[Novice but totally hooked]

I'm trying to take cuttings from my Virginnia Creeper and not having any success.

I've taken cuttings just below/on nodes, away from nodes, on new growth below/on nodes and away from nodes.  I have cuttings in water, in compost with rooting powder but not having any luck in getting any of them to produce roots.

Some years ago I grew a number of cuttings with no trouble at all but now seem to be failing miserably.

What am I doing wrong - something fundamental that one of you green-fingered wizards will put me right on immediately I'm sure?

[mumofstig]

try rooting some in sharp sand from the garden centre.

[Novice but totally hooked]

This year's growth/last year's growth?  Cut at a node or not?

Thanks.

[mumofstig]

|I don't know about virginia creeper, to be honest  but when I take cuttings of montana clematis they are cut halfway between the nodes above and below the bud, and they were best in sharp sand.............. which is why I recommended it

[Growster...]

Don't they layer as well?

I'm sure ours had bits which spent ages wandering about on the ground and eventually rooted.

[Novice but totally hooked]

Yes, they do spread all over the ground and put out roots if you let them but I don't want to fill a flowerbed with bits doing this!

[catllar]

You could peg the sprawly bits down into pots using a bit of bent wire, couldn't you, then cut off from the parent plant when the roots have taken off.

[GrannieAnnie]

The one we have in our front garden came with us from our last house.  We did have it growing up a fence dividing the chicken runs from the rest of the garden.  Brian had strimmed all along and chopped all the VC down.  Bits were left on the fence.  When I looked months later, this particular bit was at least a foot from the ground, and had new little shoots on it.  I potted it up and it grew straight away!

So I don't know what's gone wrong this time for you.  I had no trouble growing this particular cutting!