by Glenn Davis, UCCE Master Gardener, El Dorado County
January, 2003
Every year when the weather warms and the weeds
appear I marvel at their ability to survive. They grow everywhere and seem to
surmount the most difficult locations; you can find them in driveway cracks,
along and on well-traveled roads, on brick retaining walls and beneath the bird
feeder on the deck. These are the seeds of the next generation of plants and in
order for them to be there they have to have gone through a series of
propagation steps.
Plant propagation can be either seed or vegetative. Most
natural propagation is by seed and most domestic propagation is vegetative.
Seed reproduction requires a few steps in order to become successful.
In botany it is called “sexual propagation,” there is a flower, pollination,
seed production and dispersal. While a majority of the seeds produce the same
plant there is also a good chance that some of the seeds could produce a
different plant, if a plant different than the parent had pollinated them. One
year I left my zucchinis on the ground; the following spring some of the seeds
had been successful and small squash plants emerged. The resulting zucchinis
were the regular size but instead of being green they were different shades of yellow; evidently the original
zucchini flower had been pollinated by an insect that had visited my yellow
crooked-neck squash nearby. If you save seeds from some of your favorite
plants, save a lot, some of them may not be exactly like their parents. On the other hand you might find you have
something really new and exciting.
Vegetative reproduction, sometimes referred to as “asexual
propagation,” involves using material from the original plant to reproduce an
exact replica of the parent. There are a number of ways to do this including
division of plants, layering, cuttings and grafting. Each plant you are
reproducing may need a specialized method of vegetative propagation. You can
experiment on your own, however, you might get quicker results if you find a
text or an expert to give you some assistance.
Each method of propagation, seeds or vegetative, requires some
basic equipment. For seeds you will
need some planting mix, containers and climate control and some knowledge of
the seeds need for heat, cold, dormancy, light and moisture. You may also have
to understand how to stratify seeds for a period before they are planted. Since
seeds are planted in a fine textured material, a fine soft sprayer will be
needed for watering.
Vegetative propagation requires the same material listed above
with the addition of pruning shears, a sharp knife, peat moss, plastic, rooting
hormone, and grafting wax or tape.
This is a very sketchy overview of propagation. If you really
want to propagate some plants, plan to attend the El Dorado Master Gardener
class on “Propagation” February 1, 311 Fairlane, in Placerville, from 9:00 AM
to Noon.
For more information on this subject or any garden problem,
contact the El Dorado County Master Gardeners, 621-5512, Monday through Friday,
9:00 AM to Noon.