How to plant thuja cuttings at home. Methods of propagation of decorative thuja. Methods for rooting cuttings
In modern landscape design coniferous plants occupy special place. Conifers are beautiful on their own. They can be not only independent soloists, but also perform a wide variety of secondary functions: serve as backstage for flowering plants, form green fences and screens, create harmony and beauty on the site.
A special place among conifers belongs to thuja. She is a member of the cypress family. Tui differ from each other in the shape of the crown, the color of the needles and geometric dimensions.
Thuja is one of those plants that you can easily propagate yourself. There are such methods of reproduction of thuja: seeds and cuttings. Consider these methods, since each of them has its own disadvantages and advantages.
Reproduction by seeds
The advantage of thuja seed propagation is that plants grown in this way are more tolerant of atmospheric changes and disease resistant. The disadvantage is that growing from seed takes longer than from cuttings. It can last from 3 to 6 years. In addition, thuja grown from seeds do not always retain their qualities. mother plant.
Preparation
For planting, you need to stock up on seeds, collecting ripe, but still unopened cones at the end of August.
They are placed in heat so that they open up. After a few days, seeds are collected from the opened boxes and placed in a linen bag. . It must be said that seeds remain viable for 2-3 years if stored in a dry place.
As soon as winter comes, the seeds in the bag are buried in the snow. This will be the stratification of seeds in the cold.
Sowing
With the onset of spring, the seeds are removed from the snow and planted in containers or on a bed with a prepared mixture of sand and peat (1: 1) to a depth of 2 cm. Mulch from above coniferous sawdust or peat and watered regularly.
When the seeds germinate and shoots appear, they must be handled very carefully: shade, fertilize with a weak solution of mullein or special fertilizer for coniferous plants, weed and loosen the soil.
With the onset of winter, containers with seedlings can be moved to the basement. If the seedlings are in the garden, they must be covered with spruce branches. Only at the age of three, grown plants can dive. They are transplanted to a permanent place in the fifth year, preferably in the spring.
Propagation of thuja cuttings
The main advantage of cuttings is that in a very short term(3 years) you can get a fully formed plant. In addition, it will retain all the qualities of the type of thuja in which the cuttings were cut.
Disadvantages: the survival rate of conifers grown from cuttings is less than from seeds. They are more sensitive to diseases and sudden changes in temperature.
Material selection
Propagation of thuja by cuttings is best done in early June. Cuttings are cut from strong, well-developed branches of two years of age. The length of the harvested shoots should be about 20 cm. It is better not to cut the stalk, but to break it with your hands so that a “heel” remains on its tip - a piece of wood with bark.
Preparation of cuttings
The cuttings are placed in water for several hours. For better rooting cuttings, a root growth stimulator is added to the water - heteroauxin (100 mg per 0.5 l of water) or zircon (1 ampoule per 10 l). You can additionally powder with root.
For the rapid rooting of the cuttings, it is very important to properly prepare the soil in which the cuttings will be planted. The optimal composition of the soil consists of: river sand, soddy soil and peat in equal parts. All components are thoroughly mixed and disinfected with a solution of potassium permanganate. The solution should be burgundy.
When the soil dries, fill the greenhouse with it and plant the prepared cuttings. The cuttings are deepened by 2 cm and squeeze the soil around them with your fingers. The distance between the cuttings is 5-7 cm. The greenhouse is covered with plastic wrap and placed in partial shade.
Cutting Care
In order for the cuttings to take root quickly, it is necessary to maintain a temperature of 20 degrees in the greenhouse. By regularly spraying the cuttings with warm water, constant humidity will be maintained in the greenhouse. In addition to irrigation, the greenhouse must be regularly ventilated. After about two months, roots appear on the cuttings. From now on, they need to be hardened and fertilized. It is best to use fertilizer for conifers. By the end of autumn, the seedlings will noticeably get stronger and grow up.
In order for the plants to successfully survive the winter, they are covered with spruce branches. Sawdust and leaves will not work, as they create an ideal breeding ground for mold and other disease-causing bacteria. It is also impossible to cover with a film, since during thaws the seedlings under it can sweat.
