11 Flowering Plants You Can Propagate With Stem Cuttings in January

January is a quiet month in the garden, but it doesn’t have to be silent. There are some tasks that you can carry out even in the middle of winter. One of those tasks is propagating. While it’s not a good idea to propagate many herbaceous plants this time of year, it’s a great time to get started on woody ones. 

If you did some pruning in late fall and early winter, you might have some viable trimmings around. You can get these started indoors and have new plants ready to grow and bloom in early spring. You can propagate many woody plants either by rooting cuttings or by grafting. 

Grafting is a bit more complicated and takes a bit of know-how. Rooting your hardwood cuttings, however, is simple. It’s similar to the process of rooting vegetative plants in water or soil. Here are some simple steps to propagating your hardwood cuttings in winter. 

1. Choose a healthy, sturdy stem and cut it into five to six-inch sections.
2. Fill nursery pots with a mixture of potting mix and perlite or peat moss and water it so the media is moist.
3. Optionally, dip the cut ends into rooting hormone. I say optionally, but this step will make many (but not all) cuttings root faster and more successfully. The end that you want pointing down will be clear from the direction of the buds. The buds should point upward, as this is where new branches will grow.
4. Use a pencil or other thin object to make a hole in the soil and place the cutting in the hole, making sure to cover several inches with soil. Lightly firm the soil around the branch.
5. Place your pot or pots in a cool space, and keep the soil lightly moist but not soggy.
6. Leave your cuttings to root for the duration of the winter, disturbing them as little as possible. By spring, they should have developed roots and be ready to plant in the ground.

Here are some of the flowering plants that you can use this method to propagate this winter. 

Dogwood

	botanical name Cornus spp.
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 15’-50’
	hardiness zones 5-9

Dogwoods are beautiful blooming trees and large shrubs that thrive in many parts of the United States. There are more than 50 species in the genus, and they range in height from about 15 to nearly 50 feet tall. They bloom in shades of white, cream, red, pink, and yellow. 

Dogwoods thrive in areas with average to high moisture and don’t like arid climates. They bloom in spring and summer and provide gorgeous fall foliage in shades of red and purple. They are easy to propagate in soil or water. If available, it’s easy to root suckers that grow from the base of your tree, which you want to remove anyway.

Magnolia

	botanical name Magnolia spp.
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height Up to 40’
	hardiness zones 5-8

Magnolias have a special place in my heart. There are many types, some evergreen and some deciduous, but all have one thing in common. They all produce large, fragrant, stunning flowers. You can propagate in different ways, but in winter, grafting is most effective. Nonetheless, you can be successful with cuttings. It’s just not as foolproof in winter, as softwood branches root better. 

Take five to six-inch stems with buds on them and root them in moist soil. Use a deep container to hold a sufficient amount of roots. Evergreen magnolias will root better in winter than deciduous magnolias, which will take longer. Let your deciduous magnolia cuttings root for longer in their containers before transplanting in late spring. 

Rose 

	botanical name Rosa spp.
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 1’-20’
	hardiness zones 3-11

January is a great time to propagate roses in areas with mild climates, as they still have the energy to produce new growth. There is a wide range of species and growth forms, from small shrubs to expansive climbing vines. Use green wood trimmings, as these will root fastest. 

Your rose cuttings can tolerate a fair amount of cold, but you’ll have the most success with cuttings propagated indoors where the temperature is mild and stable. Let these stay in their pots until next spring so they have plenty of time to establish strong roots. They will begin to form in about a month, but this is to be on the safe side. 

Rhododendron

	botanical name Rhododendron spp.
	sun requirements Partial to full shade
	height Up to 15’+
	hardiness zones 3-9

Rhododendron is a large genus of over 1,000 species and includes azaleas. They like moist, well-draining, acidic soil and filtered or dappled light. Direct exposure in the morning is fine, but in the afternoon, it will scorch the leaves. 

Rhododendrons are evergreen, and winter is a time you can take cuttings for propagation, though they are typically taken in fall. The best wood to take these from is hardwood or semi-hardwood. Hardwood takes longer to root, but these will make stronger and more resilient plants. 

