Question: Can you tell us how to start a cutting from a Pfitzer juniper? L.M., Illinois.
Answer: Cuttings from Pfitzer junipers may be taken now although it is rather late. About the middle of September would be a better date. Make cuttings from new wood that is firm, using tip branches three to four inches long. Remove a few needles from the base, dip the cut end in a hormone rooting powder. and set the cutting in coarse sand in a flat as you would any other cutting. The cuttings may be set quite close together in the flat of sand, as many as 400 to an 18 by 24 inch flat. Set the flat of cuttings in a cool (55 degrees) place that has high humidity and keep the sand moist at all times. In the spring the flat of cuttings may be set outside, undisturbed. in a cold frame under light shade, and left there until the following spring. By that time the cuttings should be ready to transplant. This transplanting may be made into the nursery row or on the grounds in their permanent location.
