Why not try a few now? It shouldn't take long to know the results.

This is how new I am to geraniums..I though you either divided them or grew them from seed?..You can take cuttings???? Or are you talking the annual geraniums that we have in zone 5?..Judy

Hi Judy,
Now would be an excellent time to take a few cuttings. Geraniums (Pelargoniums) are most accomodating plants. Use a mix of potting soil (compost) 3parts and sharp sand 2parts. Select your cutting 3 to 4 inches long, trim just below a leaf joint, leave atleast one pair of leaves in adddition to the cutting tip. Make a hole in the compost/sand mix and insert the cutting to a depth of about1 inch. Water thoroughly and allow to drain. Keep the cuttings in a well lit position but out of direct sun. Do NOT use rooting powder or liquid with Pellies and do NOT close them up.

Good luck

Ron

Hi, I'm visiting from the Seed Saving Forum.

I was wondering, why would you not use rooting hormone on pelargoniums? Everything else I've come across says you can/should. Mind you, I haven't looked THAT far LOL I came here after checking a few websites.

I've also read that they will root in plain water. Is this true?

In my experience pelargonium cuttings treated with hormone rooting powder tend to rot, an experience shared by amateur and professional growers alike. I do not know the reason for this.
I have had much better results using:

a) a solution of ascorbic acid (vitamin C) especially for regal pellies.

b) inserting the trimmed untreated cutting into a mixture of potting compost and sharp sand.

I keep the cuttings in good light but away from direct sun and I DO NOT enclose the cuttings in propagators or polythene,

Hi, I just do my the old timey way and cut a limb and insert into a jar of water. They grow roots rapidly that way and once roots are out, I go ahead and plant them in pots. I also bring in many of my gernaniums plants, cramming several plants into a pot and line my shelves with them. They bloom all winter and ready to re-pot for next spring.

Cindy

Juttz, hardy Geraniums that you would grow in your garden are normally propagated by division or seed.

Pelargoniums are non-hardy and often grown as annuals, but are also commonly called Geraniums. They are usually propagated by cuttings. I take cuttings from my garden plants before the last frost, dry the stems for 24 hours, then put them in a jar of water. They root in 2-3 weeks and I have nice plants for the following spring.

hi everyone,
I pull this thread out of the archive. I didn't quite get it. Why do you want to do cutting around the fall?? I thought it is best to do cutting and repotting and verything during the spring???? what would happen/what would you do with the new cutting plants when the growing season is over??? I am so perplexed. Could someone help me on that please. thank you much.
SPO

melrt, what purpose does the abscorbic acid serve?

Hi Pigpen,
I have no idea what the action of ascorbic acid is in rooting pelargoniums. I was given this advice by a commercial grower who told me that it improved rooting of Regal Pellies (Martha Washington). I have been unable to find anything on the net. Perhaps someone in the forum can tell us?

SPO...taking cuttings in the fall is not just a means of propagation, it is also a method of overwintering geraniums (pelargoniums)...the cuttings are smaller than the mother plant so take up less space indoors. Growing them as houseplants over the winter is a possibility if you get enough sunshine (in the Seattle area we forget what sunshine is over the winter months so I never try this). Plus, you're less apt to bring soil-borne bugs indoors if you don't bring in the mother plant.

Patrick

I don't really know of a bad time to root geranium cuttings if you can water them--except in a frosty winter with no protection. I have had 100% sucess with rooting scented-geraniums--it blows me away! The only thing I've found to root nearly as well is lavender at 70-80% sucess. I just put them in the ground and water them (though actually I only just moved to a hot summer climate-from the LA area--and I think I will give a slight bit of shade from the sun here when I root them.)

I'm going to take some cutting off my geranium this weekend. I was very happy to find you could do that too! On the 'drying out' though... Do you just leave the cutting out of water or soil, etc till the next day? And why?

Michelle

I don't know how it's usually done, but I always plant my cuttings as soon as I break them off.