Planting seedlings
In the spring, after removing the shelter, all dead cuttings are removed. And those that remain can be planted in a permanent place. Although thuja belongs to picky cultures, it needs lighting to form a beautiful crown. This must be remembered.
Now, knowing how thuja reproduces at home, you can easily grow wonderful ornamental plants and implement your ideas for landscaping your backyard.
For the design of household plots, plants of the cypress family are often used. Great option is unpretentious, which is characterized by high frost resistance and the ability to decorate the site with its beautiful appearance all year round. With the help of thuja, gardeners can form a living fence, divide their territory into separate zones, and create real green corridors. Dozens of seedlings are needed to create such large-scale works. That is why many gardeners are beginning to wonder how it is possible to grow so many trees on their own at home.
An effective way to propagate shrubs and trees is cuttings, which guarantee the preservation of the special species characteristics of the plant. Can grow thuja from seeds, but, nevertheless, at home this method is less desirable and more difficult. In addition, with seed propagation, it is not always possible to grow young plant with the same characteristics of the variety as in the adult. Another disadvantage of this propagation method is that such shrubs will develop more slowly than those obtained by cuttings.
Thuja cuttings
The successful result of thuja cuttings will depend on various factors: the time when the cuttings are carried out, on the choice of the mother plant, on compliance with the planting technology and the creation of a microclimate.
- Timing cuttings and tree. Thuja shoots eventually reduce their ability to form a root system. This must be taken into account when choosing a mother tree. It is best to take shoots from young thuja, whose age ranges from four to nine years. Shoots of cultivated species will take root much more easily than those taken from wild-growing specimens. best moment for grafting there will be a period when the snow has melted, but the active spring awakening of the kidneys has not yet begun. Usually it is the end of March - the middle of April. It is possible to carry out summer cuttings, but in this case there is much less chance of growing a plant successfully and additional efforts and installations will be required for high humidity air. It is possible to make cuttings in September. The roots of plants taken for cuttings in the spring appear within three months, the rest of the time the stems of the thuja will take root only for the next year.
- Selection of branches for cuttings. If you have a pyramidal thuja, then the shoot should be taken from the middle or upper part of the plant, but if it is spherical, then the place of the cut does not matter. It is better to cut shoots for cuttings in the morning on a cloudy day. The length of the branch should be approximately 10-12 cm. You can take smaller ones, but their rooting will be longer. It is better to take a cutting with a piece old wood(“heel”), for this it is necessary to cut off the stem with a sharp downward movement. The thickening that remains on the handle has the best opportunity form a root.
Cuttings: the order of work
If you have a very long “heel”, then it must be carefully cut off. Next, the lower part of the stem is cleaned of needles, leaving them at the end of the branch. After that, the prepared cutting is placed in a jar with a rooting solution. Thus, the shoots must be held for 12 hours before planting in the ground.
Holes are made in pots or containers with earth, the depth of which is about 3-4 cm. A distance of 6-8 cm is maintained between the cuttings, and the distance between rows should be 10-12 cm. The prepared cuttings are placed in holes, tightly tamping them with earth. After planting, the soil is well watered, the boxes are covered with a transparent film and rearranged in a shaded place.
Caring for cuttings
During rooting, the container with thuja cuttings should be opened once a day in cloudy weather, watering and spraying the needles, and in sunny weather it should be opened twice a day. Periodically, it is required to loosen the ground and make sure that there is no waterlogging of the soil, otherwise mold may appear. For the prevention of fungal diseases, it is recommended to treat plantings with a fungicide.
The formation of the root system usually takes about three months, buds and young twigs begin to grow. From this moment on, it is necessary to open a greenhouse for hardening seedlings and for airing the soil. The larger the seedlings, the more often they remove the film, and then remove it completely.
Thuja is an unpretentious and frost-resistant plant. Often used for landscaping garden plots or country houses. However, thuja is an expensive pleasure, so it is easier to breed them yourself. Moreover, following simple recommendations, thuja can be grown even without being an experienced gardener.
