Each year I buy some little pots of Million Bells or Surfina petunias for less than a £1 each and try to get as many plants and flowers from the one plant as I can. See how many plants from cuttings you can get. Then let us know how many flowers you achieve.

Million Bells Tips and Information

• Bred and registered by Suntory, the faux whiskey people, Million Bells (not Bells Whiskey) are varieties of Calibrachoa and resemble mini petunias.
• The plant label on my specimen calls the colour Cherry and the variety Sunbelchipi. Other varieties can be seen on the web site
• I have cleaned up some rotting foliage at the front of the plant and increased the pot size to give room for root growth. It is roots I want at this stage before I start taking cuttings.
• Bushy growth comes from pinching out and I find the ‘pinch’ can usually be rooted to form a new plant. I will be disappointed not to get a dozen decent plants before I plant them out when the last frost has gone. A good pay back for some TLC during early spring.
• During summer regular feeding and watering in very dry conditions will help you get Millions of Bell shaped flowers but if it is only thousands don’t blame me.
• You do not need to dead head Million Bells they should be ‘self cleaning’
• Because the plants are registered and PBR exist you can’t sell your cuttings but you can grow them for your own purposes.

Sorry the prize for the winner in October will not be a bottle of whiskey but the consolation of a job well done and the admiration of readers on this site.
ps last year I had a very poor result and will leave my plants to grow on without taking their strength by too many cuttings.