One of the things I enjoy most about gardening is that it involves a continuous and lifelong process of learning about plants, soil, climate and various techniques. There is always something new to discover.

I was reminded of this when I went along to a recent talk hosted by the Cork Alpine and Hardy Plants Society on the topic of propagation through the year.

The speaker was Hannah Fox, owner of Bright Green Fox nursery in the southeast of England, who generously shared her very practical knowledge and experience of a variety of propagation techniques to make more of favourite plants in the garden.

While most gardeners tend to think of propagation as a spring and summer activity, this talk reminded me of the opportunity to increase certain plants by root or hardwood cuttings during the winter months. The speaker also shared an interesting tip on using ground cinnamon powder as a natural fungicide for plants.

Though the proven research and science is limited, gardeners are reporting benefits of sprinkling it directly on plants, or onto the surface of seedling compost, or mixing it with water in a spray bottle to help prevent fungal disease.

Dipping the cut end of a plant stem into ground cinnamon prior to inserting it into cuttings compost is reputed to help induce rooting while simultaneously reducing the chance of rotting before roots form. For me, this was new information but is worth trialling.

A few days after attending the talk, I was planting a newly acquired and fabulous, repeat-flowering rambling rose ‘Ghislaine de Féligonde’. I came across this rose when visiting a garden during September. Because it was still flowering prolifically at a time when most rambling roses have finished blooming, it was added to my wish list of desirable plants.

It’s also a gorgeous colour with copper-orange buds that open to small, warm apricot blooms with a yellow base, eventually fading to peach, pink and white. The flowers have a sweet, musky fragrance and the stems are almost thornless which makes pruning and training a more pleasant task. The garden owner told me that it is a very healthy rose with good disease resistance and not too vigorous.

Before planting, I pruned back some of the longer, strong stems. Inspired by the talk on propagation, it occurred to me that I could use some of the stronger prunings to make hardwood cuttings and generate some more plants of this beautiful rose.

Hardwood cuttings taken now are an easy way to raise many deciduous shrubs, trees and fruit bushes. A hardwood cutting is a section of mature, fully ripened wood taken from deciduous trees and shrubs during their dormant season, typically between late-autumn and late-winter.

Absolute beginners

For beginners, they require no specialist equipment or skills beyond the ability to make a clean cut with sharp secateurs and are a straightforward and cost-effective way to multiply some of your woody plants.

Roses of all types are particularly good candidates for propagation from hardwood cuttings. You could also try hydrangeas, coloured-stemmed cornus or dogwoods, willows, philadelphus, sambucus, honeysuckles and fruit bushes, like gooseberries and blackcurrants.

Begin by selecting lengths of healthy stem, pencil thickness, from this year’s growth. Cut the stems into sections 20-30cm long.

Make a clean, sloping cut just above the top bud and cut the base straight across just below a bud. The top of the cutting is angled to help you identify the right way up when inserting the cuttings. Prepare a narrow trench outdoors in a bright, sheltered site with well-drained soil and a layer of sand at the base. Insert the cuttings so that one-third remains above soil level, about 10cm apart. Backfill with soil, firm well and water thoroughly.

Most hardwood cuttings will begin to form roots within 6-12 weeks. Ideally, leave the cuttings undisturbed until next autumn before transplanting or potting up, making sure to water regularly during dry spells. You can also insert hardwood cuttings around the edge of a suitably deep pot filled with a 50:50 mix of compost and horticultural grit.

Place the pot in an unheated greenhouse or cold frame or outdoors in a sheltered spot protected from extreme frost and wind.

Don’t forget to check regularly, but avoid over-watering. Pot up the cuttings into individual pots when well rooted.

After planting many perennials this year for the first time, I am not sure what to do with them now that they have almost died down. Can you advise? – Jean, Co Carlow

Cutting perennials to ground level in autumn restores order and tidiness to the garden. However, this removes potential winter interest, in the form of height and structure, plus food and habitat sources for wildlife so many gardeners delay the cut back until spring, around early March.

The old, dead plant material also protects roots and new shoots from winter weather extremes. Selective cutting back in autumn is a compromise, leaving attractive, dried and bleached flowerheads of plants like eryngiums, sedums and ornamental grasses in situ while removing material that is very untidy or showing signs of decay or fungal growth.

Invest in some bird feeders and position them where you will get the most enjoyment watching birds, but also where the birds are protected from predators and the elements. Birds will help keep pest numbers down.