Horticulture Magazine

How To Take Rose Cuttings Effectively

gardener in blue gloves pruning rose bushes
By ELIZABETH WADDINGTON

Elizabeth is a Permaculture Garden Designer, Sustainability Consultant and Professional Writer, working as an advocate for positive change. She graduated from the University of St. Andrews with an MA in English and Philosophy and obtained a Diploma in Applied Permaculture Design from the Permaculture Association.

/ Updated April 6th, 2023
Reviewed By COLIN SKELLY

Colin is a Horticulturist and Horticultural Consultant with experience in a range of practical and managerial roles across heritage, commercial and public horticulture. He holds the Royal Horticultural Society’s Master of Horticulture award and has a particular interest in horticultural ecology and naturalistic planting for habitat and climate resilience.

/ Meets Our Editorial Guidelines
Contributions From EMILY CUPIT
Emily Cupit, Photographer & Videographer

Emily is a Gardening Writer, Photographer and Videographer from Derbyshire, UK. She is the Founder of Emily's Green Diary - a community of more than 75,000 people who share in her gardening journey.

Roses are, generally speaking, an easy and hassle-free plant to grow in your garden.

There are roses suitable for many different soil types, climates and growing conditions.

Once you find the right roses for you – you’ll surely want to plant more.

DifficultyModerate
Equipment RequiredSecateurs, gloves, container, water, rooting powder (optional)
When To Take CuttingsDiffers by type (see below)

But once you have your own well-established rose, you don’t always need to buy more plants – you can take rose cuttings and make new plants from the ones you already own.

As long as your rose is not grafted, taking cuttings should yield duplicates of the parent plant.

RHS Master Horticulturist Colin Skelly expands upon this point:

“Some roses are grafted onto a rootstock to control the vigour of the plant – if you take a cutting from a grafted rose the result could be more or less vigorous than the parent plant.”

“If you plan to sell the plants, at a garden club or plant fair, remember to find out if the plant has Plant Breeders Rights (PBR) attached to it.

“You can propagate from these for personal use but not for selling – even for charity – without permission from the breeder.”

Taking rose cuttings also allows you to obtain new and vigorous plants from an older rose bush that may have grown somewhat leggy and overgrown, or to keep a portion of a beloved rose to take with you to a new property.

Cuttings can be a great way to retain a cherished rose if an original must be removed or left behind.

When To Take Rose Cuttings

glass and yellow secateurs on a green garden table

The first thing to understand about taking rose cuttings is that there are slightly different procedures to follow depending on exactly when the cuttings are taken.

You can take rose cuttings throughout the year, but when exactly you choose to do so will have a bearing on how easy the process will be.

hand holding a softwood rose cutting

There are three different types of cuttings:

  1. Softwood cuttings are taken in late spring or early summer. You can take softwood cuttings at any time after the new, fresh, green and flexible growth appears. Softwood cuttings are generally the quickest to form roots, and do so most easily.
  2. Semi-ripe cuttings are taken in late summer or very early autumn. These are usually taken after blooms have faded. If you have not dead-headed too zealously, you may see rose hips beginning to form. At this time of year, stems have matured and are somewhat firmer and less flexible, but will not have hardened fully.
  3. Hardwood cuttings are taken in late autumn or early winter. Roses are ideal candidates for taking hardwood cuttings. But it is worth noting that hardwood cuttings are generally slowest and most difficult to root successfully.

Rose Cuttings Guidelines

base of an established rose bush in a garden

Whenever you take your rose cuttings, there are a few very important guidelines to follow:

  • Only take cuttings of new growth (growth that has formed in the current year).
  • Select cuttings only from healthy, vigorous plants.
  • Take cuttings early in the morning if possible, when they are well hydrated.
  • Prepare a growing area or containers for your cuttings so they can be transferred there right away. Be ready before taking cuttings, so they do not dry out.
  • When taking cuttings, always practice good hygiene. Make sure all tools, containers etc. are clean to avoid issues with diseases.
  • Use a good, sharp blade to reduce stress to cuttings and the parent plant.

The use of a rooting hormone is not absolutely essential, but it can increase the chances of success.

You don’t necessarily have to buy rooting hormone however, there are a number of ways to make your own.

a rose cutting with visible thorns shown with large garden in the background

You can use willow water, honey, apple cider vinegar and/or cinnamon, for example, to increase the chances that rose cuttings will root successfully.

Now that we’ve covered the basics, let’s take a look at how to take each of the different types of rose cuttings, step by step.

Softwood Rose Cuttings

Softwood rose cuttings may be the quickest to root.

But though they root easily, they are also most susceptible to fungal problems and environmental issues.

secateurs shown snipping a cutting from a rose bush
For softwood cuttings, take fresh, green growth in spring.

While you can take tip cuttings, it is usually better to take what are called inter-nodal cuttings.

  1. Choose healthy stems of new growth and cut them off the parent plant.
  2. Cut just below a node (where leaves joined the stem). This will be the base of the cutting.
  3. Remove the top tip of growth, then cut the stem into portions, cutting each just above a node. (Aiming for cuttings that are around 5-10cm long.)
  4. Remove the lower leaves from each cutting, leaving just a few leaves on each one.
  5. Dip the base of each cutting into rooting powder or liquid (if you choose to use it).
  6. Place your cuttings into holes made with a dibber in your chosen container.
  7. Water well and cover with a plastic bag or cloche to retain humidity.
  8. Place in a warm location but out of direct sunlight, and remove the covering for at least 10 minutes once or twice a week to ventilate.
  9. Cuttings should be kept moist, and should have rooted within a month.
  10. Harden off your cuttings gradually before transplanting them into their final growing positions.
a rose cutting with visible notches etched into the bottom
close up of etchings cut into a softwood rose cutting

Semi-Ripe Rose Cuttings

Semi-ripe rose cuttings will be harder and more mature at the base and more flexible at the tip.

  1. Again, as with softwood rose cuttings, choose healthy stems.
  2. Cut at a 45 degree angle just above a node to remove the tip.
  3. And straight across to form the base of your cutting, just below a node.
  4. Aim for semi-ripe cuttings around 25-30cm long.
  5. Remove all but a couple of leaves at the top, and remove any thorns from the lower part of the cutting.
  6. Dip the ends of the cuttings with a rooting compound for greater chances of success.
  7. Place cuttings around the edges of a container, or in a prepared trench in a suitable growing area.
  8. Keep well-watered and they should be showing good signs of growth by the following spring. At this point they can usually be transferred to their final growing positions.
bottom view of a rose cutting held in a hand
planting rose cuttings in soil trenches for rooting

Placing rose cuttings in a trench can maximise the chances of successful rooting of semi-ripe or hardwood cuttings.

Hardwood Rose Cuttings

The procedure for hardwood cuttings is exactly the same as for the semi-ripe cuttings mentioned above.

Though hardwood cuttings are slower to root, they require less care, and can generally be left over winter with little care.

But since hardwood cuttings can be rather slow to root:

  1. Once you have taken your cutting and cut it to size (as for semi-ripe cuttings above), damage the stem by paring off a little of the outer surface of the stem at the lowest node. This can weaken the cambium layer that lies below the surface and encourage faster root growth.
  2. It is best to use rooting compound with hardwood cuttings, so dip the ends of your cuttings.
  3. Roots will callus over winter and only start to develop in spring.
  4. Place your hardwood rose cuttings in a prepared container or trench 10-15cm (4-6inches) apart.
  5. Leave them in place to root until autumn the following year.
  6. Water well over the summer months.

© 2024 TKO DIGITAL LTD | Company Registered in England and Wales No. 10866260 | This website uses cookies.