Detailed Explanation of Hydrangea Cutting Propagation Techniques

How to grow hydrangeas? Hydrangea flowers resemble a ball of brocade and prefer fertile, moist soil. They are a very delicate flowering plant, and most hydrangea cultivars can only be reliably propagated through rooted cuttings. Let's learn about hydrangea cutting propagation techniques below.

Preparation Work

Cleanliness is essential for successfully rooting hydrangeas. Wipe the pruning blades with a cloth soaked in alcohol. This kills disease organisms and prevents the spread of pathogens. Clean the pots, rinse them in clean water, then soak the pots in a solution of 1 part household bleach to 9 parts water for at least 5 minutes. Rinse thoroughly with clean water. Use rooting soil (such as equal parts peat and perlite) to fill the pot within 2-3cm of the rim. The time is mid-to-late summer for propagation, when flowers have already formed and the stems are still green.

Finding Stems

Find hydrangea stems that have not yet flowered, because flowering reduces the concentration of plant hormones in the stems. These hormones promote rooting. You can test for proper stem development by bending a green stem.

Cutting

Using clean pruning shears, remove the top portion of the stem containing several leaves. Cut the stem below the node, which is the area where leaves emerge. Cut the stem into shorter pieces, each about 10CM, containing three to four nodes. Clean the alcohol-pruning shears between each stem cut from the bush.

Preparing for Planting

Prepare a small, clean container with some rooting hormone. Never dip the cutting into the entire container, which could contaminate the rooting hormone. If leaves are present, remove the lower two leaves from the cutting. Immediately dip the base of the stem into the rooting hormone, applying it to the freshly cut end as well as any wounds created by removing leaves. Cut off the outer half of the remaining leaves to reduce moisture use during cutting.

Maintaining Humidity

You need to keep the cutting until it roots, so it needs a moist environment. Place a large, transparent plastic bag over the cutting, and if needed, take it off the branch, with the stump inserted into the potting mix. Place the cutting in a shaded area. Rooting will generally occur after about a week.

Hydrangea Cultivation and Management Techniques

Hydrangea (scientific name: Hydrangea macrophylla (Thunb.) Ser.): It is a plant of the genus Hydrangea in the family Saxifragaceae. Shrub, 1-4 m tall; stems often send out numerous radiating branches from the base to form a rounded thicket; branches cylindrical. Leaves papery or nearly leathery, obovate or broadly elliptic. Corymbose cyme nearly spherical, 8-20 cm in diameter, with a short peduncle, flowers dense, pink, light blue or white; petals oblong, 3-3.5 mm long. Capsule immature, long top-shaped; seeds immature. Flowering period June-August.

Hydrangea (scientific name: Hydrangea macrophylla (Thunb.) Ser.)

Hydrangea flowers are full in form, large and beautiful, and their flower color can be red or blue, delighting the eyes and refreshing the mind. They are common potted ornamental flowering shrubs. China cultivated hydrangeas relatively early, and hydrangeas were planted in Jiangnan gardens built during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Parks built in the early 20th century also could not do without hydrangea plantings. Modern parks and scenic areas all plant them in masses to form landscapes.

Below, the editor has compiled the cultivation and management techniques for hydrangeas.

Water and Fertilizer Management for Hydrangeas

Hydrangeas like fertilizer. During the growing period, generally apply decomposed dilute cake fertilizer water once every 15 days. To maintain the acidity of the soil, 1%-3% ferrous sulfate can be added to the fertilizer solution and applied. Regularly watering with alum fertilizer water can make the plant's branches luxuriant and leaves green; adding 1-2 applications of potassium dihydrogen phosphate during the bud stage can make the flowers larger and more colorful; applying cake fertilizer should avoid the dog days to prevent diseases and pests and damage to the root system.

Hydrangeas have luxuriant branches and leaves and require a relatively large amount of water. In the growing seasons of spring, summer and autumn, water sufficiently to keep the potting soil often moist. Summer weather is hot and evaporation is high, so in addition to watering sufficiently, also spray water on the leaves every day. Hydrangeas dislike water accumulation in the pot, otherwise the roots will rot. After entering autumn, gradually reduce the amount of watering.

