Native Plant Propagation Workshop

I recently attended a native plant propagation workshop sponsored by Bring Back the Natives. After last year's focus on pollination and plant propagation, the workshop sounded like a good next step. Judy Addler teaches "California native plant propagation: How to create native plants from seeds, cuttings, and divisions". Judy is a passionate sustainable gardener and educator, with an experimental garden in Walnut Creek. She loves to teach kids and adults about native plants, biodiversity, ecology, and sustainable gardening.

Judy prepping for the workshop

Native seeds used for plant propagation

In the outdoor workshop, we learned about seed propagation, seed collection, and the importance of seed saving. We toured the dry garden that Judy has developed over the last 20 years, the teaching garden close to the nearby elementary school, and her personal test garden with its fruit trees, chickens, and water harvesting.

Dividing bunch grass for propagation

Native elderberry started from woody cuttings

Scions for edible walnuts may be grafted on to hardy native root stock

Judy demonstrated her approach to plant propagation – collecting seeds for later planting or just tossing them nearby the parent; dividing bunch grass and sticking the divisions in the ground; pinching off soft and hardwood cuttings for replanting; describing how English walnut scions were grafted onto native walnut root stock; layering native honeysuckle and grape vines; and sticking woody stems in the ground to sprout roots from the nodes.

Milkweed, favored by migrating Monarch butterflies, propagate through underground runners

Coyote bush (foreground) are dioecious so propagate with this in mind

Layering was used to start the native honeysuckle and grape vines on the fence

The whole-time Judy layers in information about observing the land, taking clues from nature, and using native plants to create a wildlife habitat. Her approach is fearless and experimental (not a root hormone or coddled plant in sight). We left with our collection bags full and ready to try it for ourselves. I highly recommend this workshop, and any other offered by Bring Back the Natives.

Ready to propagate plants collected in Walnut Creek

Sex in the Garden: Wrap Up

Understand the seed-to-seed life cycle of plants, learn how to clone plants through cuttings, division, and runners, and enjoy a few curiosities of the natural world.

Propagating succulents

Getting Started

Learn the basics about the life cycle of plants.

Sex in the Garden
Birds and Bees – Flower Parts
Birds and Bees – Pollinators
Birds and Bees – Fertilization
Birds and Bees – Seeds
Birds and Bees – Germination
Birds and Bees – Fruit Development

Plant Propagation

Increase your plant population by cloning what you have, using cuttings, runners, and division; and zoom in on a gallery of seeds from Alaska and California.

Plant Propagation – Cutting
Plant Propagation – Runners
Plant Propagation – Dividing
Seed Gallery (Alaska Ark)
Seed Gallery (California Ark)

What's Blooming?

Observe the natural bloom cycle of favorite Bay Area plants from January through June.

What's Blooming in January?
What's Blooming in February?
What's Blooming in March?
What's Blooming in April?
What's Blooming in May?
What's Blooming in June?

Curiosities

Enjoy several curiosities of the natural world.

Discriminating Squirrels
Zooming In
Twin Corn

Books

Learn more about how to grow and propagate plants.

Grow Your Own Plants

Plant Propagation – Dividing

A couple of months ago we changed our “Birds and Bees” series from sexual reproduction to asexual reproduction (see Plant Propagation– Cuttings, and Plant Propagation – Runners). We learned that asexual reproduction results in an offspring that is a genetic clone of its parent. Some plants produce offsets in the form of a new plant or bulbs.

Gardeners can benefit from these plant habits, by dividing a clump or digging up the bulbs, and replanting. Here are a couple of division projects I worked on this summer, using Jack Kraemer’s Grow Your Own Plants as my inspiration and guide.

Agapanthus spp. (Agapanthus)

I love Agapanthus. Our home came with a good collection of blue and white Agapanthus, and I have encouraged their growth all over the property. Some decry them as being common, and non-native. But I find them amazing and indestructible – thriving in both drought and monsoon.

Agapanthus originated in Southern Africa. They are monocots, and grow in clumps, sometimes even above soil. Periodically I dig up the clumps, and divide them by teasing apart their fleshy roots. They transplant easily to other garden beds, or to containers.

Agapanthus transplants

Agapanthus offsets ready to pull apart

HTML Tables

Crocosmia spp. (Crocosmia)

Our friends, Keith and Beth (both avid gardeners working their steep, terraced backyard) gave us some Crocosmia corms soon after we moved to the San Francisco Bay Area. Beth warned me that the plants are a bit invasive, so I planted them in a large container. Here in the Bay Area, the plants grow, flower, and die back twice a year. They bring a dash of orange color to the back patio when in bloom, and the long, strappy leaves catch the light in a beautiful way.

Crocosmia is native to the grasslands of Southern and Eastern Africa, from South Africa to Sudan. They are monocots, and grow from underground corms (often in chains, with the youngest corm on top and the oldest buried in the soil). The leaves have parallel veins, characteristic of monocots. Periodically I dig up the corms, thinning them out to give the remainder a little more room.

Crocosmia in a container

Crocosmia corms (and seeds)

HTML Tables

This brings our Plant Propagation series to an end for the year. We have barely scratched the surface of the topic, so look for more articles and projects in the future. In the meantime, I encourage you to look for ways to propagate your favorite plants. Redistribute the clones in your own garden, swap them with friends for genetic diversity, or give them away as gifts. You’ll save some money, spread some cheer, and participate in fun and practical science at the same time!