Rose Care
How to Grow Roses from Cuttings
Propagating roses from cuttings lets you turn a favorite plant into many, for free. The technique is simple, and success comes down to timing, cleanliness, and moisture.
Choosing and taking cuttings
Take cuttings from healthy, current-season stems that have just finished flowering — a stem that bends but does not snap is ideal. Each cutting should be six to eight inches long and about the thickness of a pencil.
Note: Many modern roses are patented. Propagating a patented variety for sale is illegal; propagating for your own garden is generally fine once the patent has expired.
How to root a rose cutting
- Prepare the cutting. Cut just below a leaf node at the base and just above a bud at the top. Remove all but the top two leaves.
- Apply rooting hormone. Dip the moist base in rooting hormone powder or gel to speed root formation.
- Insert into moist medium. Push the cutting into a pot of gritty, free-draining mix or a sheltered spot in the ground.
- Create humidity. Cover with a clear bag or cloche, keeping the plastic off the leaves, to hold moisture.
- Keep warm and bright. Place in bright, indirect light and keep the medium consistently moist but not waterlogged.
- Pot on once rooted. After four to eight weeks, gentle resistance to a tug means roots have formed. Pot on and grow before planting out.
Water vs. soil
Cuttings can be started in water, but roots formed in water are fragile and transplant poorly. Rooting directly in a free-draining medium generally gives stronger, garden-ready plants.