This plant can be propagated in two ways:
- With the help of seeds;
- With the help of twigs or cuttings.
The first method, which includes seeds, is very painstaking and long. It will take two to six years. In addition, it is generally accepted that thuja grown from cuttings are more hardy. If you have decorative look thuja, also do not propagate it by seeds. It is best to choose propagation by branches.
Propagation of thuja cuttings
For those who want to grow a similar plant for themselves, there is a very simple and affordable option- breeding thuja cuttings. Reproduction of thuja in this way should occur in the fall. When preparing to breed a plant, you have probably read many articles on the topic of how to propagate thuja from cuttings, and you know that the shoot must be healthy and strong. Do not choose too young or too old branches. Pay attention to those that grow in the middle of the tree. 
Such shoots are usually already strong enough, but not yet stiffened for reproduction. Tear off several shoots 50 cm long. A little tree bark should remain at the end of the shoot.
Experienced gardeners who know how to grow thuja from cuttings gave this plant the name "heel". The longer the "heel", the better the shoot will be rooted. In order to pluck a branch with such a “heel”, they usually use a knife or simply pluck the branch with a sharp downward movement. We remove all unnecessary twigs and leaves. It is necessary to prepare a pot with peat and leafy soil in advance (in a ratio of 1 to 1). We deepen the cutting itself two centimeters into the ground at an angle of 60 degrees. The area around the planted cutting should be sprinkled with sand and lightly pressed with your finger.
It is necessary to ensure that the remaining leaves do not touch the peat. We water and make a greenhouse from a film or a simple can on top of the cutting. The higher the transparency of the bank, the better. After that, you should set aside the pot with the shoot in a bright and warm place. Humidity should be no higher than 70% at an air temperature of 23 degrees, otherwise the cutting may rot. It is better to spray the cutting itself with water, and not to water it under the root. 
As soon as new shoots began to appear on the cutting, this means that it is fully rooted.
However, it is too early to plant such a thuja in the garden. Start to open the greenhouse more often and let the thuja “breathe the air”. Increase ventilation time by minimizing greenhouse time. As soon as the thuja gets used to the coolness, you can safely plant it in the garden.
How to grow thuja from a branch?
When deciding how to breed thuja, you can find several alternative methods. On the Internet you can find a lot of information on the question that sounds like this: “How to grow thuja from a branch?”. The "instructions" are based on the same actions as when transplanting with the help of cuttings. However, as elsewhere, there are nuances. If you are interested in how to grow a thuja from a branch, then the cut of the branch itself must first be treated with a root stimulator. This will help the root system develop and take root in the new soil.
The pallet with sand should be treated with a three percent solution of potassium permanganate. The branches themselves should be placed in pre-made holes at an angle of 45 degrees. In one pallet, you can grow several branches at once. To do this, the distance between them should be from 3 to 5 cm.
When transplanting with branches, make sure that direct sunlight does not fall on the pallet with shoots.
You can moisten using the same technology as when propagating by cuttings. It will be necessary to plant rooted branches in the spring or you can keep them in greenhouse conditions until summer. This will give a greater likelihood that your thuja will quickly get used to the new conditions and will survive the first winter more calmly.
Self-breeding thuja in the local area is not a difficult and very exciting event. However, it is necessary not only to propagate correctly, but also to correctly plant the conifer.
Advantages of autumn propagation of thuja cuttings
The main advantage of breeding conifer in autumn period is the possibility of obtaining a full-fledged plant in three years. Such a plant will fully correspond to the botanical characteristics of the mother culture, but the level of survival is not at high level.
It should be noted that cuttings grown at home are quite difficult to tolerate the process of transplantation, they do not have a very high resistance to pathogenic flora and sudden temperature changes. However, it is autumn breeding most often practiced by gardeners and flower growers of our country.
