Wow Lolita! What a labor of love. Your care for and connection to the plants is palpable. I so appreciate all the details and time you spent putting this together for us. I have to ask what do you do with all these healthy plants? I'm going to try your method today as we are leafing to Cabo for 2 weeks and I am bountiful with cuttings anxious to be trees! Blessing of abundance and peace for all in 2016. Jodi

Great technique for varius reasons; saves on soil, saves on pots, saves the roots when transplanting! I will try it. Whats a good size bag to start? Also where to buy them for a good price?
Meg

".... i intent to use transparent plastic storage boxes instead of the plastic bag....." 

The plastic storage boxes are fine . But in case that the roots are overgrown, the plastic bags are easier to cut off then re-bag the trimmed new plant . And plastic bags are cheap . You can buy sandwich bags at One-dollar stores


"................... with the baggies without hormones etc...and use the closed box (in a dark room). i shall aerate every 2 days  "

My method does not need darkroom . You can leave them at the windowsill until Spring , unless you have a lot of cuttings . If so, just leave them in the heated garage under a good size neon (T12). Or course in a bigger bag for humidity 


" ....once i see roots and leaves (lets say in 3-4 weeks) i shall cover the small bags with newspaper and put the whole box closed again under the lights. i shall still aerate every 2 days...."

..if you soak the cuttings in fresh water 1 week before sticking them in the plastic bag, usually in a few days they will bud and roots start to form in the bag . Leave them alone . This is the critical time because if you disturb them by taking them out or move them around, the tiny new roots underneath would break apart and the rooting process will start anew . 

Yes, wait until the second week to take them out and cover the plastic bag individually with newspaper .
Why with newspaper and not with a black pot or a black plastic bag ? -----> not only newspaper can block the light to protect the new roots, but  newspaper will also absorb the excessive water so the rooted cuttings are not standing in a pool of water (that make them rotten) . Secondary, humidity needed will come from that wet newspaper to make the cutting leaves fresh all time for the young trees to grow .

Energy of the healthy stem will feed the roots and vice versa to produce more leaves. In brief, there is a cycle of humidity in that zip bag . That is the miracle of a cutting in a zipped bag . 


" ... they have 6 leaves and good roots (lets say in another 2 weeks) time at which i should be opening gradually to have them acclimatized. then out they go from the box but still under the lights. only then u mist lets say once per 2-days, until they fill the bag with roots, (lets say in another 3 weeks) ...."

Once the cutting is rooted (that you can see through the bag) , fig roots are very aggressive . In ONE week , they will be overgrown, and they search a way out through the 2 openings in the bottom of the bag .
This is time for you to free the young tree from being root bounded

Follow my # 13 section .  

excellent
thx again lolita. and happy new year btw.
just to clarify. when i speak of plastic transparent storage box i mean that this will replace the big plastic bag u use as humidity chamber. i will place the small baggies therein,thus easier to open and aerate at will

anyways i shall proceed with the technique asap. i ve got in the fridge cuttings of 20 top greek varieties i got from greece last july. i hope that 6months will not prove too much for them

regards
andreas

I have started this method, with some modifications, on many of my cuttings. This is after they have begun showing signs of root buds and/or leaf sprouting after either being in water or sphagnum moss. As I had no large 2.5 gallon bags, I put them in a cardboard box, base wrapped in trash bag, with clear plastic wrap over the top! The local Walmart doesn't carry these large bags, either, so last night found some on Amazon. They are the 3 Gallon Ziploc Big Bag Double Zipper Large 5 Count for $6.69.

I liked the fact that I could get a small number of these bags per box, as I only need a few, and there are even larger sizes of bag available in this brand. To get the free shipping, I added them onto an order for clip on shop lamp, plus grow light bulb, for the little figs. When they arrive, I will transfer the bundles into one or more of the bags for better humidity.

Thanks again, Lolita, happy new year!

Lolita do you know the humidity in your room? I noticed the potting mix I got today looked a lot drier than yours does as well.

70 - 75 degree F.

 

Just received nice words from nick bigbadbill and I would like to share it with the forum .


" Hi Mai,
I just wanted to thank you for sharing your bagging technique. I am notorious for killing my cuttings with kindness ( watering). I have been growing fig trees for about 15 years and have been actively rooting them over the last five years. I have tried every technique on the forum with moderate success ( about 50-65%) but never what I thought was acceptable. I tried your rooting method when you posted it on both forums. I tried to follow it to the letter and within a few weeks I am already getting better results! I wanted to thank you and ask if I may pass this along as a great rooting technique to others- I will give you credit of course. 

