Don't worry Kathy- you can make the best of your situtaion this way- this is the best time of the year to start new cuttings. I spent part of my day doing just that, for trades in the future....Just take your broken stems, measusre 6 inches (or less), from the top of the stem,( at intervals) & make cuttings.... remove the largest leaves, leaving a few small ones at the top of each new cutting.... set them in a few inches of water to regain their rigidity.... I use peat moss with perlite for the soiless mixture.... dip their wet ends in a rooting hormone, (I buy mine from Lowes or Home Depot), fill some small pots or drinking cups with a hole in the bottom, with the soiless mixture, & stick them in.... water well, place a sandwich baggie over their heads, for a few days til they are firm... place them in a dappeled shade, & water every few days.... they love this weather right now- I have a whole table filled with cuttings... cheer up- other members will be glad to trade with you for different varieties - it's a great way to expand your collection! Your original plants will regrow from the broken off tip, & fill in... they will even brach out, & you won't even see the damage after a while! Good Luck!
kasha77

Same here Kathy. We had a tornado warning till 6pm, but just had constant thunder & lightning. Thought it was all over, took the kids to the pond, left because of constant lightning again, and on the way home..you woulda thought there was a tornado! I got home, grabbed the towels off the clothesline in the dark only to reveal the disaster. DH saw it before me, all I heard was 'Holy *beep* THAT is terrible!' I looked and started crying. He said it looked like a pack of dogs ran through. It did. I hate wind. HAte it hate it hate it!
ABout 30 brugs, mostly seedlings knocked onto their sides, blown around, broken..buds that were to bloom tonight and the next few nights scattered about the yard. I tried to salvage some pieces for cuttings, but I don't know if they'll make it. I am beginning to think mother nature hates me.
Baffles me though. Small brug cuttings sitting on a table totally untouched, on the ground right next to it, a big heavy pot with a 5 1/2' Strawberry Creme, man is it heavy. How in the world did that go down and not the little light cuttings in pots?? It sux, I've been watching those buds like a hawk. Was gonna be my first nice flush, and the first time Strawberry Creme would even bloom for me. I think I only have 6 buds left..maybe..too dark to count. And purple lightning kinda scares me, lol. Didnt want to be out there any longer than I had to.
I dread tomorrow morning..seeing all the damage in the light. I'm sure theres more I didnt even see yet due to the darkeness.
Where are you located in Jersey, if you dont mind me asking? I am in Middlesex County. I heard Bridgewater had a tornado. Hope the only damage you suffered was your brugs, and not anything irreplaceable.

Good advice Kasha!

Ouch! Sorry to hear bout both your disasters. I've had some near misses with hail all round but so far just a few holes. As Kasha(aka Kathy LOL) says you can create trading stock for the fall now.....and when I had plants broken off by wind in the past, the nodes below the break sprouted gangbusters and I still got nice blooms later in the summer. These are tough plants! Good luck.

We've had a few storms over the past 2 days that have damaged some plants. Nothing too bad but we needed the rain so bad that it was worth the damage. Don't worry about your brugs. They'll fill back in though it might set back blooming a bit. You can always root the broken branches and if they were ready to Y you'll get flowers soon. I don't bother with rooting hormones, especially this time of year. You can pretty much stick the broken brug branches in anything and they'll root. They'd probably have rooted even if you just left them laying on the ground where they fell.

Well as I posted last week I had the same problem, although i must say none of my brugs got broken, just shredded and their poor stems and trunks are all pock marked. I guess we have to be philosophical about it and hope for a rebound and better luck next time. It does sound like a good time to root cuttings though, if you're forced into it, so good suggestion!
We're supposed to have storms all week and I'm just holding my breath hoping for no hail or terrible winds. Hang in there gardeners!
Diane