propagating tall, garden phlox cuttings?

How do I go about propagating cuttings from my tall garden phlox? When should I take the cuttings?

I propagate snapdragons all the time by just using the stems I pinch off. I just never thought of doing the Phlox, but it should work just as well. I have some ready to pinch and will give it a try. Al

I tried a few cuttin gs in water...they rotted. The other few I simply stuck in the ground around the mother plant are still greena nd healthy looking, and it's been 3+ weeks now.
I'll dig one up later today and see if there are roots yet or not.

I've read that tall phlox are propagated by root cuttings. I accidently do it every time I move one; babies show up all over the place around the original site. The info I read says to take 1" sections of the root, lay them horizontally in a flat or pot of medium, and cover with 1/2 to 1" of medium, and wait for sprouts. Good Luck!

Hello Gloriag, I propagate my Phlox with cuttings all the time. Let the new spring growth get at least a foot tall. Then cut the growing tip agout 4 inches long , just 1/4 inch above the leaf nodes.
This will allow the top leaves right below the cut to start growing again at that point.
( The reason you should have at least a foot to start with, is because if you cut too low to the groung your phlox may not get very tall.)
Pinch the lower leaves off the cuttings leaving only 4 leaves, and put the cuttingd in water to soak as much of it as possible.
Meanwhile, prepare your pots, I use small styrofoam cups, they are cheap and don't take a lot of soil. Make holes on the bottom of pots if they don't have them.
I use a mixture of 2parts regular potting soil, 2 parts peat moss, and one part perlite, this makes the soil nutritious but light weight.
Fill the pots to half an inch from the top, and soak the soil completely. Make a hole in the center of the pot, by pressing with your finger or some similar instrument.
Insert cuttings in the holes up to the lower leaves, and press soil around them, to make sure they make contact with the soil. Refill pots if soil has gone down too far from compression.
Water thoroughly again making sure all is saturated, and place tray containing pots in a shady place. Water well by sprinkling once or twice a day and keep in the shade, with good air circulation. In about 3 weeks you should have rooted cuttings ready to harden off, by bringing them to light sunlight, and in about anothe week, you should be ready to set them out.
I have very good luck with this method, at least 95 percent of them survive.
Good luck with your cuttings, I love Phlox, which kind do you have?
Sincerely , Josephine.

Josephine,
And others who took the time to answer. I really don't know what kinds of phlox because it looks as though I had a serious die off during the winter.
I appreciate all the good hints, and I have printed them out.

Thanks again,
Gloria

I'm so glad to hear you can start with cuttings like that. I'd love to propagate some of my varieties that are too young to be divided and I don't want to dig them and take pieces of their roots until they're more established. Frostweed, do you leave your cuttings outdoors to root?

I used to root hundreds of Phlox for our greenhouses. I started taking cuttings as soon as there was enough to get a 4 inch cutting, and it never affected how tall the final plant got. The first new growth is the easiest to root, just stick in potting soil or vermiculite, keep warm and moist and mist daily till they have rooted.
This works with monarda, trycirtis and butterfly bush too.

Thanks for all these great tips! I'm especially glad to know tall phlox can be propageted from stem cuttings, as I have a special one from my MIL that's not really big enough to divide, but I'd like to start propagating it.

Yes, Gemine-sage, and Critterologist, I do leave them outside because I don't have a green house. We have a garden shed and I set them on the outside by the north wall, and sprinkle them twice a day if needed. I also root Ironweed, Frostweed, Penstemon, and many more. just be adventurous, you have nothing to loose, and a lot to gain.
Josephine.

A question about tall garden phlox..... how in the world do you get them to stand upright? As soon as mine begin to bloom, they just flop over. I have tried tying them up, but then the whole dang plant flops over...
Maybe my ol hillbilly brain is stalled out or sumpin...but could ya help me out here... ??

Thanks,
Carolyn

you could try a tomato cage........are they getting enough sun?
or cut them back when they are about a foot tall(,root the cuttings )and let them grow from there,the bloom will be delayed,I've done that with my hardy hibiscus
or just cut them here and there,it will get busher,and may hold them up better

you know I just saw this thread yesterday (after I bought 3 plox from Walmart-- stinkin plants jumped in the cart and begged me to rescue them- LOL!) and I planted all three and pulled a couple cuttings - I dipeed mine in rooting hormone and they seem to be doing well. If they continue to thrive I am goin out for more!

Carolyn - one if mine is all floppy and the other 2 are staight and tall! But it didn't get floppy till I planted it so I am hoping it will recover.

Heather

Mine are about 18" tall, and I think I shall tie them up to a tomato stake put to the back... perhaps with some green raffia... it is strong, but won't show so much as string... My hubby came up with that... smart fella... now why did he not say that for the past 4 years..lol

Oh well... maybe this will work out well.

