Bare-root rose plants often come with waxed stems. Has anyone tried waxing top part of cuttings while the basal end is without wax in the rooting medium to avoid desiccation (when not using humid environment)?

I am asking this knowing that some cuttings can be easily rooted with bag method without any mold for weeks and weeks. However, some cuttings under the similar circumstances in bag method show signs of mold within days and the mold will recur within 24 hours (or less than) after cleaning, and with all the daily diaper changes these mold susceptible cutting will ulcerate or the bark will become soggy or separate.

So I thought if the mold susceptible cuttings can be waxed at the top part and the bottom placed in perlite-vermiculite mix, it should help. Will the mold form under the wax too if the cutting is the culprit or absence of external moisture will inhibit it? If it works, what kind of wax is needed?

Someday I may try the peroxide gel as described here and it may inhibit mold:

http://www.using-hydrogen-peroxide.com/hydrogen-peroxide-gel.html

I've tried it with hard to root cuttings, or on rare cuttings. It keeps the cuttings from drying out in the rooting process. I don't do it on all cuttings, I probably should. I've somewhere the ucdavis gardeners dip the fig cuttings in wax to protect them from mold.
As far as what kind of wax to use... I recommend grafting wax. The cheapest way to go is with the wax ring that goes around the toilet seat.

Bass

I know these steps are not necessary for all but may help those who do not have easy access to fig cuttings and/or sometime get small number of mold prone cuttings.
Of course the bag method has worked for me in majority cases but some cuttings give me very early indication that I have one at hand that will love to be moldy no mater how I clean it (with the cleaning/disinfecting stuff that has been mentioned on the fig forums).

I've never tried it but would WIlt-Pruf work on cuttings that are stored long term?

I've read somewhere that Joereal tried it with Parafilm around pomegranate cuttings with great success.

So I've decided to try the same thing with my fig cuttings. It's too early to judge the success as they are in the rooting
process for only two weeks now. But there are no signs of dry out or mold so far.

Recently I saw a few posts regarding apple grafting and remember reading that different people used either white glue or grafting glue or latex paint to cover scion wood to prevent drying.  This might be applicable to fig cuttings though I wouldn't dare to assume so since I haven't tried it. 
 
Elizabeth

Ingevald
You used blank cartridge.

Hello,
     I think that this is a very good topic and am looking forward to additional comments.     I used Wilt-Pruf once on fig cuttings, but due to some unfavorable circumstances with my propagation system at that time, I can't report any reliable results.   Wilt-Pruf is supposed to protect new transplants from loosing excess moisture.     The toilet sealing wax is an interesting idea.
    The ideal result would be moisture retention and strong mold resistance.

 Bass - with the cuttings that you waxed, how was your success rate?   Was it higher than normal?

Ingevald

I just saw this page on a website but there were no futher details as to what is painted on the grape cuttings and what solution they are placed in with basal end down and the tops pianted (& probably bunches of roots showing...or is it something else!):
http://www.garryoakswine.com/vines/grapes.php

Ottawan,
What a great thread. In my rooting experiment, the bag method is working well but where I am not happy with results is when they are moved to rooting media. I have a high loss rate due to the cuttings dessicating even when they are in a humid environment. I have WiltStop but have not used it on the cuttings yet. The wax idea is a good one. Do you think the wax could inhibit foliage growth or will it push right through the wax?

StevNJ
I have experience with wax on rose stems that it does not inhibit the shooting and the young shoots come out through wax by cracking it because it does not have tensile strength to resist. The wax can crack easily when pushed by new emerging shoot. I am not sure how parafilm will behave when shoot try to emerge. Also, because of irregular surface of the cuttings may leave some small pockets of air with some consequences.

The irregular surface of the cuttings is no problem - the stretching ability of the parafilm is great.
I've tried both - some cuttings were wrapped completely except the part in the perlite without any pockets of air.
At the other cuttings I left small pockets at the buds.
I'll report about the success or failure.

Thanks Ottawan & German-figfriend. I think I might try the wax on a few future cuttings to see how it works out. The "toilet ring" suggestion is a good one as they are relatively cheap. Does one melt it first and dip the cutting or rub into on to it at room temp since it is very pliable?

Bass may probably be able to answer about the wax used in the toilet seat. He mentioned it. Transparency or translucency of the coat will be a good feature to make sure one is not waiting for a mold rotten cutting.

Hello,
I did some quick research on the use of wax to seal and protect cuttings. Most of the wax related information pertains of course to sealing a grafted union.

Several references point to the importance of sealing the apical end of the cutting (the top end) to prevent desiccation. I realized that this particular aspect of protection might be very important. For example, when preparing a log for future processing into lumber, it is absolutely essential to seal the ends since the ends are where the greatest volume of moisture is lost and lost very rapidly. It is likely that this is very true with the small cuttings. Here is a reference - http://www.mt.nrcs.usda.gov/technical/ecs/plants/technotes/pmtechnoteMT51.html

I did find a few other comments on the web referencing the use of toilet sealer wax, mostly for grafting, but also to seal the ends of cuttings. The low melting temperature is very desirable.

