As the days lengthen and temperatures rise, pelargoniums will be starting to produce lots of new growth so it’s a great time to take cuttings and increase your stock.

1/. Choose a cutting from the end of a stem, between two inches and four inches long depending on how much growth there is available.

2/. Cut it off with a sharp pair of secateurs or knife, aiming just above a leaf joint to encourage the plant to produce a new shoot there.

3/. Trim off the lower leaf and any green or brown papery ‘stipules’ growing along the stem. Cut diagonally across the bottom joint of the cutting because that’s where the most hormones are concentrated which produce the roots. That way you will hopefully encourage the cutting to produce roots from both sides of the stem.

4/. Rooting hormone is a moot point – I use it because it contains fungicide to protect the cutting against soil-borne diseases (not 100% guaranteed to work but better than nothing at all) but pelargoniums are usually pretty good at rooting without it.

5/. Prepare a five inch pot for several cuttings or individual three inch pots for single cuttings, using a seed and potting compost with added vermiculite/perlite/fine grit for good drainage (pelargoniums hate wet feet).

6/. Dibble a hole with your finger or appropriate instrument so the cutting’s bottom leaf will be just proud of the soil when it’s inserted.

7/. Pop in the cutting, firm gently around to make sure the soil is in close contact with the base and stem.

8/. Water with a fine rose on your watering can or an indoor watering can with a narrow spout so you don’t flood the cutting.

9/. Allow to drain and then place in a light spot where the cutting won’t get direct sunlight but is not in too much shade. Don’t cover it.

10/. A cutting may take as little as a week to start making roots or as long as three or four weeks. Be patient, You’ll see when the leaves start to feel firm and the bottom leaf becomes red/shrivels which is usually a good indication that rooting has begun.

11/. Wait until you can see the first roots peeping through the holes in the bottom of the pot before potting the young plant on into a bigger pot. Don’t forget to harden the plant off if you’re planning to use it in the garden.

Once you’ve started propagating pelargoniums this way, it’s very difficult to stop …. I speak from experience. But you can always swap spare plants with friends and family, give them as gifts or donate them to a garden stall for a worthy cause :-)