Has anyone tried and been succesfull at getttin new plants from roots that were pruned off?

I was recently given pruned roots and put a few in cups and today noticed new roots forming. Is it possible they will eventually send up a new shoot?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Nelson

I have attempted it a couple times, by burying most of the roots and exposing the tips. The root remained green for several months but no shoots appeared. 

Thank You Bass, I guess its a 50/50 chance my Pingo de Mel plant that I got from Portugal dried up to the soil like and It sent a sucker up from the roots in about 2 months. Would be nice if these Pied de Bouef roots would do the same but I wont expect much but did want to experiment.

Now that this is mentioned,
Since the suckers are formed from the roots ( I think ) can we take a root say approx 8" to 10" long and bury it sideways and expose one of the roots from the middle?

I'm very glad you brought this up Nelson. Back in the summer I was offered some roots from that Haikel tree I've talked about. The owner had accidentally dug them up while moving another bush near the parent fig tree. I didn't take them but had wondered ever since whether I should have tried them or not (wish I had now). I think I'll ask him if he tried to propagate them himself.

I'd been thinking about this again recently because I saw something on how this is commonly done when propagating apple tree rootstock. If I recall correctly I saw this mentioned on a youtube video on grafting.

The idea is that you can grow the rootstock you want from seed and then, once it's large enough, prune off several roots from the one tree to grow for grafting understock as well. = You still have the original sapling plus several other pieces for later use once they've grown to the size you need.

It's interesting that you haven't had any success though Bass. I'm wondering how much it has to do with the variety of fig as well as where the roots are taken from (i.e. how close to the surface etc). Also wondering if you would have better success  if the roots were taken from a section of the tree that had been ground or air-layered. Just thinking out loud here - so to speak.

I will have to experiment more with this in the near future. It would be nice to for sure know if some root-pruned pieces of root should be saved for propagation vs throwing them on the compost pile.

I have removed a few fig trees for people and in doing so we cut out large diameter root stock with trailing feeder roots and the root stock sent out shoots and produced a tree. I believe you need mature rootstock not delicate feeder roots to atchieve this but it does work.  Mature rootstock in my opinion is a root over 1/2 inch in diameter with healthy feeder roots. if the root is as big or bigger than your pinky it has a good chance to produce a tree for you.

I have roots, which were from plants which rooted into the ground from their pots. I left them in the ground after removing the potted plant.  In three years, the roots are still alive, and have never attempted to put up a shoot.I don't think it is going to happen.

It's all interesting stuff. I look forward to giving it a try just to see what sort of result I get.

I have tried in past but failed.
Little of what i read for those curious below.

Root Cutting

Some plants can be propagated from a section of a root. Root cuttings of woody plants are usually taken from plants during the dormant season, when carbohydrate levels are high. Root cuttings of some species produce new shoots, which then form their own root system, whereas root cuttings of other plants develop root systems before producing new shoots. Examples of plants that can be propagated from root cuttings include raspberry, blackberry, rose, trumpet vine, phlox, crabapple, fig, lilac, and sumac.

Plants with large roots are normally propagated outdoors. The root cuttings should be 2 to 6 inches long. Make a straight cut on the proximal end (nearest the crown of the parent plant) and a slanted cut on the distal end (furthest from the crown) of each root cutting. Tie the cuttings in bundles with all the same type ends together. It is important to maintain the correct polarity of the cuttings. Store for 3 weeks in moist sawdust, peat moss, or sand at 40 °F. Remove from storage. Space the cuttings about 2 to 3 inches apart in well-prepared garden soil. The tops of the cuttings (proximal ends) should be 2 to 3 inches below the soil surface.

For plants with small roots, cut the roots into 1 to 2 inch sections. Lay the cuttings horizontally on the medium surface in a flat and cover with about ¹/₂ inch of soil or sand. Place the flat inside a plastic bag or cover with a pane of glass. Place the flat in the shade and remove the protective cover after new shoots appear.

I like that info Martin. Would you be able to share where you got it? I'd like to read more......

I planted 6 pots of roots because I thought fig trees grew from roots but I
think your right, only large ones grow trees. None of my pots grew fig trees.
Debbie

Maybe look into agar agar patri dishes like they use in thiland for orchids I think they use potato starch in it.

Bill that the only info i ran across in that paragraph all other info concerned other plants .

celt,
Now you're talking tissue culture aren't you?

No problem Martin. Thanks.

Yup may take longer to grow but you would have agood clone