Witch Hazel

	botanical name Hamamelis spp.
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height Up to 30’
	hardiness zones 5-8

Witch hazels are showy shrubs that make a statement in the landscape. They produce warm-colored blooms at different times of the year, depending on the species. They also provide stunning autumn colors in shades similar to their flowers. You may know of these from their use in beauty and skincare products. 

These shrubs prefer mild climates and moist, slightly acidic soil. In mild climates, plant them in full exposure. In warmer climates, partial shade, with morning exposure, is ideal. Witch hazels can be difficult to propagate, but you can do it with suckers. Suckers may not be identical to the parent plant if the original plant is grafted.

Camellia

	botanical name Camellia spp.
	sun requirements Partial shade
	height Up to 25’
	hardiness zones 6-10

Camellias are another favorite for me, as they flower in the winter, cheering up the landscape. They have glossy, evergreen foliage, and their blooms are large and brightly colored in shades of pink, red, white, and sometimes yellow. They prefer mild climates and need acidic soil. 

Camellias thrive best in dappled light or partial shade with sun in the morning. C. japonica is more sensitive to light, whereas C. sasanqua tolerates full exposure in some cases. Winter is an ideal time to take hardwood branches from your camellia and propagate. Keep your cuttings cool but not too cold. Around 50°F (10°C) is ideal. It takes three to four months for them to root. 

Forsythia

	botanical name Forsythia spp.
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 8’-10’
	hardiness zones 5-8

Forsythia is a beautiful spring bloomer in the Oleacea (Olive) family. It produces thousands of small, cheery, yellow flowers early in spring before the leaves unfurl. They are adaptable to many soil types, and most are highly cold-tolerant. 

Softwood branches cut in late spring will root faster, but you can take hardwood cuttings in winter. They just take longer to form roots. Make sure they stay moist and get lots of bright light while rooting, which takes from six to eight weeks. 

Hydrangea

	botanical name Hydrangea spp.
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 4’-12’
	hardiness zones 3-9

Depending on the species, hydrangeas tolerate a wide range of environments. In general, they perform best in partial shade and acidic soil. Keep them happy, and they will grade you with spectacular panicles of flowers from late spring until early fall. You can allow the flowers to dry on the plant for added winter interest. 

Winter is the right time to propagate your hydrangea from hardwood. Wait until after a frost to take your cuttings. You don’t even need to bring these indoors; you can stick them in the ground, and there’s a good chance they will root by spring. There is no harm in putting in the extra effort. Just keep your cuttings cool but not too cold. 

Honeysuckle

	botanical name Lonicera spp.
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 10’-25’
	hardiness zones 4-9

Honeysuckle is a childhood favorite with often fragrant flowers and sweet nectar. This woody vine is easy to grow, and prefers full exposure to perform and bloom best, but will tolerate some shade. Some species can be invasive, so pay attention to this when selecting one. 

You can root honeysuckle branches in water or soil. I like to use water any time it’s possible, because it enables me to see root development. When you take your cuttings, nip off the buds forming on top so it will focus energy on forming roots and not on blooming. 

Weigela

	botanical name Weigela spp.
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height Up to 10’
	hardiness zones 4-8

Weigela is easy to grow and resistant to most pests and diseases. If you have issues with deer, this is a great shrub to plant as they don’t like it. These shrubs make a nice privacy screen or hedge, and you can also use them as a focal point. They have a prolific flowering habit in spring and summer. 

Weigela shrubs are pollinator favorites. The tubular flowers attract bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. Wait until after a frost causes the plant to enter dormancy before taking hardwood cuttings. Use branches without flower buds for rooting, as these will root faster. 

Viburnum

	botanical name Viburnum spp.
	sun requirements Full sun to full shade
	height Up to 30’
	hardiness zones 2-10

Viburnums are a wide-ranging genus with varieties that are low growing to those treelike species that can be as tall as 30′. They are versatile and hardy in Zones 2-10, depending on the species. Their flowers are a great food source for pollinators, and their berries are attractive to birds and small animals.