Got loads of Rosemary cuttings..

[Naga]

A mate gave me a load of broken off Rosemary direct from the mother plant. Can I try and get some rooting going if I have no rooting hormone? I did hear aspirin or cinnamon powder is a good alternative if you don't have the real stuff.

[alldigging]

Put in water until they root and pot up.

[rustylady]

You don't need rooting powder, I gave up using it years ago cos it was rubbish. Either strip the lower leaves and put in water as Eirish said or do the same and pot straight into small pots of free-draining compost.

[eirish]

That was alldigging, not me. I'd agree with the compost, myself. Rosemary roots easily.

I know orchid growers use cinnamon on cut roots as an antifungal agent - I don't think it substitutes for hormone rooting powder.

[rustylady]

That was alldigging, not me.

Sorry Eirish, blonde moment

[taff]

Stick them round the edge of the pot if you're going to do compost,for some reason [who knows the reason? that was a serious question...] they root more easily if they're there.
Push them between the pot edge and the soil, right agasint the pot edge.

[Martin H]

Stick them round the edge of the pot if you're going to do compost,for some reason [who knows the reason? that was a serious question...] they root more easily if they're there.
Push them between the pot edge and the soil, right agasint the pot edge.

The reason is that the drainage is better - the smooth inside of the pot carries away any standing water from the cutting and this apparently helps the cutting along. Or so I read once. It sounds reasonable, but I don't know anyone who's actually tested the theory scientifically.

[out in the cold]

Ok, I tried this a while back and it didn't work too well.

Is there a special type of compost / time of the year / way to take cuttings? Do I simply snip them off with secateurs and plant them?

[veggiechicken]

I pull my cuttings off, trying to keep a "heel". A nice clean cut with secateurs doesn't seem natural to me

[KittyColdNose]

If I get chance tomorrow I will put some in water. Give it another go.

[binley100]

I use the water method .......

[kentishgal]

If you've got that many cuttings then you can do the water and the compost method then let us know which one works best!!

[hellybore]

I put a load of rosemary cuttings in a jar of water about 2 weeks ago (bottom leaves stripped) and roots have started forming already. I have since read that you are supposed to pull the cuttings off with a "heel", but mine are just snipped with secateurs and are fine.