What Is Rosemary – How To Propagate Rosemary – Rosemary Cuttings – Taking Rosemary Cuttings – Rosemary Roots – Rosemary Seedling – Rosemary Indoors – Growing Rosemary In Water – Summary – FAQ
Rosemary might be one of the most popular culinary herbs in the country. It has a very aromatic smell to it which is further enhanced when used in cooking. It can complement a lot of dishes. But despite this, it’s not as common to grow at home as basil perhaps. Thankfully we have put together this guide here that will teach you how to grow this wonderful plant at home and propagate new plants.
What Is Rosemary
Rosemary is a very popular culinary herb that has been used for centuries. But it’s only really in the last 100 years that it’s more used for cooking. Before that it was mostly used in aromatherapy or herbal medicines instead.
But we have learned that rosemary offers some great flavors to most dishes. It has an almost citrusy and aromatic smell to it. Sort of reminding you of eucalyptus almost. It’s a hardy herb that can manage fine for weeks without water and will still be able to grow and flourish. If cared for, the plant can last you a lifetime almost.
How To Propagate Rosemary
It really isn’t that hard to propagate rosemary plants. If you have bought an existing plant then you can take cuttings from that one and before you know it, you will have a lot of plants growing.
The technique is basically that we take large and healthy cuttings from a rosemary plant and let them develop roots in a container with water. Make sure you aren’t taking too much of the rosemary at a time. We have a rule where we wont cut off more than 1 third of the plant at a time. That way we can protect the plant against being stressed and losing leaves.
Place the cuttings in a glass of water. It will take between 2 and 4 weeks or so before you see any noticeable root development. Make sure you are changing the water everyday to help introduce new nutrition and keep the cuttings healthy. We also recommend placing the container of rosemary cuttings in a very sunny spot. This will further help them grow more quickly.
After you have seen a good development of roots from the cuttings they are ready to be transplanted into a pot with some soil and good drainage. You have now successfully propagated rosemary.
How To Propagate Rosemary Cuttings
Taking cuttings of a rosemary plant and growing new seedlings or plants is a great way of making the most of your plant. It’s easy and you will see results pretty quickly.
Start by taking a sharp scissor and cutting off a healthy stem of your rosemary plant. Take off some of the lower leaves on the stem, as these will just be submerged anyway beneath the water. Place the cuttings in a container with water and then in a sunny spot.
The usual waiting time is between 2 and 4 weeks until you see any significant root development happening. At this point you can continue changing the water everyday until you feel comfortable that the cuttings are ready to be placed in soil instead. To know when that is you can check the density of roots. It should look almost like a cloud when the cuttings are ready.
How To Take Rosemary Cuttings For Propagating
It’s very simple to take cuttings of rosemary for propagation. The first step is making sure we have very sharp scissors. If the scissor is dull the cut won’t be very clean on the plant, and it might be hard for it to grow back to its former self again.
Never cut away more than 1 third of the plant at a time. That way we will avoid the plant being stressed too much. That would otherwise result in losing leaves and stems on the rosemary plant, which we of course don’t want to happen.
The roots should be utilized as soon as possible to help increase the chance of them starting to root. Place them in water straight away and then in a warm and sunny spot.
Developing Rosemary Roots
To help encourage more roots developing on your rosemary cuttings we recommend changing the water everyday. This will introduce more nutrients to the soil and it also gets rid of any bacteria that might have been present or developed in the water.
It will benefit the health of your rosemary cuttings by quite a lot. But also ensuring the cuttings are getting enough sunlight is important. The leaves are performing something called photosynthesis which is a vital process that generates energy for the rest of the plant. In short, the plant won’t grow without getting sunlight.
How To Care For A Rosemary Seedling
A rosemary seedling is very susceptible to dangers like bacterias in the soil that might harm the seedling. But it’s also very common to accidentally overwater rosemary seedlings as these are still developing and not as hardy yet as older plants.
Try not to get the soil more than damp after watering. That way we help mitigate the risk of overwatering and drowing the roots instead. Adding a small amount of fertilizer to the soil will help boost the nutrients and make your rosemary seedling grow a little bit faster. Don’t do this more than once every two months to avoid over fertilizing, which comes with its own negatives.
Growing Rosemary Indoors During Winter
Rosemary is a great plant to grow indoors all year around and especially during the winter too. It doesn’t require the same amount of sunlight as other herbs or plants perhaps.
Try and keep it in a south facing window in your house and be careful with watering the soil too. We don’t want the soil to be overwatered as that will quickly stress the plant too. Too much water and the roots can’t get enough oxygen to live on. But during the winter, it’s also harder to get water to dry out from the soil as the sun isn’t as present and the tempereus aren’t as high anymore.
How To Propagate Rosemary In Water
Propagating rosemary in water is a great way of quickly being able to get a large amount of the plant growing at home. Start off by taking some good cuttings from an existing rosemary plant. Remove some of the bottom leaves as these will be beneath the water anyway.
Change the water everyday, and after about 3 weeks you should be able to transplant the cutting into some soil and before you know it you have a whole new rosemary plant at home.
Summary
Propagating new rosemary plants is a great technique to know as the principles are the same for almost all herbs out there. Starting by taking healthy cuttings and letting them root in water, they then get transplanted to regular soil in pots.
Ensuring the health of your cuttings are a vital part though. Changing the water often and leaving it in a sunny spot.
FAQ
Is Rosemary Easy To Grow From Cuttings
It’s really easy to grow rosemary from cuttings. It’s something we really enjoy and we have even begun teaching our kids to do it themselves. With little effort you can quickly get a lot of rosemary growing.
Does Rosemary Propagate Better In Water Or Soil
The best and safest way to propagate new rosemary cuttings is in water. Here the roots can develop rather quickly and it’s an environment that also encourages it.
Is Rosemary Easy To Propagate
Cuttings from a healthy rosemary plant are incredibly easy to start propagation. They won’t require too much effort to start growing. Just make sure you have some pots ready with healthy soil to transplant them into afterwards.
