Can I grow Sweet Rocket from cuttings?

Liriodendron · May 2023

I grew a lot of Sweet Rocket (Hesperis matronalis) from seed a couple of years ago. I now have a lot of self-sown plants which have largely replaced the originals, including one with unusual flowers. Or are they just unusual to me? I like them, anyway...

I'd like to perpetuate this plant. Has anyone tried growing it from cuttings? I'm sure it won't come true from seed.

Dovefromabove · May 2023

I’ve allowed Hesperis plants to bulk up and then divided them.
If you want to try cuttings my instinct says try basal cuttings.

Liriodendron · May 2023

Thanks @Dovefromabove. Some plants here have been quite short lived, but dividing it could give it a new lease of life... and maybe I'll try basal cuttings next spring.

jchantlerXJqsVEkt · May 2023

What lovely and unusual blossoms. I used to have one of these in my garden 40 or more years ago. I don't see them for sale anymore, just seeds. Are they hard to sprout?

Fairygirl · May 2023

There's quite a bit of variation in the flowers - they can go from purply pinks through to whites, so I think the division, and then a few cuttings as @Dovefromabove describes would be the way to go if you want to keep that one @Liriodendron.
Good luck with doing it though

Liriodendron · May 2023

Thanks, @Fairygirl.

The seeds germinated very easily from the packet of mixed colours I bought a couple of years ago, @jchantlerXJqsVEkt. There are lots of suppliers on the internet, and you might find it in a garden centre too. It's maybe a bit late for sowing them this year - though you could try some in the autumn, leaving the rest of the packet until spring, perhaps. And once you've got them in your garden, unless you're very organised about dead-heading them, you'll almost certainly get them seeding themselves all over the place.

Can I grow Sweet Rocket from cuttings?

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