Four-Season Care for Hydrangeas

Hydrangeas like semi-shade and moist environments, and are not very cold-tolerant. In the intense summer heat, avoid direct sun exposure, otherwise the leaves easily scorch, turn yellow, and the branches and leaves easily wilt and wither after frost. When cultivated in the open ground, the aboveground part dies in winter, and the next year new shoots sprout from the rhizome and bloom again. If potted in a greenhouse for overwintering, they can remain evergreen.

Spring care points: For potted plants, prune dead branches and repot with fresh soil. After the plant has adjusted, apply one or two dilute liquid fertilizers mainly based on nitrogen fertilizer, which can promote the sprouting of branches and leaves.

Summer and autumn care points: They should be placed in semi-shade or under a shade frame to prevent direct sun exposure and avoid leaves turning yellow and scorching. Apply one or two additional fertilizer applications before and after flowering to promote green leaves and abundant flowers. After the flowers fade, promptly remove the flower stalks to maintain a beautiful appearance. Keep the potting soil often moist, but prevent water accumulation after rain, in case the fleshy roots of the hydrangea rot due to excessive water.

Winter care points: After winter begins, open-ground cultivated plants should be earthed up for warmth so they can overwinter safely; potted plants can be placed in a warm place facing south and exposed to the sun, without cold wind attack. In winter, although dead leaves fall off, the roots and branches remain alive, and new leaves sprout again the next spring.

Repotting and Pruning Hydrangeas

For potted hydrangeas, generally repot and change the soil once a year. Repotting and changing soil is best done in early March. When changing pots, prune the plant's root system, cutting off rotten roots, decayed roots and overly long fibrous roots. After moving the plant into a new pot, firm the soil, water thoroughly, place it in a shaded area for about 10 days, then move it outdoors for normal management.

To make the crown of a potted hydrangea beautiful and produce more flowers, the plant must be pruned. Generally, after the seedlings survive and grow to 10-15 cm tall, pinch them back so that the lower axillary buds can sprout. Then select 4 new branches from the middle and upper parts after sprouting, and remove all the lower axillary buds. When the new branches grow to 8-10 cm, pinch them back a second time. Hydrangeas generally bloom on two-year-old vigorous branches. After flowering, the old branches should be cut short, keeping only 2-3 buds, to limit the plant from growing too tall and to promote new shoots. After autumn, cut off the tops of the new shoots to stop branch growth and facilitate overwintering. After such pruning, the plant's shape is relatively graceful, greatly enhancing its ornamental value.

How to Grow Hydrangeas: Hydrangea Cultivation Techniques

Hydrangea is a common ornamental flowering shrub. In many places it is planted in masses to form landscapes, and some people also like to grow it in pots to beautify their home environment. Today's hydrangeas are mostly artificially cultivated, with large and colorful flowers, including blue, white, purplish red, pink, peach red and so on. Because they always grow together like a cluster, they have a very vivid name: hydrangea. As such, they stand out among the hundred flowers, and in the language of flowers, they have many different legends and meanings.

I. The Language of Hydrangea Flowers

The language of hydrangea flowers: hope, fidelity, eternity, happiness, reunion.

Fidelity refers to loyalty in love and the eternity of mutual affection. Moreover, the round flowers and beautiful posture of hydrangeas symbolize an inseparable bond with loved ones; no matter how long they are apart, they will be reunited together, thus implying "happiness, reunion." Also, during the short one-month flowering period, its color undergoes many changes. And it is not simply changing from red to blue or from blue to green. Therefore, hydrangea also implicitly refers to "change of heart, fickleness."

Not only that, the flowers of this hydrangea are very peculiar. While being liked by people, they also carry the meaning of happy reunion, making it impossible not to like them. The round flowers of the hydrangea are truly beautiful. People often say that this beautiful posture symbolizes an inseparable bond with loved ones; no matter how long they are apart, they will be reunited together.

In addition, hydrangea also has the symbolic meaning of fidelity and eternity. Everyone can probably guess the meaning: it refers to loyalty in love and the eternity of mutual affection. Precisely because of this, hydrangea has also been given the flower language of fidelity and eternity by people. It is said that people blessed by this flower will live a very happy life.

In fact, hydrangeas are not only divided into white and red; blue hydrangeas also exist in this world. Blue represents romance and completeness, and for this reason, blue hydrangeas also have another flower language, namely romantic completeness. It fully inherits the special meaning people have given to blue. But seriously, blue hydrangeas are really very beautiful.