When and how to properly carry out thuja cuttings in the fall
slicing planting material carried out only from branches that have reached the age of two and are well developed. When cutting, remember that the length of the shoot should be about a quarter of a meter. Best Option is not cutting the cuttings with a pruner or knife, but breaking off from the branch of the mother plant, which will make it possible to obtain planting material with a characteristic “heel” from the bark.
All harvested cuttings of the conifer must be placed for several hours in a container filled with water with the addition of a growth stimulant and a bioroot. It is advisable to carry out the main process of germinating cuttings inside a special greenhouse, which must first be filled with clean river sand, peat chips and soddy soil, mixed in equal proportions.
Thuja breeding methods (video)
It is important to remember that nutritional soil mix, before backfilling, it is imperative to disinfect, using for this purpose a sufficiently strong solution based on potassium permanganate.
Prepared and passed pre-processing in growth stimulants, cuttings should be planted in a moist nutrient substrate, keeping a distance of 50-70 mm. The penetration into the nutrient substrate should be approximately 20 mm. Landing in a greenhouse must be covered with a transparent plastic wrap, which will allow to shade the rooted cuttings of the conifer from direct sun rays.
Why you can not store thuja cuttings
Cuttings can be done in spring or autumn, but such planting material is not subject to storage, since extremely rapid dehydration and death of wood occurs. Such a vegetative method, in comparison with seed propagation, is the most convenient in indoor and backyard floriculture.
Cuttings from spring or autumn harvesting need proper growing. For this purpose, it is necessary to form special ridges, which are called "shkolka". Under such conditions, the planting material will be for a couple of years, after which the coniferous seedling is transplanted to a permanent place. The planting material cut in the autumn is planted on the ridges of the shkolka only next year.
Rooting technology of thuja cuttings at home in autumn
At home, the rooting of the conifer for autumn propagation is most often performed using sphagnum peat moss. It is also necessary to prepare a plastic film, a clean cloth and a growth stimulator, including Epin or Kornevin. The technology of this method of rooting conifer at home is not complicated, but must be carried out taking into account the following recommendations:
- place the thuja shoots in a container filled with water with the addition of any root stimulant for about twelve hours;
- moss-sphagnum pour boiled warm water approximately three hours, which will allow natural material increase in size, and also well saturated with moisture;
- decompose into flat surface a wide fabric strip, visually divide the width of the strip in half, and evenly distribute moistened sphagnum moss over the entire upper part;
- with a slight distance from each other, it is required to lay the cut cuttings of the conifer, and then cover them with wet sphagnum.
On final stage it is necessary to cover the cuttings with the lower part of the fabric strip, and roll it into a not too tight roll, which is placed in polyethylene. The workpiece must be placed in a room with sufficient natural light. If necessary, the moss needs to be moistened periodically. clean water room temperature from a household spray bottle.
How to cut thuja (video)
What you need to know about planting thuja cuttings in the fall in open ground
Thuja is a light-loving plant, and in shady areas such a conifer can quickly lose its natural splendor and all decorative appeal. The site should be represented by fertile and well-permeable soils. with enough moisture. Before planting coniferous plant, you need to prepare a good planting hole, the size of which depends on the parameters of the development of the roots of the culture. To the bottom landing pit falls asleep drainage layer in the form of broken bricks or expanded clay. A nutrient substrate based on sand, peat and garden soil.
The ideal time for planting is September and early October, but always before the appearance of sufficiently strong and stable frosts. The roots of the plant should have time to take root before the onset of winter. root collar coniferous plant when planting should be placed on the same level with the ground.
After planting, watering is carried out, and timely and proper feeding will allow the plant to take root well and easily endure the stress caused by planting. As autumn feeding potash and phosphate fertilizers can be used. After landing, you need to provide ornamental culture daily irrigation activities and conventional sprinkling with a hose.
Subject to the planting regime and the rules of care, you can count on getting a beautiful and strong coniferous plant.
How to root thuja cuttings (video)
Thuya enjoys special love among summer residents. Living thuja fences decorate the site very much. But for such work, dozens of seedlings are needed. Therefore, the question of how to propagate thuja is very relevant for summer residents and owners of suburban areas. Unpretentious frost-resistant thuja is often used for decoration summer cottages, adjoining territories. The reproduction of this conifer involves three methods: seed, cuttings, grown trees (ready-made seedlings). Let's consider all three.