I also did a brief search for the various commercial antitranspirants and antidesiccants. Having not tested them, I will just mention them and an associated website. The literature for these products claims that they prevent moisture loss, provides winter moisture loss protection, protection during transplantation, may offer some fungus protection, etc.

Moisturin - http://www.gsihorticultural.com/shop/
http://www.greenworldproject.net/seedling-care-products.htm
        http://www.gsihorticultural.com/moisturin/index.php

Transfilm - http://www.triturf.com/itemimages/TRANSFILM_LABEL.PDF

LeafGuard MC3 - http://www.valuegardens.com/allpro/labels/337801.pdf

Leaf Shield - http://www.the-scotts-exchange.com/_documents/tech_sheets/H4593_Leafshield.pdf

Wilt Pruf - http://www.wiltpruf.com/

I also found a few reports about propagation and the use of antitranspirants. The first report found that the old fashion misting worked best in their test of chrysanthemum and ligustrum cuttings. The second report discusses the rooting of various ornamentals using antitranspirants.

http://fshs.org/Proceedings/Password%20Protected/1974%20Vol.%2087/474-477%20(BAGGOTT).pdf

http://74.125.95.132/search?q=cache:s0B00cTJkdwJ:www.pubhort.org/members/showdocument%3Fbooknrarnr%3D176_17+cuttings+antitranspirant&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=14&gl=us&client=safari In case this link does not work - look up 'Rooting of Some Ornamentals With an Antitranspirant Substance' by L. Martinetti. Look for the 'View as html" version since the PDF file requires payment.

Lastly, I found a recent very interesting article (2.8MB pdf download). It starts on page 207. They experiment with rooting cuttings with and without humid conditions. - Improvement of Propagation by Hardwood Cuttings with and without Using Plastic Pavilions in Fig (ficus carica L.) by Narongchai Pipattanawong, Sawitree Tiwong, Benjarach Thongyean, Rungtiwa Darak, Pornprasert Thamin and Wet Techa from Kasetsart Journal, Natural Science - Thailand vol 42 no 2. April - June 2008 page 207 - http://www.rdi.ku.ac.th/KU_Journal/Sciences/doc/KU42(2).pdf (You will have to copy and past the entire text of this link into your web browser since part of it is being left off as a live link)

Hopefully there will be future postings on our techniques and experiences using some form of an antidesiccant. I would like to hear from Bass on his techniques and if possible, a reference to the U.C.Davis gardeners that dip fig cuttings in wax. My preliminary conclusions, based on what I have read, are that sealing the top end of a cutting may be very helpful. Maintaining humidity ‘the old way’ seems to be very reliable. The toilet sealing wax may be practical. What an interesting topic!
Ingevald
Lawrence, KS

Great work Ingevald. I was unable to retrieve the pdf from Thailand. Anyway you could post it or email it?

Ingevald
This is a very in depth research and interesting information. Good material to read thoroughly during the snow storms.
Based on the information and keeping (retired's) economy in mind, it may not be a bad idea to start by dipping the top cut in the molten candle wax for sealing the top end (until a good solution is found for the whole cutting). I can't think of any side effects.

Steve,
Thanks for catching the problem. The link for the Thailand document is not complete for some reason. I would suggest copying and pasting the entire text "http://www.rdi.ku.ac.th/KU_Journal/Sciences/doc/KU42(2).pdf" since the "(2).pdf" part is not showing itself on the live link.

Ingevald

Ingevald
The suggested mod link worked for the pdf. It is a 206 page document (but you did mention the relevant pages.. thanks).

I was able to download with the corrected link - thanks. Seems that their results show that the augmented humidity improved the production of buds and roots (as we all expected). Nice to see some quantified data backing it up. Nice find Ingvald.

I just came upon another interesting article. This one is in Portuguese and is called Formas De Acondicionamento a Frio E Sua influencia No Enraizamento De Estacas De Figueira (Ficus carica L.) by Francisco Goncalves, et al.
http://www.ufpel.tche.br/faem/agrociencia/v10n2/artigo18.pdf

In English it translates to Effect of Cold Storage Systems in the Rooting of Fig Tree Cuttings (Ficus carica L) The google translation is here and it is a bit of a mess - http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=pt&u=http://www.ufpel.edu.br/faem/agrociencia/v10n2/artigo18.htm&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=8&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3D%2522ficus%2Bcarica%2522%2Bbag%2Bstoring%2Bcuttings%26start%3D60%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dsafari%26rls%3Den-us%26sa%3DN (click on the bottom link to get the entire piece)

The Google translation is about %85 good, but I had to take some time with a Portuguese dictionary to figure out alternate meanings for words that were obviously not working. There are very few scientific articles on this topic of cutting storage and I think it is pertinent to add this one to the mix. I'll give you my best summary at this time. There are still a few things that are not clear, but I think that I have a general grasp on the concepts.

