comfrey root section help please!

[kiwirach]

i've just recieved some root sections that i brought online and they're not what i expected.
in the blurb it says to plant with the growing tip uppermost.....how on earth do i work out which bit is the growing tip. basically its like someone has diced up a thick root......i'm feeling a little

hope someone can answer this.....TIA.

[zazen999]

photo please - you might be able to tell by the way they have cut the top and bottom, or if there are any little roots growing down, then that is down.

Someone has diced up a thick root - but they really should have grown it a little before sending it out.

[vicky]

Normally you cut one end straight accross and the other on the diagonal so you know what's up and down, you'd have to get in touch with the supplier to find out which is which (assuming the cuts ARE different...).
Alternatively plant horizontally?

[bobleponge]

That would be my advice too if you cant find any way of working up or down. Plant it horizontally, as it grows so well that it will take without a problem.

[kiwirach]

thanks guys....think i'm going to have to go with the plant horizontally....i've just had a good look and 1 or 2 have straight and angled cuts, the rest...straight!.

interestingly...i was expecting them to have been grown cuttings, not blocks!. never mind...you live and learn and if they all grow....then its no worries in the end!!.

[zazen999]

I'm sure they will, it is pretty hardy stuff. Cheeky to ask you to plant with growing tip uppermost when there is no growing tip at all.

It is bocking 14 I take it?

[kiwirach]

yes, its bocking 14, and i got from a fairly well known garden center.

btw!, you say its pretty hardy stuff Andrea....i managed to kill the first lot i brought off ebay a few months ago!!!.

[zazen999]

Oh dear!!! I hope this lot survives!

[Snadger]

It grows very easily but is practically dormant at this time of year. I would plant it up, or down, or sideways, in pots so you don't lose them. Once they have started to grow in the spring, you can then plant it out to your preferred spot. I did this last year with 3 cuttings of Gypsophilla and managed to get one plant (which was all I wanted anyway!) If you plant it outside now, by spring you may forget where you planted it!

[kiwirach]

errm....i've put them in the allotment i'm afraid!. i am going away for a month and need to get everything in asap!.
fingers crossed they'll be ok....and i know where they are, cos i'm about to 'make the spot' in my garden planner(insert nerdy smillie here!)

[Two_Sheds]

I chop bits of root off my comfrey plants every spring, and just throw them in a hole ... not upside or downside, just throw them in.
They always turn into big fat healthy plants. Foolproof really.

[Mcbee]

I'm thinking of growing comfrey as I'm sure I've read that its a good fertiliser / compost accelerating. Anyone got any tips on how i can use it?

Also everyone here is talking about growing it from a root cutting. I was thinking of growing it from seed. Is it difficult to germinate, or is it simply that root cuttings are more convenient?

[Two_Sheds]

You want the sterile variety (Bocking 14). Therefore, you need cuttings.
McBee, this old thread should help you. There are tons more where that came from too: have a go with your Search button
http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...rey_17275.html

[zazen999]

If you want to grow comfrey, then you need bocking 14. It was developed by Lawrence Hills, at the Henry Doubleday Research inst, now called Garden Organic.

If you grow it from seed, then it isn't Bocking 14, which can only be propagated by cuttings.

Google 'comfrey' and you will find ways of using it. I grow it, and put it into a drainpipe, collect the mush at the bottom and mix it with water for fertiliser. I also put it straight onto soil as mulch through the growing season, or bung it into the composter in layers to speed things up.

[Mcbee]

Thanks guys - i wondered what blocking 14 was!!

Its not the best of names is it? Couldn't they have thought of something more appropriate? "Leaves of plenty" or "Towering obsession"? Hmmh - maybe b14 isn't too bad