Bougainvillea Cuttings: [Concept, Period, Rooting and Planting]

What does it mean to plant by cuttings?

Planting by cuttings is a form of planting by which a new plant is obtained from a stem, a leaf or the root.

For planting by cutting, a mother plant in perfect phytosanitary and robust condition is required.Among the advantages of propagation by cuttings can be highlighted:

Plants are obtained in less time (compared this reproduction system with the system through seeds).Species with characteristics very similar to the mother plant are achieved.

Nursery management is much simpler compared to that required for seed reproduction. The technique of planting by cuttings is the favorite method of gardening enthusiasts because it is simple and easy to carry out.

What is the best time to plant bougainvillea cuttings?

The easiest method of propagating bougainvillea is to grow it from cuttings and due to modern techniques, it can be done at any time of the year.However, the best time to plant bougainvillea cuttings is usually during the spring.

How to get bougainvillea cuttings to root correctly?

Bougainvillea cuttings generally do not require rooting hormones.

But if you want to provide conditions for good rooting, you can submerge the bougainvillea cutting in a rooting agent for flowering plants.

Experts and gardeners recommend the use of coconut fiber with rooting hormones to help bougainvillea, but only place it once when planting.

The rooting agents have 2 functions, on the one hand they encourage the plant tissue to sprout roots and on the other they protect the bougainvillea from fungi and diseases.

The efficiency of bougainvillea rooting depends on the species to be propagated and is affected by various factors, whether before or after taking the cuttings.

Regenerating new structures is a «costly» process for the plant and takes more time than it takes to continue the growth of an existing or preformed organ. A fundamental parameter of rooting is time, varying between plants of different ages and of the same species.

The cuttings that come from older or more mature plants or shoots are the ones that have the greatest difficulty in rooting correctly.

How should we take bougainvillea cuttings to plant them?

Bougainvillea cuttings should be chosen from the softwood of a mother plant.

Softwood is wood that comes from the plant of origin that is not new, but is also not established or overly woody.

The normal thing is to make cuttings of semi-woody or green branches, although woody cuttings can also be made.A cutting is cut straight, about 15 to 20 cm long and with 4 to 6 nodes and beveled at the top.

Nodes are the sections of the branch that either have buds from smaller branches or contain buds that will come out soon.It is essential that the tools used to take the bougainvillea cuttings are appropriate, clean and disinfected.

Bougainvillea cuttings must be protected from wind and cold, for which it is recommended to place them indoors or in a greenhouse.

How long should we leave bougainvillea cuttings in water?

When the planting of bougainvillea cuttings is not carried out by first rooting in water, then it is better that once the cuttings are cut and prepared, they are planted in the pot or garden.

Some horticulturists leave bougainvillea woody cuttings in water with B vitamins for a period of 12 hours to reactivate and help in their development.The important thing is to water and spray the cuttings from time to time, to keep them always moist.

Is it convenient to use fertilizer or compost?

It is very important to use fertilizer or compost for planting bougainvillea cuttings to provide them with the necessary conditions for their full development.

The use of coconut fiber is also recommended because it retains moisture very well and bougainvillea does very well.

Once the bougainvillea cutting has been selected, the leaves must be removed from the cut and inserted vertically into a mixture of one part perlite and one part peat.

The cutting must be sunk into the substrate of 2 or 4 cm. It is important to select a pot or container that has holes for drainage.At the time of bougainvillea flowering, it is important to provide a fertilizer rich in phosphorus and micronutrients.

How long does it usually take for a bougainvillea cutting to come out?

Bougainvillea cuttings will take about four weeks to start producing buds. A few months later they will begin to grow to form a new plant.

But, once it sprouts, it will provide color and beauty to the garden or the space where it is located.

Bibliography and references

Bent Ana. (2019). Great Book of Indoor Gardening. First edition. Servilibro Editions, SA Madrid-Spain. PP 43-47.
Manual of propagation of higher plants. Metropolitan Autonomous University. First Digital Edition 2017, Coyoacán. Mexico PDF.

digital database

Lahuertadeivan.com. How to reproduce bougainvillea successfully. Reproduced from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5z3MZddtOAA
A simple trick to grow plants by cuttings. Reproduced from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfHWU_y_gX8
Ecured.com. Cuttings. Reproduced from: https://www.ecured.cu/Esqueje

On our page you can learn more about the reproduction by cuttings of some plants and trees: