Layering - part 2

Alan Toogood continues with the techniques of layering, looking at how to propagate strawberries, carnations, house plants, heaths and heathers

- Alan Toogood

BASICALLY, layering is a method of propagation that induces stems to produce roots, and eventually new plants, while they are still attached to the parent plant. This is accomplished mainly by pegging the stems down into the surrounding soil, but there are modifications. The stem, which is encouraged to root, is known as a layer.

Layering is a popular method of propagation because one can usually expect 100% success. It is also popular because it allows one to propagate shrubs and trees that are difficult or impossible to raise from seed, cuttings or other vegetative techniques. The resultant young plants will be identical to their parents.

The conventional method of pegging down a branch into the soil is suitable for all subjects whose branches can easily be pulled down to ground level.

Layering strawberries

Strawberry plants can reproduce themselves vegetatively by means of runners, which are thin stems that grow along the surface of the soil, rooting from buds that are produced at intervals along them. Wherever a runner roots into the soil, a new plant is produced.

Cultivated strawberry plants produce many runners and these can be layered by the gardener when new plants are required. If runners are not needed for propagation purposes, they should be removed at an early stage. Runners are produced during summer, but rooting is poor in dry weather unless irrigation can be provided to keep the soil constantly moist.

Time and method