This experiment took place at the experimental Station EPAMIG in Brazil. The goal was to verify the effects of various methods of treating cuttings that are kept in cold storage to maintain good viability until a favorable time is reached to plant them. They used eleven treatment combinations including: wrapping in newspaper, a polyethylene bag around the newspaper wrapped cutting, a polyethylene bag by itself, sand, sawdust, newspaper + sawdust, paraffin/wax treatment, paraffin/wax treatment + sand, paraffin/wax + sawdust and a control which was not treated. All of the cuttings, except for the control sample, benefited from these treatments that conserved moisture and provided proper aeration.

The cuttings were about 15 inches long and subjected to a disinfection treatment for five minutes and were treated with a fungicide (quintozene aka pentachloronitrobenzene) (listed as carcenognic). All samples were put in a cold chamber at 46 deg F and humidification was added in alternating days by spraying a mist of water on them. While under cold stratification conditions, it appears that the samples were placed horizontally in cardboard boxes within layers of sand and/or sawdust.

After 120 days the cuttings were planted in a roughly 1 gallon sized black plastic pots with a mixture of two parts soil, a portion of sand and cattle manure. 180 days after planting, the cuttings were examined to determine which treatments produced the most roots and biomass. There is a chart that shows how well they did. I think that I also am reading a statement that is saying that without proper treatment under storage, viability is lost in about 15 days.

They also tested the amount of amino acid and protein content of the cuttings at different intervals of their storage. When these values were best preserved, there were more roots and more biomass of the roots. Although all treatments, except the control, were effective, the treatments that resulted in slightly higher biomass of roots, # of roots and % of rooted cuttings were: 1) Treatment #4 - polyethylene bag 2) Treatment #3 - Newspaper wrapped cuttings in the polyethylene bag 3) Treatment #2 - wrapped in newspaper.

The paraffin combinations were lower on the list (my assumption is that the paraffin stops moisture inflow. Although not clear, they may have dipped the entire cutting in wax but did it quickly in a 140 deg F bath. Until we have further clarifying information, dipping the top may be helpful and all that is needed during this stage of the process. Also note that they do not mention the 'baggie method' as we know it for starting initial root development - they are just preserving moisture and proper aeration with this test.

Overall, not counting the 'control sample' they got an average of %70 of the cuttings to root. They also say that a good potential for successful rooting can occur for up to a four month period of storage.

So, that is what I know. This seems to confirm what I think many of us know and are practicing. Perhaps it offers some things to think about.

Happy holidays!
Ingevald

Hmmmm
Now the question is why placing only in polyethylene bags showed better results than "placed in moist newspaper then placed in polyethylene bag?". My guess is that the presence of newspaper makes less moisture available for the cutting to keep its turgidity.

Also, it appears that the experiment has more to do with retention of (or loss of) vitality of root during cold storage rather than comparing the rooting processes.

Ingevald,

Great find, again! I am a little confused with your statement regarding the "baggie" method - isn't this basically the same as the damp newspaper and polyethylene bag that they used? Only difference might be if they seal it or not as we do with a ziploc. But even with the ziploc, it is important to occasionally let in some fresh air. As Jon has conveyed, providing moisture & fresh air are what is important during rooting - the variations on the method are less important.

I am intrigued by the relationship between amino acid and protein retention and the root production and mass. I thought that stored "energy" in the form of starches was an important characteristic for rooting success. I wonder what processes during storage resulted in loss of protein and amino acids. Were they broken down within the cutting? Did the loss of water (moisture) in the cuttings somehow cause a leaching of proteins? Interesting but beyond by ability to explain.

I have used tree pruning sealer before, but I cannot say whether it was beneficial
or not. After reading this thread, it does make some sense, specially for those
more fat than usual fig twigs.

I am currently experimenting  with rooting some fat fig twigs (3/4 - 1 inch).
I have two garbage bags, one for the long twigs (2 foot plus)
and the other for short twigs (1 foot minus).

After reading this thread, I opened both bags to apply (grafting) wax

on the fat twigs apex as recommended in that thread.

I started with the bag containing the shorter twigs,
Wala, roots!!! Now, I already potted some.

The shorter ones were just sitting loosely on a moist
newspaper inside the bag - success.

The longer ones had some moist newspaper wrapped
around the bottom - no roots. Actually after
removing the newspaper, I noticed some (mushy) rotting.
This is also consistent with later posts in this same thread.
I cut off ~2 inch from the bottom and put back in the

bag with similar conditions as the shorter ones had.

I'll see what happens now...