Cuttings are the easiest way to propagate a forsythia. They are easy to grow and develop roots after a short time. This is what you need to know if you want to grow new plants from forsythia cuttings.
How do I propagate forsythia through cuttings?
To take forsythia cuttings, cut 12-15 cm long branches from the previous year in May and remove the lower bud bases. Place them 5 cm deep in garden soil or potting soil in a pot. Water them well and pay attention to the growth of green leaves and side shoots.
The best time to take cuttings
The best time to take cuttings is May, when the forsythia has finished flowering. Then the bushes stand well in the sap and have a lot of strength to form roots.
Which forsythia branches are particularly suitable?
Choose forsythia branches from the previous year. You can recognize them by the faded flowers on them. The wood is still slightly greenish.
The rods grow upright and can be easily bent.
Parts that are slightly woody at the bottom are well suited.
Prepare cuttings
- Cut cutting
- Short to desired length
- Remove lower bud bases
- Place in outdoor soil or a pot
Short the cuttings to a length of 12 to 15 centimeters. If you want to grow a bonsai from the forsythia, the cutting should be a maximum of 10 centimeters long.
Carefully strip off the flower bases from the lower part of the cutting. The roots develop from them underground.
How to plant cuttings correctly
The prepared cuttings are placed in prepared garden soil (€10.00 on Amazon) or in small pots with potting soil. The cutting should be at least five centimeters deep in the soil.
In the spring, plant the cuttings in the ground straight away. Then you won't have to transplant them later.
Water the cuttings well. In very dry weather you will need to water more frequently. But avoid waterlogging.
Forsythia cuttings root very quickly
It usually only takes a few weeks for the forsythia cuttings to form roots. You can tell this because green leaves and side shoots develop at the base of the flowers.
You should not plant cuttings grown in pots outdoors until next spring. If you want to keep them in the pot, you can always plant them in the planter.
Tips & Tricks
Forsythia branches even take root in the flower vase. In principle, offshoots can also be obtained from this. However, you must handle these cuttings very carefully as the roots break easily.
