Peter Dowdall: Why August is the month to divide and conquer

Roses and many other flowers can be grown from cuttings taken now

Helleborus orientalis or the Lenten rose can be divided now before flowering in late winter. Picture: iStock

IT IS now mid-August, whether we like it or not — no more waiting for the summer to come, we are heading towards the autumn, and like every season in the garden, if we don’t do certain jobs now, it will be too late and we will have to wait another year.

Many of our garden plants can be grown very easily from cuttings. Propagation by semi-ripe, nodal cuttings is very straightforward and a very successful way to grow new plants.