i got a boquet of colorful chrysanthemums.can i take cuttings from them and put in soil in a greenhouse

Yes, if the foliage looks healthy they might root. You will need to remove the flowers and just keep leaves on the cuttings.

But is the greenhouse temperature controlled? Cuttings will not root if it's too hot for them to take up moisture fast enough before the roots start to form. Keep an eye on them, and if they start to wilt, they're done. If they stay perky, and then begin to put on new growth, you have roots.

Chrysanthemums are better propagated by divisions of the clump either in late fall or early spring.

dyzzypyxxy said:Yes, if the foliage looks healthy they might root. You will need to remove the flowers and just keep leaves on the cuttings.

But is the greenhouse temperature controlled? Cuttings will not root if it's too hot for them to take up moisture fast enough before the roots start to form. Keep an eye on them, and if they start to wilt, they're done. If they stay perky, and then begin to put on new growth, you have roots.

Chrysanthemums are better propagated by divisions of the clump either in late fall or early spring.

i have some cuttungs of white chrysantemums that succeeded on my patio in potting soil......i just thought while i was in tel -aviv yesterday and felt the strong humidity knowing that plants grow faster in humid areas(for example i have cuttings of fuchias some in a shaded patio -no direct sun and some wich have rooted very nicely in a greenhouse the ones in the shade are not moving ....just sitting in water....no even rotting....
i thought i will root the chrysanthemums in half water half soil in a greenhouse.-direct sun high humidity...
what do you think.

All good ideas, David, except for the direct sun part. I think at the very most you should let them be in the low angle sun for a couple of hours in the morning, then shade them under some other plants for the rest of the day.

Once they have some roots established, then you can gradually move them out to more and more sun but I think cuttings will fry in too much direct sun.

thanks for your reply....
two questions:
1.where is it good just to show how my patioes are getting on....
2.i saw near jericho(a very hot and dry climate ) in a monestry-st jeronimo a basilicum plant.it had a thick nearly" trunk" i thought basils where annuals.here in jerusalem they dont survive the winter cold.
if i treat it like my plumeria(take it indoors every winter ....will i get a bush out of it?
is there any triming tips i need to know?
with the dahlias it really works(i cut off the side sprouts in order to encourage a central stem)

You can post all your container gardening on the Containers forum here:
http://garden.org/forums/view/...

Or if you want to discuss specific plants, scroll down the list of forums on the home page and choose the one that fits, eg. chrysanthemums are a perennial flower.

Yes, basil is perennial for me here as well, and they do get large and have woody stems. But to be honest, they look nicer as small plants because the woody stems don't grow many leaves so the plants get sort of leggy. They also want to flop over as all the new growth is at the top, generally.

I think you get more tender leaves to use in cooking if you just bring in some cuttings in the fall before the winter chill knocks them back (or knocks them out). Keep the cuttings on a windowsill, and when they get lots of roots, pot them up in little pots. They will grow slowly while the weather is cool, and then take off as soon as it's warm enough outside for you to pot them up and put them out.

thanks for your reply.....
about a window sill in our winter......snow??
it wont work....
i just came back from a weekend in tel-aviv......i saw at least 4 types of plumerias.....zinnias out oft his world i think to go back and find some seeds on the plants and sow them.
its funny the inbalance between the energy invested and the outcome.

for example from a whole packet of portulaka i have to little plants.

I was thinking of an indoor window sill, David. Out of the snow. I seem to recall you let your place get quite cool during the day while you are at work (a thread a while ago?) which would suit keeping basil cuttings going as long as you have enough natural light for them, or you could keep them going in a greenhouse, too.

Starting some plants from seed is very tricky, so don't feel bad that you only got two plant out of your portulaca seed packet. As you get more experienced at it, your results will improve. Again, this is an exercise in patience as much as growing your gardening skills.

You need to pick your battles - grow things from seed that are easy. Have you tried Nasturtium? They are gorgeous, start easily from seed and love a hot, dry climate like yours.

