Starting New Red Currant Bushes From Cuttings

Red Currants

One of my favorite plants to grow is red currants. I am not sure exactly why it is my favorite as I have struggled to get mine to grow in my current (:-) yard until this last year. There is something about the brown sticks pushing out their buds in the early spring and then the strings of green berries that slowly ripen into translucent balls of deep red beautifulness that just inspires me. On the other hand, I don't really enjoy picking them as they are small, somewhat hard to harvest and easily squished. But again, they are just beautiful!

A couple of years ago, I discovered the joy of propagating red currants from cuttings. Back then, my only experience was concord grapes and roses and so I tried using the same method. I would take a few hardwood cuttings in the fall when the plant was dormant and just lay them flat covered with about 6 inches of soil in a trench for the winter. Some springtime, I would unearth them and plant the ones with roots emerging. But that took a long time.

Strands of Ripe Currants

Now, I found through watching some gardeners in the UK that they simply chop off a few branches and place them  in a jar of water until they see white roots emerging. This method only takes a few weeks - not all winter.  

Here is my simple method that you can try at home if you or a friend has a currant bush (or gooseberry or jostaberry) and you want to increase your plant stock.

• Cut a branch off a healthy currant bush after a node, close to the base of the plant. 
• Cut the branch into 6-inch sections, each with at least two nodes, preferably three nodes. I cut flat at the top just after a node and angled at the bottom just before a node.
• Set the cuttings directly into water.*
• Place the container in a sunny but warm spot like a kitchen window or under a grow light for four to six weeks. Check the water periodically and refresh it if it becomes cloudy.
• Once the roots start to appear, transplant the rooted cutting into potting soil and keep moist until you see vigorous growth. 
• Plant outside in a permanent location in late fall or early spring.

*Alternatively, you can dip the end of the cutting in rooting hormone and then place it directly into damp potting soil. Firm the soil around the cutting and water it before setting it in a sunny warm space.

Currants seem to need fertile soil with plenty of organic matter and only 6 hours or so of sunlight. I had one year with almost no growth on my bushes and then found after I applied a thick mulch of mushroom soil that they sprang to life and doubled in size. 

Red currant bush ready for picking with fresh ripe berries 

I don't do much to my currants other than mulch in the spring and then cut out three year old branches at their base during the winter. They are a nice easy addition to our permaculture garden and the beautiful berries sparkle on top of desserts on our morning cereal.  When I have an abundance of berries to harvest, I always have to figure out if I am going to freeze them as is, or make beautiful ruby red jelly,  or currant jam or even a red currant liqueur. Such a nice dilemma!

I do sell some of my successfully rooted Red Currant cuttings on my Etsy page, Wildflower Run, if you don't have a source for them.

Rooting Fig Cuttings

See the roots forming at the basal node

I was really surprised to find out I could grow a fig plant in USDA growing zone 7a where we have freezing cold winters. One of my wonderful kids bought me a couple of fig plants over ten years ago. Each fall when the weather changed and the fig leaves fell, I would wrap the fig branches in burlap and plastic trash bags and use leaf mulch or pine needles to insulate the plant from freezing damage. And then I learned that as the plant got older, the damage was almost non-existent, so now I don't do anything.

My next big surprise was that I could cut off sections of the current year's growth and root them into forming new plants. I was always so worried that I would kill my gifted fig trees by not taking proper care of them and here I could start new plants! So what is my method?

Growing figs is easy!

Rooting fig tree cuttings:

1. Once the plant has gone into dormancy for the winter months (but before the deep freeze if you live in zones 7a and farther north,) cut 6 to 8 inch sections about pencil size and larger. Cut just after a node on the bottom - cutting at an angle - and then after three nodes using a straight cut.

2. Place the cuttings immediately in room temperature water - just an inch or two is plenty as the bottom cut is what needs to stay wet. You can leave them in water for several days if necessary for storage or until you are ready to plant them. I have actually rooted some cuttings in an inch of water, but that method is not the most reliable.

3. Plant the cutting in a potting soil mixture of perlite, peat moss and coconut coir, or something similar. You want the cutting to be able to access the moisture in the soil mixture without becoming wet. At least one node should be visible above the top of the soil where a leaf bud should swell and open into a leaf.

4. Place the potted fig cutting in a sunny window or under grow lights in a warm environment - around 65 to 75 degrees (F). Only water when the soil is dry to the touch, but don't let it dry out or you risk drying out the tiny new roots that form over time. Expect them to stay here for 4 to 6 weeks to root.

5. When you see the leaves swelling and growing large, you can pretty much calculate that the roots are growing well. Tip the plant upside down to remove it carefully from the plant pot and check for roots. If there are only a couple, put it back and wait a little longer. Once the roots are starting to circle around the base of the plant pot, you are ready to plant your new fig in a larger pot or directly into the ground where you plant to grow figs permanently. 

Fig Harvest!

This is my preferred method for a pretty good success rate. I have had less success with rooting directly in water, but the method did work. Another method I tried was taking a cutting and burying it directly in the ground in the spring about 4 to 6 weeks before the last frost and that worked amazingly well.  I have tried wrapping cuttings in a damp paper towel and then in a plastic bag, but they tended to get moldy and rot.

Now I have fig plants all over my yard, several that I rooted from gifted cuttings from friends and family. We eat them fresh during the later summer months and well into the fall until the first frost kills the leaves. I made lots of fig preserves when we can't keep up with eating all the harvest. 