Thanks, 

Bill 
__________________
SE Pa, zone 6b 

https://www.facebook.com/offthebeatenpathnurseries 

I am using your bag rooting method too with great success! It is the way i will do it from now on.Good job!

Thank you, Grant ! that method not only works but it saves you a lot of room  

I use it for anything . I had hard time rooting Guava (the one with huge fruits) from cuttings . Usually people grow them by seeds, but it takes 3 years for the plant to bear fruits . Recently I bought a tree on Ebay with red pulp . I took some cuttings and amazingly they are rooting ! With plant coming from cuttings , it will have fruit within a year, same taste as the fruits of the mother tree .

So what would be the main difference between this bag method and Jon's bag method that is posted on the Fig4fun page? His method would bury the whole cutting in the bag so that you don't have to worry about the top drying out. Have you tried that method and this is a refinement of that method in some way?

http://figs4fun.com/Rooting_Bag_New_Style.html

Another pm from a member that I would like to share with the forum : 

"Hi Mai, 

I know I already thanked you for sharing the rooting method, but I need to do it once again because I am really reaping the rewards from this method! I have grown figs for a long time, but this is hands down the easiest, quickest rooting, most fun technique I've ever used. I've even started using it with haskap, grapes, elderberry, raspberry, and pomegranate cuttings ( I hope it works on them, too!). I wanted to share just one pic of the method in action. 

I feel it is necessary to thank you again because I want to stress the act of generosity you exhibited to all of us on the forums. I'm sure it was time consuming and took a lot of effort to post all of the steps and answering of the questions. We ( fig enthusiasts) always remark about others' generosity when they send us an "extra cutting or two", or a thoughtful trade in plants or even a gifted tree. However, in my opinion, this is a much greater act of generosity because it allows others to have similar success in rooting. It would have been easier to keep this rooting technique a secret and reap the benefits yourself, but you shared with everyone and that is admirable. 

I don't have much to offer, but I'd like to offer anything I have in unusual edibles/fruits for your kindness and generosity. I grow plants of galangal, ginger, turmeric, pomegranate, figs, Haskap, hops, gooseberry, lingonberry ( probably wouldn't be good for your area), red raspberry, etc. you can take a look on my Facebook page - off the beaten path nurseries- ( just a hobby and a dream right now, but maybe someday I'll make it more than just a passion) if you want to see pics of what I grow, but anything I have I'd be happy to share with you for your generosity. I even credit you there for sharing this method. Just let me know if I can share with you. 

I am enclosing one pic of the technique in action! Thanks again, Mai. 


Bill 

Attached Images
  

__________________
SE Pa, zone 6b 

https://www.facebook.com/offthebeatenpathnurseries 

Dear Bill,

What you said is very true .
"Bag rooting techniques" was ONE of the chapters in my Plumeria book (that I am the author) supposed to be published in 2007 . With all the new ideas revealed in that book would bring me a fortune . Due to many unfavorable circumstances in my life, I did not have the chance to make it into reality . Recently, when I saw that many newbies were struggling with rooting , I decided to step in .
I realize that nothing should be kept secret for our own wealth, but sharing things (you know) is better .  

I have tested that bag rooting techniques with many things and that method never failed on me .

Your joy of success is indeed my rewards . May God bless our heart 

Mai

Great attitude Mai.

Mai,
Thank you for sharing so much with us. I believe as you believe...that sharing your knowledge with others is best. So, I think you should continue to strive to fulfill your life dream of publishing your book. Aftrall, your technique, in a published book form, will most definately help MANY MORE people when its published! I say "BE BOLD" and do it! :-)

Mai-
Your technique is superb! Thank you for sharing your process with me.
I have one question regarding the plastic bag.
Why do you cut the corners off of the bottom of the bag before putting the potting soil in?
Is it to allow absorption of any moisture that settles on the bottom of your plastic tents?
Best regards,
Leon

Thank you for clarifying my question Mai. Leon

Hi Mai, 
Thank you for sharing such a  great rooting method . the potting mix I got looked the same you showed in the photo but its very dry almost no moisture .your cutting bags look moist in the photos. I might be wrong but just making sure if thats ok .

If the big (of soil) is freshly bought from the store, the soil is moist enough to use  . But if the top end of the bag is open for quite some time, then the soil is dry due to evaporation . In this case, you just spray a little bit of water to make it moist but not wet 

When the plastic bag (for rooting) is tied with a rubber band, perspiration (of the cutting stem) makes the soil look wet but in the reality it is not .