Let’s make some babies…herb babies that is
Phase 1 of my herb lady business is now in effect- I have planted 100 seeds and hope to see them germinate in the coming weeks. But many herbs can also be reproduced by taking cuttings, and today I took several cuttings that will hopefully grow into big strong plants in their own right. Anyone who is not familiar with plants may think this a complicated task, but it is actually simple enough that even I have a hard time screwing it up.
You start with your “parent plant”:
My herb area
Then take some cuttings from the plants you want to propagate, making sure there are at least 2 sets of leaves, cutting just below a leaf node. Try not to pick tough, woody stems. Pinch the leaves from the bottom node- this is the part of the plant you will stick in the soil, and what once grew leaves will now grow roots. You’ll also want to pinch off any lower leaves so they don’t touch the soil and rot. Also get rid of any flowers. You’ll be left with a somewhat pathetic specimen like this Basil below:
Pinch the leaves off at the bottom, this will be where the new roots grow
I like to dip the node that will go in the soil in a little rooting hormone to help it root faster, but you don’t necessarily have to do this. Plunk the little sucker in the soil (or seed starting mix, which is what I am using in the picture above), keep things moist and warm and pretty soon you will have baby herbs everywhere.
Told you it was simple!
