Has anyone here vacuum sealed their cuttings? What is the best way to prevent mold from your experience? I got some cuttings sent to me that are molding already. What is the best way to remove the mold? Bleach water solution with a light brush? Thank you for your responses... Chad

Great questions. I asked about vacuum sealing before, but it seems like it is not necessary. If you have one, go ahead and use it. If not wrap cuttings individually with plastic wrap and store them in ziplock bags.

As for cleaning the mold. I use a 25% bleach/ water solution. Rub gently with a sponge. Let it air dry completely before wrapping. The little bit of bleach solution that dries on tends to prevent mold from growing again. Mold that tends to appear around the old leaf stem areas is not really a big deal. Mold at the cut ends, good luck.

I think you will get a much longer storage time when vacuum sealed.

Clean them as Aaron described and air dry them completely and then saran wrap and zip lock in the drawer of your refrigerator.
If you have a vacuum sealer then absolutely use it. These devices are great for cuttings !!

Thanks for the help guys I will try the sealer. I have the mold on the leaf stems but will clean it off the solution to prevent it from spreading.

Hi lowafig,
Are you rooting them now ?
On the cuttings that I have rooting, I simply clean the mold away with a wet towel.
I then air them more. Mold is encouraged by lack of fresh air.

jdsfrance I am rooting a few now with the paper towel baggie method. I will clean them and air them more. I have yet to try a fresh fig and am just starting out propagating them now. Thanks for the help

Do you find that storing them with slightly damp newspaper in the fridge is asking for mold? Should I worry about the cuttings drying out? I do plan on sealing the ends with wax.

Do not store them with moisture, you are asking for mold. Wrap them dry in plastic wrap and then bundle them together in zip lock bags. I tried waxing a couple years ago. I did not notice any significant benefit.

Thanks, I will definitely not make that mistake. Do you need to soak the cutting to rehydrate them in order to root months later? Or does the moist sphagnum moss do the trick on its own?

Not necessary to rehydrate them but I do wet them before sticking in sphagnum or coir.

Check this old trick for hydrating cuttings.
I'll be doing it with all my cuttings this year as well, since I store them dry for several months.


http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/hot-water-rescue-6816776?highlight=hot+water&pid=1282376531

I also have used that 'hot water rescue' that Rui linked above, I think it really works.  It perked up a number of stagnant cuttings that would not root.  I merely used the hot water and let the cuttings sit in it overnight as it cooled down, and put them in a rooting media the next day.

And agree completely on dry storage to prevent mold

Nice information here!

Very cool thread, thanks for the info y'all. I am planing to start all my rooting late this winter so all this is truly very useful.

Will try putting some in the frig that way, never did before they will be off my swiss fig tree which I found to be the most cold hardy fig tree ever, it's bark is so tough it's very, very hard to create a clone here is a pic of mine  

Thanks Ruuting and ADelmanto!

Here's how I refridgerate my cuttings. Been doing this for years and I rarely get mold unless the cutting is already bad and has some spores in microspaces. Mind you, this is my success method and I don't mean to say that others don't work.

1. Scrub cuttings with a brush and dish soap, rinse well and let dry.
2. 10% bleach spray or dip, then let dry (Honestly I don't know if this makes much difference. For lack of time, I have just used the soap and had the same results).
3. Wax the open ends with plain old candle wax. (This I learned from some European friends- I believe this is the best deterrent to dehydration and infection at the cut ends).
4. Place your cuttings in a Ziplock bag, roll it up to limit air space and put the bags in your fridge crisper. (DO NOT PLACE ANY WET PAPER TOWELS, WET NEWSPAPER, or PLASTIC WRAP AROUND THE CUTTINGS!- just drop them in the Ziplock bag and let them be).
5. Once a month, check on your cuttings. If too much condensation in the plastic bags. Remove the cuttings and dry them off. Wipe out the excess moisture in the Ziplock bags. Place back in fridge.
6. If you see some mold on the ends of the sticks, prune the end off and repeat the soap, bleach, and wax prep- place in a NEW Ziplock bag and watch these guys closely for more mold growth.
7. I have stored sticks for up to a year or more doing this method and consistently get 100% rooting using the baggie method.

I believe sealing the cut ends with wax improves the survival rate of the cuttings. Before I started doing this, I would lose many cuttings to mold and decay. It really made the difference. Also, too much moisture will ruin your cuttings.

Thanks to all for the great info on storage.. With as much experience and all the different ways here I should be successful with fig trees. Chad

When it's time for rooting do you guys scrape off the wax?

Beautiful Swiss fig OLDGUY!! Wow!! Do you sell any cuttings?

No, leave the wax on.