II. A Brief Introduction to Hydrangeas

Hydrangea, also known as eight-immortal flower, purple sun flower, seven changes, foreign hydrangea, and powder ball flower, is native to the Mediterranean. It belongs to the family Saxifragaceae, genus Hydrangea, a deciduous shrub. Its flowers are almost entirely sterile flowers; the so-called "flowers" are merely sepals. The hydrangea native to the Mediterranean has long been famous worldwide as an evergreen tree that blooms in severe winter. In cold winter, suddenly seeing pink buds and white flowers seems to tell people that spring is near. Therefore, hydrangea implies "hope." People born under the blessing of this flower are extremely patient and tolerant. They will bring hope to many people, and their own lives will also be very rich.

Hydrangea is a deciduous shrub or small tree, blooming in summer, with flowers gathered at the branch tips into cymes, and white neutral flowers at the edges. The flowers are green when they first open, then turn white, with a delicate fragrance. It likes warm, moist and semi-shaded environments, fears both drought and waterlogging, is not cold-tolerant, and likes fertile, moist, well-drained light loam, but has relatively strong adaptability.

Hydrangea is a deciduous shrub or small tree, 3 m tall. Branches spread out, winter buds exposed. Leaves opposite, ovate to ovate-elliptic, dark green on the surface, covered with stellate short pubescence on the back, leaf margins serrate. Blooms in summer, with flowers gathered at the branch tips into large spherical cymes, and white neutral flowers at the edges. Flowering period April to May, flower diameter 18-20 cm, all sterile flowers. The flowers are green when they first open, then turn white, with a delicate fragrance. Because their form resembles a hydrangea ball.

III. How to Grow Hydrangeas

Hydrangea is known for its beautiful petals and is named for its flower shape resembling the ancient hydrangea ball. Hydrangea flowers are large and full, and the flower colors are mostly gorgeous. They are mostly potted, originally from the Sichuan area, and because they vary greatly, they are also often called eight-immortal flower and foreign hydrangea. The flowering period is summer, and the flowers grow in clusters. Hydrangeas relatively like warm and moist environments, and are mostly semi-shade plants. The Yangtze River basin has relatively abundant water, so hydrangeas have adapted to a warm and humid environment. They are not very cold-tolerant and fear the cold, so they are rarely seen in the north. They also do not have high requirements for soil, are suitable for cultivation, and flower color is also greatly related to soil acidity and alkalinity.

1. If hydrangeas are to produce beautiful and generous flowers, then it is best to plant them in acidic soil with relatively abundant organic matter. Only this kind of soil with rich humus can let hydrangeas produce beautiful flowers. The acidity and alkalinity of the soil need to be adjusted well. According to the growth patterns of hydrangeas, generally acidic soil produces blue flowers, while slightly alkaline soil produces more red flowers.

2. Hydrangeas generally bloom vigorously in early summer in the south. Their suitable temperature is about 25°C. Generally the temperature should not be lower than 10°C; below 5°C they stop growing. Therefore, measures should be taken in winter.

IV. Hydrangea Cultivation Techniques

China cultivated eight-immortal flower relatively early, and hydrangeas were planted in Jiangnan gardens built during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Parks built in the early 20th century also could not do without hydrangea plantings. Modern parks and scenic areas all plant them in masses to form landscapes. Artificially cultivated hydrangeas have large and colorful flowers, with colors including blue, white, purplish red, pink, peach red and so on, and are a common ornamental flowering shrub.

Hydrangea is a common flowering plant. Its umbel-like inflorescences are piled up like snowballs, clustered among the elliptical green leaves, very beautiful. It is a very important summer flowering shrub and can be planted almost anywhere, but if planted on home windowsills and balconies, it will make the home appear full of charm. The suitable growth temperature for hydrangeas is 18-28°C, and the winter temperature should not be lower than 5°C. Flower bud differentiation requires 6-8 weeks at 5-7°C. A temperature of 20°C can promote flowering. After flowering begins, maintaining 16°C can prolong the viewing period. Hydrangea is a short-day plant. With more than 10 hours of darkness treatment per day, flower buds form in about 45-50 days. After flowering, remove the flower stems to promote the production of new branches.

Finally, in fact, we all know that not all flowers have a language of flowers, and once flowers are given special meaning by people, they are always especially favored by people. I wonder whether, after this explanation, everyone has a deeper understanding of this novel hydrangea?