Make your own fig preserves

Planting Fig Plants:

If you purchase a fig plant that was started during the winter, you should keep it indoors in the warmer temperatures and in a sunny spot or under grow lights until the soil temperatures are around 60 degrees F. Otherwise, for plants bought during the growing season, plant them in a sunny spot in rich loamy soil. Water both when the soil is dry to the touch.

For further information on growing the actual fig plants, The University of Maryland Extension has a great article here: Growing Figs in Maryland 

If you are interested in purchasing fig cuttings, I sell them on my Etsy page here: Celeste Fig Cuttings.

Planting Elderberries (Lots of them)

Although I may not have posted anything here for a while, I have been quite busy. Today is mid-May and the Covid-19 Pandemic is just beginning to loosen its grip on our daily lives. Life had been normal until last February when we realized that our travel plans had to be put on hold. We had no idea for how long or what was ahead, so we focused our extra time into growing a large garden and implementing our perennials.

Elderberries? Why elderberries? 

Black Elderberry Bush 

For me personally, I always found myself looking for elderberries in the wild while exploring any forested lands in our travels. I had fond memories of my father saying that he loved finding elderberries and often found them growing inconspicuously near small streams or along the edges of lakes. I was surprised to find a few bushes growing near my home at the top of the Chesapeake Bay where the water is no longer salty. I collected a few cuttings and successfully rooted them to plant along the creek along our yard.

Last January, I decided to try again and collected a few dozen cuttings and placed them in jars of water to set on window sills in the sunshine during the gray days of winter when nothing was growing.  Elderberry syrup was becoming popular and I thought maybe I should experiment with selling some of the cuttings. Well, that was the beginning of a fun year selling "sticks" as my friends and family called them. Not only have I sold hundreds - okay, thousands of cuttings, I have also planted hundreds of cuttings.

If you want to grow your own cuttings, the process is quite simple. 

1.) Inspect your cutting to make sure it is fresh by scraping away a small bit of bark from the bottom end to check for the green phloem. This is where dissolved sugars and nutrients flow from the roots to the leaves. If this layer has dried up and become brown, the pathway is gone and the cutting is useless. If this layer is green, the pathway is good.

2.) Make a clean cut at the base of the cutting to make sure the water is able to be drawn up into the cutting and then set the cutting in water, covering at least the bottom two nodes. (Nodes are the bumps where new leaves and or roots form). On my cuttings, the base of the cutting is at an angle for easy planting into the soil and identification.

3.) Soak the cutting in room temperature water until you see roots forming at the base of the cutting or at the nodes. Elderberries are easy to root since they will form adventitious roots in the internodes. Change the water every week or whenever you notice the water getting cloudy. Try to use non-chlorinated water if possible by setting tap water out on the counter at least for 20 minutes to allow the chlorine to dissipate.

Fragrant black elderberry flowers

4.) Carefully plant the rooted cuttings outside before the heat of the summer or afterwards during the fall. Elderberries thrive in soil with plenty of organic matter and lots of moisture with at least 6 hours of sunlight per day, although they will grow a little slower in sub-prime conditions. Keep weeds away from the base of the plant and mulch if possible to reduce water evaporating from the soil. Water if necessary until you have an established bush, typically after one full year of growth.

5.) Prune your elderberries. Since the fruit will grow on the current year's growth, you could cut the bush to the ground after the second year of growing and once the plant has established a good root system. However, taking the time to cut back any three year old canes to the ground will keep the bush in check with healthy growth.

Black elderberries are black when ripe

How to Dehydrate Marigold Petals

Some time ago, I found out that marigold petals are the poor man's alternative to saffron. I can make a rich broth to cook rice in, but that beautiful orangy color is hard to come by with normal spices. Since I grow marigolds in my garden and at this time of the year, there are hundreds of blooms, I decided to collect some. Sure I can go out a pick a few now for tonight's dinner, but in the middle of winter my garden will be empty. Solution? Dry some now to add to my stash of dried herbs.

Pick your blooms in the morning after the sun has had a chance to dry off the dew. Of course, you can only use flowers that are grown without any insecticides. I just use my fingers and give them a slight twist. In just a few minutes you will have a good basketful of gorgeous brightly colored flowers.

Now the seed part of the flower is bitter and needs to be removed. I found that using a pair of scissors made the job easy to separate the petals from the seeds.

Sort the petals from the seeds by placing them in different containers. Keep the petals in a clean container as you don't want to contaminate them.

By the time you are done with the basket, you will have a nice fluffy pile of marigold petals and a pile of seed pods. I gave the seeds to our chickens but you could also add them to your compost pile.

To dry the petals, you need to place them on a tray lined with a paper towel to help absorb the moisture. Don't make the layer too thick or you will run the risk of mold developing between the petals.

Place the tray in a warm oven of 145 degrees Fahrenheit. Every couple of hours, give them a little stir with your fingers to make sure the heat is circulating between the petals.

When they have shrunk considerably in volume and feel dry to the touch, turn off the oven and let them cool down to room temperature.

Pour them into a dry sealable container and store in a cool and dark cupboard. Now you are ready to experiment with using marigold flowers in your cooking.

They look beautiful in a fried rice dish and add a rich color to soup broths.

Why not use marigolds? They are full of carotenoids, antioxidants and so easy to grow and have a pleasant almost citrusy flavor.