Grow your own Carnations the easy way.
With carnations being a garden favourite as well as a great cut flower we are often asked how to propagate carnations. There are 3 methods of propagating these popular plants
Carnations are all Dianthus species, and they can all be grown from stem cuttings, division of clumps or from seed.
The easiest way to propagate lots of carnations is from cuttings and the whole process takes around 6 weeks from cutting to planting out.
How to Propagate Carnations from Cuttings
The best time to take carnation cuttings is in early to mid summer. You will need a healthy parent plant, some propagating soil and preferably some form of propagating box or cold frame.
The propagating box helps keep the cuttings moist and provides some humidity which will improve the strike rate.
The cuttings are actually plucked from the plant.
- Look for a non flowering stem, hold the stem just below a node and pull the the top of the stem away from the plant.
- You can remove the lower set of leaves, however this is not actually necessary.
- You can dip the cuttings in a hormone rooting powder or a little honey if you wish. This will improve strike rates with most carnation cuttings.
- You can use ordinary potting mix, or a mixture of 2 parts horticultural perlite and 1 part peat.
- The cuttings are pushed firmly into the growing medium, watered in and then placed in the heated propagating house. A cheap propagating house can be made from a soft drink bottle. Or you can buy a simple propagation box from a hardware store or nursery for a few dollars.
- Every second day mist the cuttings.
- Cuttings should show signs of new growth from 2 week to 3 weeks.
- After 5 weeks the cuttings should be ready to transplant into the garden or larger containers.