After reading how heather can propagate from cuttings, I acquired some and have stuck them in the ground in my paddock, hopefully to create an area of heathland
Heather experiment
- Thread starter spandit
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Good luck. Whats your pH? 5.5 is ideal. It shouldn't need much protection from the elements. It may get swamped by grass, Tiger sul will help.
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Haven't tested the pH but am told it's acidic and this heather came from very close by
What's tiger sul?
What's tiger sul?
Its a sulphur based fert used to lower pH. Probably won't be necessary if your soil is acid, just trimming back the grass around each heather plant should help.
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Its seeds are wind dispersed but need light to germimate. If theres bare ground around the plants it should colonise fairly quickly. Individual plants will bush out but don't throw out suckers or roots.
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Looking good mate, ive not forgotten your Willow that i promised, just not had much of a chance to go and get it yet
Don't worry about the willow - unless it's a coloured variety or black maul then I'll do without - we obtained some yellow stuff which is planted and I've stuck a few hundred common osier into the ground - many of which are sprouting already. Seeing how little space we have left after the mammoth tree planting sessions, where to put any more would be an issue!
My experience with heather is that they don't root readily from cuttings that has 'old wood', to have that part to root successfully, it has to be still attached to the parent plant. I my work, which is in heathland, I tend to weigh down a branches with stones and make sure they are in contact with soil or partially buried...then later on, months later I check if the roots have formed and come late autumn-winter when the ground is constantly moist I dig the rooted branches up, cutting them off from parent plants and transplant it to new places.
And like already mentioned..it does help if the ground around planting hole Is cleared from competing growth.
Now green tip cuttings are much quicker to root but those need to be rooted in trays/pots and looked after a year before planting. If you treat them like 'commercial' cutting giving them gentle heat from propagator they will root in weeks and transplanted into individual pots to grow on larger.
Which ever way you go with heather...they are quite slow to root and to establish>to spread.
You could also try seed casting> clear some ground from grass...rip 'old'/faded flowers off from plants ..with hopefully some seeds still in..and sprinkle them about ..if you smoke the seeds before sowing (do not heat them!)...the chemicals in the wood smoke have properties that will enhance germination success rate. You kind of imitate what happens to heather seeds with wild fires in nature. Just collect loads of flowers/seeds...and place them in tray..bag..etc..nearby small smoking fire and let them 'choke'..that's all to it.
And like already mentioned..it does help if the ground around planting hole Is cleared from competing growth.
Now green tip cuttings are much quicker to root but those need to be rooted in trays/pots and looked after a year before planting. If you treat them like 'commercial' cutting giving them gentle heat from propagator they will root in weeks and transplanted into individual pots to grow on larger.
Which ever way you go with heather...they are quite slow to root and to establish>to spread.
You could also try seed casting> clear some ground from grass...rip 'old'/faded flowers off from plants ..with hopefully some seeds still in..and sprinkle them about ..if you smoke the seeds before sowing (do not heat them!)...the chemicals in the wood smoke have properties that will enhance germination success rate. You kind of imitate what happens to heather seeds with wild fires in nature. Just collect loads of flowers/seeds...and place them in tray..bag..etc..nearby small smoking fire and let them 'choke'..that's all to it.
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That's useful info, thanks. Doesn't look like my experiment will work but I can try again next year!
Just looked at the pic on my desktop and it looks like bell heather rather than ling. Not sure if it makes a difference though!
I'll try and get a picture of the donor plant and post it up. Will have to be next week sometime though.
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