A garden always looks lovely when there are a bunch of roses in it.
Roses come in different kinds and colors, and it’d be nice to have them in the garden.
Never mind the thorns that come with it; it’d still be nice to have them in different flowerbeds and see them color the garden when it’s in full bloom.
However, roses are not that easy to grow.
New stems and buds would take months to grow and almost a year to bloom.
Purchasing seedlings or bushes might cost you a lot. It’s always best if you could propagate them if you want more of them in your garden.
And you know one trick to do it faster? Potatoes!
Some said using potatoes in rose propagation is a myth.
Plus, it takes an extra step that might seem like a waste of time. But if you do it right, it’s proven to help new roots, stems, and buds grow faster. All that is powered by a single potato.
Here’s what you need:
- Rose stem (to propagate)
- Firm, healthy potato
- Garden cutter
- Plastic cup
- Zip ties
- Garden soil
- Black plastic bag
- Tree branch or wood
Choose a rose stem that you want to propagate, and slice around one centimeter of the stem just enough to peel off the outer layer.
Slice the potato in half and cut the middle of both halves deep enough to fit the rose stem.
Cover the sliced part of the stem with the potato halves. Use a zip tie to keep them together.
Cut the plastic cup at the side and middle bottom big enough for the rose stem.
Slice little holes on both sides of the slits where you can insert a zip tie to close them later.
Place the cup around the stem through the slits. This looks like you placed the potato and rose stem in the cup. Insert zip ties in the slits but don’t close it just yet.
Fill the cup with garden soil and pull the zip ties to lock them.
Wrap a black or dark plastic cup around the cup but leave a small opening for watering.
Expect that doing all these would make the stem sag.
Get a branch or wood to support the stem’s weight by burying one end on the ground and tying the stem to it. Water the soil in the cup regularly as you would a fully-grown rose.
After a month, you will notice that buds are starting to form.
Cut the stem where the cup ends and prepare a pot with garden soil to transfer and propagate the rose stem.
Slice the cup and remove the stem from the potato and soil.
You will notice that new stems and roots are starting to grow. This means it’s ready for repotting, so you can proceed and plant this stem in a new pot. You can do this to multiple stems to grow more of them simultaneously.
Watch the video below for the complete demo on propagating a rose stem using a potato.