The option with seeds is very long, labor-intensive, since at least 5 years will pass by the time the bush is planted in the ground. In addition, thuja may lose its varietal characteristics during development, and the only advantage of such a situation will be the adaptation of the plant to the local climate. However, if you are interested in the process itself, then you will need a soil mixture (sand, coniferous, deciduous land), high-quality seeds. It is important that the seed material has previously been stratified - overwintered under a layer of snow.
With the advent of spring, thuja seeds are placed in containers with nutrient soil, covered with earth mixed with sawdust of coniferous crops. Reproduction of thuja by seeds at home entails traditional concerns: protecting seedlings from the scorching rays of the sun, timely watering, getting rid of weeds, top dressing. After 5 or even 6 years, young thuja can be planted on the site.
Cutting propagation is the most convenient, effective way. A big plus of this method is the preservation of the varietal qualities of the tree, as well as the ability to get full-fledged small trees in two or three years. Of the minuses, it is worth noting the reduced endurance and a small percentage of survival of the bushes. For this situation, this is normal, if you do everything according to the rules, then positive result will not keep you waiting.
Consider the propagation of thuja at home by cuttings. What season to choose for this - spring or autumn?
Propagation of thuja cuttings in spring
Most often, novice gardeners are concerned about the question - reproduction of thuja in the spring, how best to do it. With spring rooting, all processes are faster, as the movement of juices in the shoots is activated. Harvesting planting material is practically no different from the above method. For the selection of cuttings, healthy branches from the top of the thuja, which are no more than 3 years old, are also used.
Reproduction of thuja in the spring is best done in April, with the manual separation of the branch, the “heel” should be preserved. If for some reason you missed April, then you can have time to "catch" the second period of shoot growth - this is June. It should be borne in mind that the June cuttings will "sleep" the summer, autumn, winter, and take root only by spring.
The best way for spring breeding is the substrate method and active moisturizing. Water or the diaper method will not work here due to insufficient moisture during the activation of the root system. The process itself is very similar to autumn cuttings, but sometimes the soil mixture is replaced with clean sand.
Thuja - propagation by cuttings in spring, stages:
- We put the selected shoots in water with Kornevin for 24 hours.
- We take boxes or other containers with big amount holes at the bottom, lay a layer of medium-sized rubble.
- Pour clean sand on top, which can be calcined or doused with boiling water. You can also use the soil mixture mentioned above.
- Spill the sand with a solution of potassium permanganate, it should be pink, but not too dark.
- When the sand or substrate has cooled, we immerse the thuja branches there to a depth of 1-1.5 cm, lightly trample it with our hands.
- Since it is still cool in spring, containers with cuttings should be placed where conditions are similar to greenhouse conditions. At the same time, the air temperature should not be lower than +17ºС, higher than +23ºС.
This place should be shaded, seedlings should be irrigated daily from a spray bottle. If the spring turned out to be hot, then spraying should be done twice a day. At the same time, make sure that moisture does not get on the green leaf plates - the process of decay may begin. After two months, it will become clear which cuttings have taken root, by which time the risk of drying out of the planting material is significantly reduced.
Thuja - propagation by cuttings in autumn
But there is also an opinion that it is the autumn harvesting of twigs for planting that is more appropriate, since in autumn the sap flow slows down, respectively, the number of seedlings dying from lack of moisture decreases. Keep in mind that the rooting process will take longer. Slightly consider the reproduction of thuja in the spring
To collect twigs, it is better to choose a non-sunny day in October, when the leaves have already fallen from the trees (in the Kuban, this may be the beginning of November). It is best to pinch off shoots from the top, it is best to choose those branches that are already 3 or 4 years old.
Select only lignified branches, not exceeding 50 cm in length. The “correct” shoot at the end should have a woody “heel” - part of the bark, thanks to which new roots will develop. The longer this “heel” is, the better the rooting process will go. Remove about 3-4 cm of leaf blades from the end of the shoot and proceed to the next step.
Reproduction of thuja cuttings in a jar of water
Water is the lightest accessible way activation of thuja roots. To do this, take a small container, fill it with water, set the branches so that the water covers the ends by about 2 cm. Do not place more than 3 or 5 cuttings. Make sure that the green parts of the shoots do not come into contact with water - this contributes to the further decay of the planting material. After that, choose a bright, slightly cool place for the container.
Seedling care is a timely replacement of water (when it becomes cloudy). At this time, the cuttings are removed from the jar, the roots are wrapped with a clean, damp cloth. New water must be disinfected with a pair of potassium permanganate crystals.
Rooting cuttings of thuja in the substrate, sphagnum
Propagation of thuja cuttings in autumn is possible different ways, for example, using a substrate. This method is more advantageous than the option with water, which does not contain any nutrients, but with the substrate, the rooting process will be much more productive.
To make seedlings healthier, hardier, prepare:
- Boxes or other forms with holes (for soil aeration). Lay fine gravel (drainage) on the bottom, mix equal parts of leafy humus, sand, peat.
- Ignite the resulting soil mixture in the oven. If you have potassium permanganate at home, then make a dark solution and additionally spill the soil for reliability.
- Place the cuttings for 10-12 hours in water with a pre-diluted biostimulating preparation "Kornevin".
- Fill the containers with the substrate, make recesses for the cuttings. Deepen the seedlings themselves by 1.5-2 cm, sprinkle sand on top (which can also be pre-calcined), lightly tamp.
- Next, the box should be covered with plastic wrap, put in a bright place, while the air temperature should be +18..22ºС. When condensation appears on the walls of the mini-greenhouse, slightly open the film on one side (for ventilation).
With substrate rooting, it is important not to overdo it with watering and prevent the soil from drying out. Moisturizing is best carried out by spraying with a spray gun, since the weight of water can take the soil, expose the “heel”.
There is another interesting way in which the autumn reproduction of thuja is carried out using sphagnum (peat moss). This method implies, as it were, swaddling shoots with a kind of cocoon, this method is called so - rooting thuja cuttings in diapers.
In addition to sphagnum, you will need polyethylene film, clean tissue, as well as the drug "Kornevin".
- As described above, we place the thuja shoots in water with a rooting stimulator (for 10-12 hours).
- Pour sphagnum boiled water for about 3 hours, so that it swells, saturated with moisture.
- We lay out a wide strip of fabric on the table, visually divide its width in half, evenly spread wet sphagnum along the entire length of the upper strip. The lower free part of the width of the diaper will be needed in order to cover the cuttings and moss, and then we carefully roll this strip into a roll.
- At a short distance from each other, we lay thuja branches, surrounding the “heels” with sphagnum.
- We cover the cuttings with the lower part of the strip, so that the green tops are free, we turn the roll.
- The resulting sack is placed inside plastic bag, hang in a well-lit place (but not in direct sunlight).
Such propagation of thuja by cuttings is considered the easiest, thanks to moss, the required moisture level is maintained for a long time. The lack of moisture can be determined by the absence of condensation on the inner walls of the bag - if it is dry, then the diaper should be moistened with a spray bottle.
Growing thuja
Cuttings of spring or autumn harvesting require growing. For this, special beds are formed, which is called shkolka. They will stay there for 2 or 3 years, after which they will be transplanted to a permanent place of residence. Autumn cuttings are planted in shkolku next year, and spring cuttings already in September of this year.
The place for young thuja should be green, the soil should be peat (you can add 1 bucket per 1 m²), the cuttings are planted at a distance of 25-30 cm from each other, watered. At this stage, the seedlings will already gain strength, you just have to take care of them properly - water and destroy weeds in a timely manner.
Tui reproduction is an interesting, productive process, since you can get dozens of "kids" from one tree. After 2-3 years, these will be full-fledged small trees, with the help of which you can plant trees on your site, give it individuality.