If you really want portulaca, I would buy transplants already started. They die on me here, because of the humidity so I feel your pain.

thanks for your reply
the nasturtium is a sad story......
we came home from a vacation to find our cat dead.
near her mouth was a (stage in butterflies life)wich she ate and choked on or was poisened by.
the cabbage butterfly.....
so not near my cat!
do you know how to make the melons sweeter?
without adding sugar?
they all seem tasteless?
is organic better.....if i sow myself down in the public garden ....how to be sure i wont get coleus or something like it?

dyzzypyxxy said:All good ideas, David, except for the direct sun part. I think at the very most you should let them be in the low angle sun for a couple of hours in the morning, then shade them under some other plants for the rest of the day.

Once they have some roots established, then you can gradually move them out to more and more sun but I think cuttings will fry in too much direct sun.

the chrysanthemums are very long......
i decided to use both the thick part and the softer thinner close to the flowers.
15 cm each.....the rest like you said

Oh, I am so sorry about your cat, David. My cat goes out into my garden all the time and has never eaten any caterpillars, butterflies or other bugs. She catches and plays with the geckos and used to catch mice sometimes. She is 15 so I guess she's been careful not to eat the wrong things.

My nasturtiums attract hummingbirds, but not so much the butterflies.

As to making melons sweeter, first you must make sure they are getting as much sun as possible. Second, do the plants have lots of healthy leaves? The leaves make the sugar from the sun that goes into the fruit. Third, you must not pick melons until they are fully ripe on the vine. The stem will "slip" right off at the joint with the fruit when they are ready. If you pick them too soon they will be tasteless.

thank you
how do i cause my basilicum develope one hardy stem?

Just keep it growing through the winters, and bring it out into the sun for the rest of the year. It will eventually get a sturdy wood-like stem. They're never all that attractive when they get tall and shrubby though.

my dahlias responded very nicely to side nipping.they developed a one stem.....
i thought you would recomend the same for the basilicum.
thanks for your replies.
i

dyzzypyxxy said:I was thinking of an indoor window sill, David. Out of the snow. I seem to recall you let your place get quite cool during the day while you are at work (a thread a while ago?) which would suit keeping basil cuttings going as long as you have enough natural light for them, or you could keep them going in a greenhouse, too.

Starting some plants from seed is very tricky, so don't feel bad that you only got two plant out of your portulaca seed packet. As you get more experienced at it, your results will improve. Again, this is an exercise in patience as much as growing your gardening skills.

You need to pick your battles - grow things from seed that are easy. Have you tried Nasturtium? They are gorgeous, start easily from seed and love a hot, dry climate like yours.

If you really want portulaca, I would buy transplants already started. They die on me here, because of the humidity so I feel your pain.

the portulaca has many branches ....that means soon i will have many little flowers and they will produce many seeds....
does that mean there will be many colors next yaer?
i presume since the seeds are so small they will do there own sowing.
but the the winter will come in....
should i put a little plate to catch the seeds to be preserved through the winter?

They might self-sow, they might survive the winter outside on/in the soil, and they might or might not cross and produce more colors. If the two plants you have are two different colors, you might get the same two colors or a cross of the two. If your neighbors are growing portulaca and the pollinators cross, you may get more colors.

So many "if's". Short answer is, I really don't know. I've always bought transplants of portulaca in the colors I wanted, and they have not lived long enough for me to self-sow. They really do not like our heavy summer humidity.

Cover your bases and collect some seed if you can. Also try starting more plants from cuttings if your plants get big enough. With their lax, spreading habit I'm pretty sure they will root at the leaf nodes.

How are the chrysanthemum cuttings doing?

dyzzypyxxy said:They might self-sow, they might survive the winter outside on/in the soil, and they might or might not cross and produce more colors. If the two plants you have are two different colors, you might get the same two colors or a cross of the two. If your neighbors are growing portulaca and the pollinators cross, you may get more colors.

So many "if's". Short answer is, I really don't know. I've always bought transplants of portulaca in the colors I wanted, and they have not lived long enough for me to self-sow. They really do not like our heavy summer humidity.

Cover your bases and collect some seed if you can. Also try starting more plants from cuttings if your plants get big enough. With their lax, spreading habit I'm pretty sure they will root at the leaf nodes.

How are the chrysanthemum cuttings doing?

the chrysantemums are o/k/ /i am waiting to see some new groth