Anyone know what this is?

I love this bush of my neighbours but in a couple of years I haven't been able to track it down. It is very similar to a hydrangea but the flower petals are a lot smaller. When the flowers bloom properly they are pastel pink and pastel blue colours. Any ideas? I have taken a cutting which I am not sure whether will take so wanted to have a back up plan of tracking one down if they don't work.

Thanks

Lesley x

 

Looks exactly like an Hydrangea to me. Maybe not the normal more commonly seen mop head, perhaps a lace cap?

 

I too believe that is a hydrangea. There are many different varieties. Perhaps this one is one of the less common ones.

 

Hydrangea by anybodies guess, it does look similar flowers to my lace cap.

 

Would be easier to identify the likely variety from a [closeup] photo when the flowers have opened a bit more and have some more colour. My guess it will be a mophead, perhaps "Mme Emile Mouillere"

Hydrangeas root pretty easily, so hopefully you will have success there

 

Ok so tell me how best to root them please?
I did what my dad said and left them in water overnight, I then dipped in rooting powder and plated in the garden. I have watered slightly but not sure if this is the right way to go about it

 

Here's what I do:

Cut off (secateurs or similar) just above a "leaf node". I take a non flowering shoot, and something that once the bottom one or two sets of leaves removed will leave me with about 3 sets of leaves at the top (the leaves at the top may be tiny, the 3rd set of leaves [from the top down] may be huge, or small). You need enough "top" for the cutting to be able to generate energy, but not so much that the thing wants more water than it can "acquire" - so you can't really do a whole branch as a cutting in order to get an instant bush!! (Use Layering for that job)

I put the "cutting" in a plastic bag immediately until I get the plant pieces back to the potting area.

I mix about 50:50 perlite and multi purpose compost. I want a really fast-draining, airy, mix.

I fill a Pan (a normal flower pot, but a Pan is more shallow - so it looks "squat" compared to a normal pot) to the brim with the mix and firm it using the bottom of another similar sized pot. If you use your fingers to firm it you will be likely to over-compress it, I find by using the bottom of another pot I cannot exert enough force to over-compress it.

I then remove the lowest pair of leaves (I snap them, but it needs to be a clean break - if you can't achieve that cut them close to the stem with a sharp knife). I leave the immature buds on the stem (because I think they grow as roots, but I may be kidding myself!)

(Note that I remove the leaves before making the final cut - I have found that if I make final cut first and then remove the leaves sometimes they then tear away most of the bottom of the cutting, which is not desirable)

Depending whether that leaves me enough stem to "plant", or not, I may remove the second set [from the bottom up] of leaves to give me more length of clear stem to "plant".

If any of the remaining leaves are a bit on the large size I cut 1/2 or 3/4 off them with a sharp knife. A large leaf area will require more water to keep it turgid, and the sawn-off! plant will struggle to provide enough water, hence reducing the overall leaf area.

I then, finally, cut the bottom of the stem immediately below the bottom leaf pair with a sharp knife. (If you took off two pairs of leaves from the bottom, and find the stem is now too long then make this final cut below the second leaf pair, rather than the bottom pair).

Note: Hydrangeas require the final cut to be immediately below a leaf pair. Some other plants prefer an "inter-nodal" final cut)

All knife cuts need to be clean. Nowadays I only ever use disposable scalpels for that job - keeping a penknife sharp enough is too much hassle for me, and scalpels are brilliant for the job, unless the material is very woody. On sale at all good hydroponic shops, or from Mr eBay

I dip the bottom of the cutting in hormone rooting powder (it needs to be relatively fresh) or Clonex (if using that pour a tiny amount into a separate container - I use a shot-glass, it needs to be relatively narrow diameter otherwise you use/waste a lot of Clonex - always use a decanting container because you shouldn't put the cutting direct into the Clonex bottle as it will contaminate the whole container. Throw away any left over Clonex in the shot-glass at the end of the batch)

I make a hole in the pot's compost using a pencil (any thin dibber will do) and push the cutting in until it touches the bottom of the hole. I then place two fingers either side of the cutting and push down hard to compress the compost immediately adjacent to the cutting so it cannot move. I put the cuttings close to, and around, the edge of the pot.

I put a clear plastic bag [upside down] over the pot and a rubber band around the pot/bag (but if the whole pot will fit in a zip-lock bag that's fine) and I put the pot on an East or West facing window such that they get very little direct sun during the day - as it will cook them. (i.e. if you can put the pot at the very South end of a East/West windowsill the reveal on the window will cast a shadow for most of the day. A North-East or South-East window is even better)

I take the bag off about twice a week and turn it inside out so the condensation is not touching the plant, otherwise it can make it go mouldy.

Wait until there is both fresh new growth on the cutting and roots are visible at the bottom of the pot before potting on. Open the bag (but leave it over the pot) for a few days before potting on, and gradually introduce more air. Mist the plants after potting on (several times a day for a week) so they acclimatise to having to fend for themselves.

Grow on for a year and then flog on eBay or swap with mates for other plants

A pan of Hydrangea cuttings:


and the industrial racking I have by the west facing window in my home office for cuttings:

 

When I take cuttings, it`s usually after pruning, I place all my cuttings in a pot all around the edge, about 12 to a pot, and tuck them somewhere where they will get watered, but not in the way until next year.

http://www.gardenersworld.com/how-to/projects/propagating/how-to-take-summer-cuttings/323.html

 

I've added some photos to my earlier post

 

Wow that was a great informative response!! Thank you so much

 

And I don't prune/take cuttings after July or else I lose some of next year's flowers

S

 

Well I did take some cuttings and pruned the lower leaves off and cut just under a node, dipped in rooting powder and planted a few in a tub. I put it in a warm shades part of the garden and watered well but tbh they just look like they are shrivelling and wilting

I really don't think they are going to do much or is this supposed to happen? I think I may have to try again with the method posted above. There will be nothing left on the original bush by the time I have finished I have taken that many cuttings!!!

 

I would cover them with a plastic bag, or a 2L Pop bottle (with the bottom cut off) if it will fit over the cutting (leave the screw-top off). They need to be in good shade though - a net curtain, or similar, drapped on a support above them would keep the direct sun off them ... or mist them several times a day.

I suspect that their contact with the soil is just not good enough to help them root and/or drainage plus water supply is not controlled enough to enable the cutting to root. The fact that it is stressed, and wilting, may not prevent it rooting ... but its basically a race between the cutting dying and rooting, and using a pot with most suitable compost mix, a bag cover to keep the humidity up, trimming any excess leaf area, etc., are all things which will help tip the odds in favour of the cutting rooting before it dies

 

Ok thanks. I think I may nip across in the middle of the night and snip a few more cuttings!! (The house is currently empty and on the market)

Do you think they stand a better chance inside? I have a conservatory that I suppose could be used as a greenhouse?

This is a picture of the cuttings I have already taken...not looking too good are they!

 

Conservatory probably too hot and too much direct sun. I would say that the South end of an East or West facing windowsill would be better (but that pot looks quite large diameter).

Looks like Multi Purpose Compost? I think that won't be free-draining enough on its own - but its better than just chucking them in the soil, so fingers-crossed that will work.

I suggest:

Cover the pot with an upside-down clear plastic bag and tie the neck of the bag around the pot (or use an elastic band)

Put the pot in full shade - North side of the house, against the wall, will do.

You shouldn't need to water it (assuming the compost is "moist" to start with), but if it starts to feel "light" then stand in a shallow tray of water for a few minutes until it feels "reasonably heavy" again.

Turn the bag inside out twice a week