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Q: Ellen,
A neighbor of mine asked if I could give her a cutting to root from my hydrangea. It is the type that has the "flat blooms." I have the rooting hormone to dip the cutting in but want to be sure where to take the cutting from the plant and if I can take it in now, in the fall, and possibly start it through the winter. I have a bay window that has wonderful southern exposure.
Bekkicat
A: Bekkicat,
I'm unclear of the zone you're in, but if you're want to start hydrangeas indoors from stem tips this fall go ahead and try it, otherwise, wait until May or early June and your neighbor can take a cutting and plant it directly outdoors. Hydrangeas usually need 6 weeks of temperatures below 65 degrees to set buds, followed by at least 6 more weeks of night time temperatures of 35 to 45 degrees. Eighty or so days after this, they flower. Rooting them indoors will work fine, but expect them to take a year or two after you transplant them outdoors to get back on track before they flower.
Take a cutting from the tip end of a branch that did not flower this year (5-6 inches long). Make sure the branch has stopped growing, but isn't yet brown. Remove the lower leaves to expose the leaf nodes. Cut the largest of the remaining leaves in half. Insert the stem (dipped in rooting hormone) into a pot of moist, well-drained potting soil. Cover them with plastic, using stakes to keep the plastic from touching the leaves. Keep them in full light, but out of direct sun. Use caution with your south-facing window as the light could be too strong.
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