Improving cutting success and overwintering cuttings

hello,

i’m wondering if anyone can advise on improving my cutting success rate. i’ve lost about 3/4 of the cuttings i took this fall. the stems went black and when i took them out, none had formed roots.

my method:

put stem, put in clonex gel, stick in root riot peat cube. put these in a little humidity dome made from tupperware. mist daily.

they are growing in a tent under a strong grow light. it’s about 78 degrees in there. the light is gentle now but 24h. the humidity in the tupperware is high.

this summer i had a little success going into dirt in a ziploc bag but also lost 9/10 cuttings. i sanitize my scissors. i’m wondering if my cuttings are too small because the thicker ones are still healthy seeming. i took these about a month ago.




1 Like

Just cut branches with healthy leaves and no mite, and stick it in dark bottle full of fresh water .
Use clean and sharp knife.
Place it next to bright window or under lamp and wait.

You won’t fail

1 Like

I have also been rooting more cuttings of roses, either to multiply and give away, or to root cuttings of new varieties. For the most reliable results I take a stem that has flowered three to four weeks previously and has not been trimmed or tidied up. An 8-10 inches length of stem inches with even thickness cut just below a leaf node is moistened at the tip and dipped in rooting powder. The cutting, with reduced amount of leaves, is then put into well drained compost (e.g. including perlite), watered, labelled and covered with a plastic bag and placed out of direct sunlight. Cuttings taken mid-August were showing roots by mid-October and have then potted up ready to make a flowering plant next summer. Cuttings can also be taken later with roots maybe not showing until March-April. This is my experience in southern England.

1 Like

Hi
I use a misting system using pvc piping and misting nozzles i use a battery powered times with two outlets slaved to make one outlet. I have it outside with partial shade.Using 4 inch pots with pro mix and rooting powder.My take is 90 percent for big roses and 98 percent for miniature roses.They set roots in 25 to30 days

2 Likes

I always use only pure builders sand a potting mix for taking cuttings. Succes rate 70%.
Most of the time i take cuttings late spring ( june) where I live (Netherlands)
Keep in mind some type of roses are hardly to take cuttings.

I do mostly bud grafting, the under stocks are placed between two layers of wet hessian and keep wet for about 2 to 3 weeks. Callusing will show very quickly between the wood and rind due to a good mix of oxygen and moisture. Then place them in a mix of fine gravel . I don’t bother with the gravel just push them into well drained soil because most understocks root very euackly. Everything wirks well at 25 C.

1 Like

I think you can understand what I mean. We call it steam rooting. Put the plant branches in a sealed bag, add a wet tissue to moisturize them, and within ten days, there will be callus tissue, avoiding black rot of the branches, and then you can plant normally.




2 Likes

Stems turning black is caused by too moist of soil. Keep the soil less moist to begin with, especially if you are misting, as this will keep foliage wet well. Try adding a lot of perlite into your mix, or use sand/perlite and skip the soil type mediums.
You can try callousing the end of the cutting, as was mentioned in either a ziploc bag or in a vase of water. I leave mine in a vase of water for a week or two before potting up now. Works much better.
Duane

1 Like