I've seen postings from folks who wax their cutting ends that they've also used Elmers glue to seal the ends.  (I've also been waxing lately, with some good results...) 
  I was preparing a 5", 3-node cutting yesterday afternoon and noticed more than a bit of dead-looing bark (no green cambium layer) on the end and up one side about halfway up.  I started scraping away dead bark until I got to good, green, healthy bark.    When all was done, I had scraped off the whole end of the cutting (about 1") up beyond the 1st node.  The dead area continued up another 1.5" or so around 2/3 of the circumference of the cutting -- the remaining 1/3 looked good.
  If I were to cut the whole dead area off, I'd be down to a 3", 2-node cutting.
  So, I was looking at this cutting and I thought of "painting" the scraped, bare wood with Elmers glue.  I did that, and by this morning it looked dry and nicely sealed.  I wrapped my cuttings in barely moist paper towels.  By this evening I found that the elmers glue was softening up and the paper towel was sticking.
  Question:  Did I just not wait long enough for the glue to dry?  Or is elmers glue just going to soften up again when I put the cutting in moist sphagnum moss?
  Question:  Should I scrub off the glue and just try my best to coat it with wax?   (I'll have to brush it on somehow...)
  Question:  Should I just stop messing around, cut off all traces of bare wood and turn this into an otherwise-healthy looking 3" 2-node cutting?

Thanks in advance for any advice,
Jim

Jim,

I would guess that Elmers glue is not a "curing" glue, so it will probably gum back up if wetted over a few hours or days.

I have no experience with wax on cuttings, but will take an educated guess it would "stick" better than Elmers glue.

Bottom line in my opinion, just leave it alone.  I did a post a few weeks back where I took a 2 inch one node cutting, burried it outside here in Houston under a couple of inches of mulch in approx. Dec and there are leaves appearing (late Feb).  I'd get your cutting to a 2-node three inch length and start it in 60/40 perlite/potting soil.  Chances are in a few weeks you will have a healthy cutting showing leaves and roots.

Jim,
Elmer's Glue has worked after the cuttings have been placed in cups or pots. Wax works for rooting cuttings in a moist (wet) environment. One of the reasons why my cuttings are waxed was for long term storage, more moisture is lost at the cut ends than thru the bark in storage (from my observations).

I have salvaged cuttings by removing the damaged (dead) portion and placing in Sphagnum moss. 1 and 2 node cuttings have always rooted with the Sphagnum moss method (in my experience). Note the Sphagnum moss is "pre-rooting" the cutting and is an additional step that increases the survival rate.

The sealant, wax or Glue or whatever is only necessary when the cutting has been placed in a cup. Its main function is to stop the possible dehydration of the cut end and or the top bud. It is not necessary for rooting in moss.

The glue will soften when wet.

Steve -- so it seems you would recommend cutting off the scraped-off wood and the still-good portions and just turn it into a short cutting of all good wood.

Pete- For the last 2 months I've been sealing the top end/tip with wax even when rooting in moss.  I have noticed that it cuts down on the tendency of the ends to mold up at all.  (I haven't tried rooting directly in cups yet...still rooting in moss.)  It may be overkill, but I'm looking for any edge over the mold I can get!
  In this case the bark is cut off one side while there's good bark on the other side.  So, would you recommend removing the damaged portion entirely (i.e. turning it into s 3" cutting) even though that means removing a portion that is good green cambium?  I have already removed the dead bark by scraping it off down to the wood.  But I had reservations about putting all that bare wood into the moss.  It just seems like it is inviting more rot.

Thanks again in advance for more feedback,
Jim

Jim,
I am an advocate of sealing the top cut end, and have been since my early rooting experiences last year. All my cuttings are currently waxed before placing in Sphagnum moss (stored or purchased). There are too many benefits not to add this easy minor step.

I cut back to healthy green wood (reduces the chance of missing a portion of infected wood), and I always cut square across the cutting (keeps the exposed cut areas small). On a few cuttings ( my first experiences last year) I had to reduce them to 1 node and they survive (past the 1 gallon stage).

I recently treated a few cuttings with an alcohol "wash" and this may provide added insurance for disinfecting cuttings. The standard Hydrogen Peroxide or 10% bleach could also be used.

Sealing is not necessary in my humble opinion. 

padsfan,
I agree sealing is not necessary.

But after side by side comparisons, between sealed and unsealed ends. I observed that the the sealed end cuttings grew faster than the unsealed ends. That's why I have been an advocate of sealing the ends.

You could also seal the cut areas with clonex.

When in doubt SEAL IT.

Items to consider

Bee's wax or candle wax? I use bees wax- it works.
Liquid electric tape<---- I use this, KK inspired me, it works. I only use it to seal exposure.

Clonex- I never tried it
Natural way- it may callus naturally but I am not certain. Majority of my scions callused but not all

I tried wax and the black pruning goop that takes forever to dry. Started using this last year.



Air dries in under an hour, 5 minutes if you put it in front of a fan. Peels right off in 1 piece. The bottle will dry out in a year so between uses I run a layer or 2 of black electrical tape around the top.

And it comes in several colors. Next Xmas I'm doing the red and green thing :)

Just as an update, I ended up cutting off the whole bottom portion of the cutting, so it looks just like a "normal" 3" long 2-node cutting....not the scraped-up monster it was.  Then I scored (scraped) in a couple of places and treated with DipNGrow.  I just "painted" the bottom with DipNGrow and didn't bother sealing it up.
Jim

I tired something today to seal a crack in an inch thick cutting, the crack in it is 4" long.
I couldn't find my wood glue but, I did find a small tub of Plumbers Putty.
It's soft, malleable, nontoxic, water proof! Doesn't dry out, recycle-able, clean up with soap and water.
I hope it does the trick!

Jim,

How's this cutting doing?  Did it make it?

It is still hanging on, but things don't look promising.  It was one of 3 LSU Purple cuttings I was trying to root.  All three really seem to want to mold up and don't want to put out roots.  Maybe the cuttings just weren't in great shape when I got them.  Some others I got at the same time (different variety) from the same person aren't doing so badly.

I've been sealing the ends of my cuttings with Gorilla Glue.  It's isocyanate-based and reacts with moisture, so you may see a little foam after it cures.  The products that are formed are waterproof.