For Women with Green Thumb

Most of us have only a passing acquaintance with herbs — those sold in small jars at the supermarket! So why grow an herb garden? Because it will be cheaper in the long run, and it’s easy.

Many popular herbs — basil, mint, oregano, rosemary, thyme, Vietnamese coriander and lemon balm — propagate faster and more easily through stem cuttings. Others — parsley, Chinese coriander, fennel and dill — have to be grown from seed.

Here is a few tricks to help you grow stem cuttings. These work well even with many ornamentals.

Mini greenhouses

Collect small water bottles. Each one is the right size to cover one stem cutting. Cut off the bottom of the bottle, and after stem cuttings are firmly planted in their pots, cover them with a bottle each to provide each plant an instant, miniature greenhouse! It keeps moisture in and the wind out while still letting the sun through. Best of all, it’s one nifty way of recycling those bottles.

Soil-less gardens

Fill two-inch pots or disposable drinking cups with soil-less potting mix. The best brand for stem cuttings is called Plantastic, available in most lawn and garden centers nationwide. Avoid using fortified or enriched varieties at this point because these may be too intense for yet sensitive roots to emerge.

Moisten the potting mix thoroughly using water mixed with a tiny amount of liquid seaweed, an excellent organic fertilizer. Make sure your pots have adequate drainage holes. Next, get yourself some three- to four-inch stem cuttings. Select branches that are fairly young — not too tender and not too old that they have become too rigid or woody. Use sharp, clean scissors or pruning shears to do this.

Leave most leaves on but remove the bottom leaves from the stems. Scrape a few “wounds” into the cut end of the stems. This helps new roots to grow. Dip the “wounded” end into full-strength liquid seaweed for a dose of all-natural plant hormones that will stimulate growth.

Poke a hole in the center of the moistened potting mix using a finger, a pencil or any tool of your choice. Plant each cutting firmly into place.

Leaves intact

Cover each stem cutting with a bottle. It is best if the leaves don’t touch the bottle. If they do, trim the leaves so they are left on the stem to process the new plant’s food, but don’t brush against the bottle which could lead to diseases or rotting.

Place the pots (bottles and all) in partial shade, an area that receives bright but indirect sunlight. If you have moistened the potting mix thoroughly upon planting, it may be unnecessary for you to water the pots for a week or two. Check on your pots regularly to be sure. If water condensation inside the bottle becomes too think, remove the cap for about an hour to allow some of the water to evaporate, then replace the cap. If the potting mix dries out, water it gently, careful not to disturb the cutting.

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