| Rooting Hormone This step is optional. Other people are successful at taking and growing cuttings without using a rooting hormnone. I dip the shoot in a rooting hormone powder and gently tap the cutting to remove any excess. The hormone should cover the bottom inch or so of the cutting. |
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| I then poke several drainage holes in the bottom of a styrofoam cup and fill the cup 1/2 full with damp Pro Mix or the same mixture used in the sprouting trays. If the planting medium is too wet, the cuttings will rot. Sand can also be used. I will explain later why I only fill the cup 1/2 full. |
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The plant has two sets of leaves at this time and I always remove the bottom set before planting. Use a finger to create a hole in which the cutting will be placed. Making the hole before inserting the cutting makes it possible to plant the cutting without removing the hormone. I place the cutting in the hole and push the soil around the cutting. At this time I label the cup with the variety name, form, color, classification code and date. Doing so makes it easy to transfer the information to tags when planting. It usually takes one month for the cutting to develop a root system. |
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| I then place a plastic bag over the planting and the cup. This keeps the humidity high around the plant and also keeps the moisture in the soil mix. I do not water until plants take root in about one month. The cups are then placed under flourescent shop lights in my basement where the temperature is 55 - 60 degrees. These conditions help the cutting to develop a strong root system. |
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| I transfer the cuttings to may basement. Seven flourescent shop lights hang on two clothes closet rods. The rods are suspended from the ceiling so I can adjust the height if necessary. I also use the system to overwinter tender outdoor plants. The lights are plugged inot one electrical surge protector purchased from a local hardware store. The surge protector is plugged into a timer and the timer into an outlet. I have the lights on 18 hours per day. |
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