees down to almost nothing but the main trunk with a few branch stubs every year, and they grew into full trees with plenty of fruit.
I was wondering if you can take wood cuttings in the fall like this of lilac and elderberry bushes.
Thanks! Love your blog.
Sage, you can but in the fall they are slower to root. But right now temps are still warm and that helps. Use this http://www.freeplants.com/homemade-plant-propagation.htm
CHRYSANTHEMUMS…
Curious as to how you get around the plant police? It looks like a lot of the stuff you are taking cuttings from and selling for lack of a better word, are copy-writed.
Joey,
If you take the time to look around Mike’s extensive site, you will see he never ever takes cuttings from copyrighted plants to sell. He tells you flat out not to do this. Yes he says to get the proper botanical name and to make sure it is correct but here are thousands of plants that are no under trademark or copyright that can be propagated.
A trademarked plant is not the same thing as a patented plant. Trademarks are just stupid names.
Joey,
Kim is right, I never propagate patented plants and I admonish all to never do so either. You could end up in a legal mess. I grow a few (very few) patented plants but I don’t propagate them. I buy them as liners or whips, pay the royalty at that time and grow them on and sell them which is perfectly legal.
When I am looking for plants to buy that I intend to propagate the first thing I do is make sure they are not patented or carry a registered trademarked name. http://freeplants.com/wanted.htm
Hi Mike, I love everything you do. I’ve been following you for a few years now. I’m posting here to ask a favor of you. I have paid for a hosting service and domain name and believe that the next step to creating a website is to choose a wordpress theme. Your website is so successful I’m hoping you will be generous enough to inform me what theme you used. My website is about writing and has nothing to do with gardening altho I do grow all of my own food. Please help. Respectfully, Pat
Patty,
I can assure you, the theme you choose has little to do with the success of a website and to be perfectly honest, I don’t know what theme we are using and it has been changed several times for different reasons. On top of that Duston picks a theme for what he thinks is what we needed, but then he gets under the hood and changes the code so it is to his liking. I think the last theme we had here was something he put together himself. But it has changed recently to make it friendly to mobile devices.
Hi Patty,
Mike hope you don’t mind me revealing the current them…
First though Patty, mike is right, the them won’t make much difference. Just pick one you like and pick one that is on the wordpress approved list. You’ll have less trouble. And don’t get over excited about all the plugins, you’ll end up overloading your server. I’ve done it and I design and host so it’s easily done.
The current them (as of writing) :
Theme Name: MBYN Genesis
Author URI: http://www.studiopress.com/
Look on wordpress for free ones they approve – their are loads of them.
Lastly, but most importantly, a big thank you to you Mike, your site is great and the information you so freely give out is very helpful and can I say it “down to earth”. Keep it up! And keep up with you current health regime, you’re looking fighting fit!
All the best from the UK.
Collin,
Thanks for sharing and thank you for your kind words. I’ll leave your comment if you don’t mind because it is helpful to others I’m sure.
Hi Patty,
Like my dad said… the theme only changes the appearance of your site. What’s more important is the content you add to the site.
We are currently using the Genesis Framework which is now responsive and better suited for tablets and mobile devices.
I’ve found it to be very hard to find a theme that does everything you want it to do. Instead, I start with a solid framework (like Genesis) that includes the basics and essentials and customize it to include what we need.
-Duston
Can lilac bush cuttings be done this way?
Can elderberry bushes also be done this way in the winter?
Thanks so much.
Can you prune red raspberry bushes like that and grow more? Also can You please tell me what you should spray them with in the spring to keep the bugs out of them?
I enjoy you and your information grumpy gardener! Thanks
Teena, more about Raspberries here; http://www.freeplants.com/raspberry-plants.htm
So what do you do when you cut the plant? Do you just place the cuttings in a particular kind of soil and pot. I love the simplicity of planting but I just want to make sure I’m understanding you correctly. Thanks for sharing!
Judith,
Lots of details about how to take and make cuttings here; http://www.freeplants.com/homemade-plant-propagation.htm
My husband Charley is the world’s worst (?) pruner. After the growing and showing season he takes the pruning shears out and everyone gets a haircut! Every time he does this I too feel like crying – but they all return in the spring prettier and more luxurious than ever!
RoseMarie,
Aggressive pruning is essential to beautiful plants.
getting the botanical name sometimes is not easy especially if it is a plant that you have had for a while and some people when they buy a plant they don’t care what it is They buy the plant for how it looks and will act.
If you don’t know both names you are stealing. You have to know it doesn’t have a patent.
Where and how do I look to see if it has a patent ? (other than the label of course, which I have not seen as stating patent pending, or patent ##)
Peg
John,
In order to maintain the integrity of the industry so that we can all confidently buy plants that are properly labeled, if you don’t have the botanical name, you shouldn’t be propagating the plant to sell to others. This is the most important thing I teach my members. It is by far the most important lesson of all. And you can’t look at pictures and guess. You will be wrong. There are so many plants that are similar yet different plants. For instance, how many Japanese maples can you name. There are well over 250 different varieties of Japanese maples. Many look similar, but they are different plant from different points of origin.
Question. You put the 3″ cuttings in a flat? Not directly in the ground? I do winter sowing of seeds in mini greenhouses placed outside starting in Januaary using milk and water plastic gallon jugs to harden off perennials and get a jump start on hardy and tender vegetables and flowers. Think a jug or two would work as well as a flat??
Susan,
Absolutely, and I’m sure you poke holes in the bottom of the jug for drainage.
My dad always pruned hard, and my mom would cry “Oh, dear, you are killing it” But the thing, rose or whatever would look beautiful the next growing season.