Cherry laurel can be propagated using cuttings without any problems. So you can grow the trees for an entire hedge yourself and, since the laurel cherry is not one of the cheapest trees, you can save a lot of money.
How do you propagate cherry laurel by cuttings?
To propagate cherry laurel through cuttings, you should tear off or cut he althy shoots, reduce the leaf area and put them in potting soil. Create a greenhouse environment with a plastic bag and place the cuttings in a warm, shady location to encourage root growth.
Cut cuttings
If you need a large number of sprouts, you can easily get them from pruning a he althy and strong laurel cherry. You can be quite rude and simply separate the cuttings by tearing them off the branch. Then shorten the small bark flag at the foot a little with sharp and clean rose scissors (€21.00 on Amazon).
Alternatively, you can separate the cuttings directly from the mother plant. Cut a branch deep into the old wood from the mother plant and tear off shoots from it, which will also have the flag at the foot shortened slightly.
Tearing is better than cutting
Tearing off the offshoots has the advantage of creating a smooth wound surface that heals very quickly. Secateurs, on the other hand, crush the wood, so you have to expect large losses due to rot.
Planting cuttings
Since the cherry laurel evaporates a lot of water through the leaves, it is important to reduce the leaf area of the cuttings. Leave only two to three leaves on the shoot and shorten them by half. Then proceed as follows:
- Fill growing containers with special growing soil.
- Place the cuttings about halfway into the soil and press down lightly.
- To create a greenhouse climate, place a transparent plastic bag over the containers.
- Air daily to avoid mold formation.
- Place the cultivation pots in a warm, but not in full sun, place.
As soon as the small sprouts start to sprout again, they can be separated into pots that are not too small. Care for the small laurel cherries in the house or in a sheltered spot on the terrace in the first year until they have developed into vigorously growing young plants.
Promoting roots in the vase
Alternatively, you can place cherry laurel cuttings with two to three pairs of leaves in a vase on the windowsill. The sprouts will take root within four to six weeks and can then be placed in a sufficiently large planter or directly outdoors.
Tips & Tricks
A trace of orchid fertilizer in the water stimulates the root formation of the laurel cherry and the shoots often sprout new shoots already in the water.