Thanks.
Carolyn

Carolyn, you can take a tomato cage and cut the section so that you can make 3 stands out of just one cage. This way they are small enough for phlox. Mikey

Thanks for all the ideas... and yannow.. I had no idea about propagating them from cuttings. I always took just root divisions... Now, I can make more of them to perhaps trade with someone... *smile*

Blessings,
Carolyn

Hello Carolyn, Here is a picture of my Phlox last summer. The kind I have is a native called
Phlox Carolina, it is a beautiful hot pink with a wonderful scent. A friend gave me two cuttings and now I have hundreds, I guess you can tell I like it.

And another picture on the other side of the garden, as far as I am concerned, you can never have too much Phlox.
Josephine.

OMG (Thud), that was me fallin on the durn floor again.... Those are spectacular..... wowowowowow.... I know I am going to be investing in lots of tomato cages and green paint... I am not going to be asking for any starts this year, as we will be leaving for a visit with our kids in Florida in 4 weeks... and I just don't dare trust any baby plants to my house sitter... she has a brown thumb. But Josephine... I am making note of your lovely Phlox and will definitely be talking to you about trading for some....I have purple phlox... and really had no idea that they come in different colors... Do they come in White?? Those look positively wonderful....

Jeez, ya really got me goin now.... (This is why my hubby calls me "Garden Nuttz"... lol)

Carolyn

Hello, Carolyn, I only have this color, there are many other colors of phlox but most of them are hybrids. I have never shiped plants, so I don't know how that would work, I suppose that if you do that in the Fall, when it gets cooler, it would be better. If you know of a good method of shipping plants let me know, I will be glad to send them to you.
Mine need tyeing only occassionally, but not all of them, so don't spend too much money on tomato cages.
Josephine.

Your phlox are wonderful! Being a dedicated zone denier I have tried them several times. Each time they get mildew, do not grow very much and then do not make it the second year. So, you see, there are things that do grow very well in this part of the world. I am beginning to be a believer that if it say only grown up to zone 8 that they might be right.

ooooh, what lovely pictures! I'm very excited, because I think 'Carolina' is the variety I planted last year (tiny plants from Bluestone), and it's coming up like gangbusters this spring. I'd much rather look at that pretty pink phlox than at the air conditioner it's planted in front of!

A little secret for helping phlox and other plants stand upright(works best with mature clumps). When the plants start growing, pinch all the stems on the OUTSIDE of the clump but leave the ones on the inside alone. The outside ring of stems will help hold the clump upright. The pinched stems may bloom a little later, but that just extends the flowering season.
If you deadhead tall garden phlox, you will get more flowers. Sometimes after mine flowered I would cut about a foot off the top, they would rebloom and be shorter.
For mildew, use Neem oil as a preventative and also as a cure, it works great, just don't spray in the heat of the day.
I wish it would grow here. I had some Orange Perfection phlox jump in my cart at the Walmart about three months ago, it's still only three inches tall! It's in good soil, moist but not wet and I gave it fertilize. I don't know what else to do.

Dear Calalily, thank you for for all the good advice about Phlox especially the one about mildew, I have been getting some on it the last two years, and managed to control it by removing the lower leaves as it appeared, but I much rather eliminate it.
Is Neem oil a brand of oil? or a type of oil?
In regard to your orange Phlox, I think that sometimes the hybrids are pickier than the natives,
but it could be that it likes hotter weather, I hope it works for you.
Josephine.

oh, that tip about pinching the outside stems on a clump makes so much sense!! I will try that this year.... I hate fidding with stakes, and I'm more likely just to let things take their chances, but then they flop over and make me feel guilty.... LOL

Frostweed, we have been very warm for months, lol. It gets into the 80's about every day, sometimes to 90! I think I just picked a really fussy variety to try.
Neem oil is made from the neem tree. I know Green Light brand has it as "Rose Defense" and it's 99% pure neem oil. Check the label, Safer's brand is less than 10% neem oil, so a waste of money. I buy the Green Light stuff at Lowe's and also garden centers carry it.
It mixes easier in warm water and if you add a little squirt of mild dish soap or insecticidal soap(just a little squirt, not much) it acts like an emulsifier(makes it mix easier).

Thank you Calalily, I will ceartainly try it, the look of mildew is not very pretty, plus it hurts the plant. I didn't realize that you live so much further south, If I didn't love my place so much, I would like to live in a milder climate, but I will just have to be content with visiting.

Frostweed, beautiful garden setting in your first photo, looks like a wonderful place to sit and enjoy a cup a, whatever. I too really like Phlox, some varieties are much more mildew resistant. i try to buy those varieties and plant where they can receive good air circulation.

Calalily's suggestion about removing outside stalks is a good one. I guess I carry the idea further. yesterday while working in the area of one my 8 or 9 year old clumps, which had probably 50 stalks, I removed more that half of the stalks, they were from 12" to 15" tall, I took out the weakest stems. Luckily most of mine are in good light, and rarely need staking. D

DonnaS