I have posted this in another forum, but want to share it with you too.

         

I saw this on the other forum. Very informative and makes alot of sense. I have tried many different types of propagation methods over the last year.

I had considered using straight perlite under the cutting, and my potting mix on top, but hadn't gotten around to experimenting.

penandpike,
How often do you end up watering with such well draining material directly surrounding the cutting ? Once a week ? Do you water just the central area ?
Thanks.

The best thing about this system is that it is nearly impossible to over water the plant. (you can water it often) Even though, I don't like doing that and I water only if I see that soil is getting  dry it really depends on the soil.( mine takes a week or more) After surrounding the cutting with the  the mosaic I put just LITTLE BIT of soil on top of it (but not touching the cutting) to prevent drying. For the roots to appear there is no need for moisture only high humidity is enough. Right now I have some 100 cuttings and haven't lost a single one. 

Way to go Pen! That's what this forum is all about....trying something different and sharing success! I will be building 4 small 4x4 cold frames and will try your technique in one of them. Job well done!

Pen, where do you purchase mosaic in your area?

I saw some in our garden centers, but was much more expensive. (IMO only because their use is decoration)  The bag I got from a local building materials retailer. There were few piles out side with different grade (size) mosaic as well that, were even cheaper.

Thanks Pen! I found a good source just minutes away. On my way there now. Thanks again!
Dennis

It's not clear to me when you use the composted cow manure but I tried using compost in my rooting medium last year. Many of the cuttings rooted very well but I lost most of them to carbon dioxide build up from the compost. I learned the hard way that compost can be very harmful to new roots.

I use the manure for potting the cuttings. I seriously doubt that it was the CO2 that killed your plants. As a matter of fact I have never heard CO2 was that much toxic. I use different kind of compost and never had any problems with any of them. There might have been some BAD material in you compost bin. For example walnut leafs are toxic. Any way the method described above provides excellent aeration.  

Susan,

one should know very well the difference between a mature compost and immature compost. The latter is harmful to the plants. In my town, for example, specialized places sell immature leaf compost. It is blackened by the temperature that bacteria has created in the huge pile, but is very far from being mature. The mature compost should be just black dirt, which will sink if thrown in a bucket of water. The immature one will float in the water. I do not know what happened in your case, but I hope it will be helpful to the community to know these things about the compost.

I make my compost myself and it is very good and very mature. Penandpike, you might want to look at the post "bad luck with cuttings" for information on compost and co2.

You are awesome Pen. I think this is going to be the answer I've been searching for. I will try to find some mosaic in my area. Your system makes much sense to me. Like others, I find that my rooted cuttings do really well, and then collapse just before or soon after transfer to the gallon pots. I will use your system for my next batch of cuttings and leave them in the cups a little longer. Thank you for sharing this information.

Eve
Buffalo, NY
zone 5-6

Susan,

Pen,
What would you think of using perlite in place of mosaic?
I know that perlite will retain some water but it is used mainly to promote drainage.

Frank

Frank,

Pen--Very interesting technique! It makes a lot of sense, and ought to be very helpful to a lot of fig growers. Thanks for taking the time to explain it.

Hey Pen. I tried this last year using coarse perlite with a bunch of cuttings and forgot to tell you that it worked great for me. Especially when using a hotter mix. The cutting itself does not get covered in salts and is in much better shape to absorb water. I will be trying it again. Thanks.

Awsome I like it. Wonder if fish tank rock would work?

This and a lady's stocking and some gnat proof dome and we in the NW will be pros!  We have to try to see if works in our climate also. 

I used to use pool filter sand in some of my evergreen mixes. It's not really sand, more like pummeled quartz or other stone that resembles a very very coarse sand. It worked well. The photo of the mosaic reminds me of the look of it. 

Hello Pen,

Thank you for sharing. I have a quick question. I understand that this technique is useful to control moisture in the pot, but how this helps with repoting?

Thank you

Pen, You mention that walnut leaves are toxic in compost.... My project this weekend is to get some trenching/irrigation going so I can plant some fig trees along my fenceline, which happens to be located right next to my neighbor's walnut tree.  How concerned should I be?

Experiment with Aquarium rock

I have never tried Aquarium Rock and since it was mentioned here I thought I thought I would give it a try.  I used the Pink rock for visibility.  The mix is with Peat Moss, the outer is my preferred potting mix.

Thx for the thread, this is why I hang around, great innovation here, great sharing.


EDIT
Updated picture of cutting, last pict, sorry for quality