Powerful and sky-high cedar is a symbol of taiga. This long-lived tree reaches the age of up to 800 years, during which its reproduction does not depend on itself, but is due to random circumstances. How cedar is propagated in the forest and how it can be grown at home is discussed in this article.
How does cedar breed in nature?
In nature, tree propagation occurs due to the transfer of seeds and cones by birds and rodents, the rolling of the same cones down the forest slopes, their transfer by streams or spring waters. Due to such randomness, new growths are possible in those places where this tree has not previously grown. For cedar, such reproduction in the taiga is quite enough.
Cedar breeding methods
At home, this coniferous giant can be propagated in two main ways - cuttings and seeds. Growing from seeds is much simpler and yields better results. The vegetation method also has some advantages.
Cuttings at home
New trees from cuttings can grow as powerful and beautiful, and weak, crooked. The place where they take the cuttings on the mother plant is important. To obtain high-quality seedlings, a young cedar with a symmetrical crown and dense needles to the ground is chosen.
Important! Cuttings broken off from the side shoots will not grow into a slender tree. They will have all the properties of the shoots, and not of a plant tending upward.
Cuttings are harvested from the top of the tree by plucking a young shoot. The size of the shoot is 10-15 cm, if there is a “heel” (a small fragment of the bark adjacent to the branch) when it is cut off, it is even better for future rooting.
When is it best to cut the cedar
The roots on the cuttings appear before frost or in the spring, so you need to start harvesting the material in the second half of summer. In the fall, a container with seedlings must be placed in a greenhouse or greenhouse in a bright place.
At the end of spring, you can transplant the sprouts into the ground for growing before placement at a constant place of growth.
The cutlery in the container can stand for a long time without releasing the roots. To find out if a future seedling is rooted, you can carefully pull it up from the soil and check for roots. This operation will not harm the plant, which then gently returns to the place of germination.
How to harvest and store cuttings
Harvesting cuttings is carried out from a healthy young cedar by tearing off a small branch with its hand, tending upward. The closer to the top of the tree such a branch, the better for the formation of the trunk and crown of the future plant.
If at the moment it is not possible to plant the material in a container for germinating the roots (out of season, there is not at hand the necessary soil, containers or top dressing), then you can put the twigs in a bag and store them in a cool or cold place. A bag made of natural fabric that is wetted below is also suitable.
Did you know? A popular delicacy - pine nuts have nothing to do with real cedar, but are the fruits of pine cedar. And the waters of the cedar itself are inedible.
Rooting algorithm
Planting cuttings for rooting is carried out according to the following scheme:
- Tear off the branch from the mother tree so that there remains a small part of the wood with the bark - the so-called “heel”.
- From the lower third of the twig, peel the needles and for several minutes treat the “heel” with a powder or solution as a root growth stimulator.
- Pour half peat into a container about 5 cm high, and a layer of sand on top. Sand should be shed with a saturated solution of potassium permanganate.
- At an angle of 45 ° to the surface, make a hole with a wooden peg 2-3 cm deep after 5 cm.
- Gently push the planting material into the wells and stamp the sand around the branches with your fingers.
- Pour a small amount of warm water on each stalk.
- Cover the container with a transparent cap or an ordinary plastic bag and put it in a dark place.
With this care, the roots should appear within 2-3 months.
How to care for planted cuttings
A container with cedar cuttings must be opened every three days to moisten the soil and spray needles. With excessive wetting of such a greenhouse, watering can be done less frequently. Future seedlings do not require any other care.
How to propagate by seed
Propagating cedar seeds is much easier. This is a natural way to get new growth of this tree. For this, it is necessary to collect and properly prepare planting material.
Important! Too dense bumps can help open up. To do this, they are placed for 1-2 minutes in boiling water. Methods with heating in a microwave or oven in this case are not suitable - nuts can be fried.
Seed collection and preparation
Seeds are harvested and prepared for planting in this way:
- In autumn, collect ripe cones, from which to choose the largest and most solid nuts.
- Place the collected material in a jar or cup and fill it with water for three days, changing it daily. Swollen seeds will sink to the bottom, and empty seeds will continue to float on the surface.
- Place quality nuts in a strong solution of potassium permanganate for 2-3 hours.
- Seeds are laid in a nutrient substrate (peat, sphagnum or sawdust) and stratified for about three months.
- Before planting seedlings, the nuts are again soaked in a strong solution of potassium permanganate for a day.
Soil for growing
Planting is carried out in a greenhouse or greenhouse in nutritious non-acidic soil. Before laying the seed, the soil is carefully prepared - they are dug up, watered and grooves 2-3 cm deep are prepared. A mixture of superphosphate, ash and peat is evenly introduced into the grooves. The approximate proportion of the components in the mixture: 1: 2: 20.
How to plant seeds
Prepared seeds are laid in the grooves. The distance between the nuts on the beds is 5–7 cm. If planted too close, then you will have to thin out normally germinated seedlings, and large gaps are irrational with subsequent care. After seeding, the bed is sprinkled with soil, equalized and mulched with sawdust or peat. The layer of mulch should not be too thick - 0.5-1 cm is enough.
Shoot Care
Before the emergence of sprouts and during the first germination, all care consists in watering the beds. Moreover, this is done after 3-5 days alternately - sometimes with water, then with a weak solution of potassium permanganate. Such measures will allow you to deal with possible pests before the appearance of the plant.
Cedar sprouts are kept in protected ground for two years, after which the protection is removed, and up to 6–8 years old seedlings grow stronger in open soil. After this, the young plants are ready for transplanting to permanent growth sites.
Transfer to a permanent place
Before planting a seedling, it is necessary to choose a suitable place and prepare it. If you plan to plant it in a natural habitat, that is, in a coniferous forest, then you do not need to make any preparations. And on the plot you need to prepare the soil and choose a place for planting.
Did you know? Near the cedar, the risk of getting a mosquito bite is minimal, since the volatiles contained in the needles of this tree repel insects.
Seat selection
At a young age, cedar can grow in a slight shade, but an adult plant requires good lighting, so for planting, choose places that are open to sunlight. The tree loves nutritious soil, but grows even in soil with strong admixtures of sand. A sunny hillock on the edge of a forest edge is well suited for a seedling.
Soil preparation
When planting a young cedar on the territory of a household or in a park zone, it is possible to deliver forest land on purpose or reduce the acidity of the existing soil with calcium-magnesium fertilizers, lime, dolomite. Fertilize the earth with manure, dig and prepare a landing pit.
In it you can lay half a bucket of manure and water it abundantly.
How to transplant
Cedar, like other conifers, is a strong plant, so it is difficult to damage it when transplanted. It is best to plant with a lump of land from the place where the seedling was grown. The roots will not dry out, and if the plant is acquired, this is some guarantee of its “freshness”.
If the planting is carried out with open roots, then after installing the seedling in the pit, they are carefully straightened and the tree is sprinkled with earth a few centimeters above the root neck. The soil is compacted, watered and for the first time mulched with sawdust.
Vaccination Propagation Features
Reproduction of cedar by vaccination is rarely used. This is done in cases where there is no possibility for a good rooting of seedlings. The cutlery with its core is applied into the incision of the bark of the coniferous stock and wrapped with a cloth or adhesive tape to the trunk. Such an operation is carried out only on a warm and dry day.
Growing cedar at home is quite an exciting experience. And when the little sapling begins to turn into a slender giant over the years, the arborist will receive true joy from his labors.
