How to grow a rose from cuttings at home in potatoes: is it possible to plant in a pot what is needed in order to root a flower, what is the further care?

"Rose in Potato" - it sounds exotic, funny, strange. However, this is not a joke, but one of the most effective ways of propagating indoor roses. How to grow your favorite rose from cuttings at home in potatoes? We analyze this interesting question in this article.

Immediately note an important point. Potato tubers for rooting rose cuttings are used both for street cultivation and in indoor gardens on the windowsill. Let's talk about the second option.

How to root?

The essence of the method is that a specially prepared rose stalk is placed in a raw potato tuber. The “structure” of tuber and cuttings is planted in a container with soil, a “greenhouse” of glass or polyethylene is made from above.

The cuttings are regularly taken care of:

watering;
airing etc.

Pros and cons of this method

The pluses are obvious. Not everyone knows about the method of growing pink cuttings in potatoes. It is quite rare. However, it surpasses most other methods in efficiency. Through seed propagation of roses at home, varietal characteristics may not be transmitted.

The rosehip vaccine can also lead to the loss of attractive traits of the variety. therefore experienced gardeners and beginners prefer cuttings of roses.

There are many ways of rooting, many, unfortunately, are ineffective. Rooting the cuttings in potatoes is a very simple and natural way to grow an interested plant.

Rose feeds on protein-rich tuber nutrients, biological hormones, carbohydrates, minerals. The potato maintains the humidity necessary for the rose, protects the stalk from any external influences. A tuber is an excellent medium for the growth and development of pink cuttings. Roses root well and grow in tubers, without requiring laborious care or complex tricks.

The disadvantages of this method are difficult to name. Of course, anything happens. In rare cases, the ill-chosen or improperly prepared stalk may not be accepted. However, this does not affect the overall assessment of the effectiveness of the method. If you plan to plant potato-grown roses on the street, it is advisable to do this in the spring.

"Potato" roses have a slightly reduced resistance to external conditions, and they need to have time to acclimatize before the onset of cold weather.

Step-by-step instructions for rooting a flower in a potato at home

It is very good to plant rose cuttings in autumn (A guide to grafting roses at home in the fall can be found here). During the winter, the tuber will take root in the ground, the stalk will also take root and grow stronger.

Inventory preparation

You will need:

sharp knife;
a nail or screwdriver;
capacity (can be elongated to plant several cuttings in tubers at once);
priming;
whole intact potatoes;
cuttings of roses;
means for root growth;
glass jars, plastic glasses or halves of plastic bottles for greenhouses.

Material selection

Flower

You can use the cuttings both from a bouquet and from a live bush. Roses of red and pink shades take root best of all. The survival rate of imported roses is much lower than domestic. However, no one bothers to try and get the result!

If you decide to grow a rose stalk from a bouquet, do not wait for it to dry and wither. It is best to cut the roses you like on the cuttings immediately.

Check: if the thorns break off easily enough, and the stem is slightly lignified, such a rose is well suited for rooting.

With a sharp disinfected knife, cut the cuttings with a length of about 15 cm.
We remove the flower (if any), thorns and leaves (except for a few top leaves). Each handle should have several buds.
At the bottom we make an oblique cut under the lower node, at the top - a straight line a couple of centimeters above the node.
Sections are treated with a pale solution of potassium permanganate.
A stalk prepared in this way should be placed for 24 hours in a solution of a root growth stimulator. It can be "Kornevin" or similar drugs. Such a remedy is sometimes offered as an alternative: half a small spoonful of honey in a glass of water plus a few finely chopped rose leaves.

Potatoes

We choose a good, strong, healthy vegetable without traces of any damage or illness.

Tubers need large or at least medium sized tubers. Remove all eyes so that the potatoes do not sprout.

Pot and earth

As a container for planting roses in potatoes, very different options are suitable. It can be a wide container, where you plant several cuttings. And an ordinary flower pot. And half-liter bottle cut in half (the upper part is useful for creating a "greenhouse effect"). And plastic big glasses. In general, any containers in which there is enough space

Soil is easiest to take ready-made, versatile in a flower shop. Or mix it yourself. It will take two parts of garden soil plus one part of humus and one part of river sand. The mixture must be well calcined in the oven for disinfection. At the bottom of the tank we also lay a layer of sand for drainage.

How to plant?

Having sanitized a nail, knife or screwdriver, we make a hole in the potato tuber. The hole depth is five centimeters, the width is slightly larger than the diameter of the handle.
We place the handle with the lower sharp cut into the hole made.
After that, we plant potatoes, completely digging it into the soil. The cuttings are not sprinkled with soil, it should all be on the surface.
The handle is neatly and freely tied to a peg, which we install next to the ground.

Creating a greenhouse effect

The next step is to create a greenhouse for the rose. So it will develop better. We will cover the handle with a cut plastic bottle, or a glass jar. The main thing is that the leaves do not touch the walls of the greenhouse and there is enough space there. Regularly water the rose and air our mini-greenhouse.

Waiting for a result

How to check whether the roots gave the stem? After about two weeks, you can gently pull it up. If the plant was able to be easily removed, then the flower has not yet taken root. Carefully set it in place and repeat the check after a week.

Roses will be well fed with a sugar solution (tablespoon per glass of water) once a week. Usually, when the stalk gives roots, the first leaves appear. This should happen within a month.

Do not forget to regularly air the flower, accustoming it to ordinary, not greenhouse conditions. After two or three weeks, you can completely remove the greenhouse. Roses periodically should be fed with liquid fertilizers.

Difficulties of grafting and ways to solve them

In order for the rooting and development of the stem to be successful, a number of simple rules must be followed.

First of all, after planting, we maintain sufficient soil moisture. Water regularly and without stinginess, but also without fanaticism.
Overfilling a rose cuttings is as dangerous as drought. Keep the earth moist, but not “swampy,” but loose.
In addition to maintaining optimum soil moisture, pay attention to lighting. It should be bright, but without direct sunlight on the plant. Protect the plant from drafts, maintain the optimum temperature for the rose - 25 degrees Celsius.
Extreme heat can quickly destroy the cuttings! South windows for roses are not suitable (placement on the south side is possible only in the cold season).
If a bud appears on a developing handle, it must be removed. The little rose is not yet ready to bloom, this will weaken it.

Further care

Rooted a rose developed over the winter can be transplanted into another container, and you can leave it in the first pot.

During the flowering period, it is very important to maintain good soil moisture, if it is hot outside and the soil dries quickly, you may need to be watered daily.
If there remains water in the pan after the watering, it must be regularly drained.
The rose can be sprayed (once a week or less).
Regular top dressing with various fertilizers will also benefit the plant.

As you can see to grow roses in potatoes is both simple and interesting. If you liked these or those varieties, it is quite possible to try to breed them on your own windowsill. Even if you are a beginner - it does not matter: the method with potatoes is one of the easiest. Each grower can experiment and succeed!