i have some branches and suckers that i'm going to get rid of. i'm thinking, maybe some members would like to try to root them. i have received some thin cuttings before and i was able to root them, but they responded very slow and some didn't make it. 

so how thin is too thin? i don't want to send out cuttings that doesn't have any chance and waste other members time. 

they are nothing rare.. White Greek, JH Adriatic, and some others. if left on the tree, they will just suck up energy that can be used for better things. 

I have gotten some to root that were the size of quarter inch and under.

Sometimes good condition thin ones are better than fat ones and start growing faster. 
I think the difference is in the amount of stored energy in the wood.  So I would think the thin ones may start faster but not grow as strong later on in the 1st year. 

have successfully rooted 1/4" tip cuttings with several close spaced nodes and less than a 1"- 2" in length. Have only tried it with varieties which root easily such as LSU Purple and Mission Black.  Have not tried it with some of the slower rooting varieties.

If you are needing someone to give rooting those smaller JH Adriatic cuttings a try, I'm willing to give it a go :)

if i decide to send them out, it will be in one padded envelope to one member. haven't made up my mind yet since i ran out padded envelope. we'll see. if they are at least 1/4", i'll definitely do that in feb or so. 

It depends on the previous growth of the twig...

For fast growing ones (usually with nodes far apart), with mostly useless
(rot-prone) pith, I would not go less than [E: 3/8-] 1/2" (e.g., Bourjasette Grise).

With slow growing twigs (usually with close nodes); I had success with
1/4" or less twigs (e.g., Wuhan).

Pete,

I successfully grafted thin cuttings several times. I considered them too thin too root but for grafts they were just fine.

I bought cuttings for grafting but they were super thin,1/3 the size of a pencil.I did not think a fig could grow such a small twig, but all 6 of the rooted.Rex.

Out of all the cuttings I received this winter, the only one (a Conadria) that is already in a 1 gallon pot is no more than 1/4" and only had two nodes and growing vigorously. Seller told me that the mother tree has good vigor, so might depend on the tree.

I just sent some thin VDB, but included some other sizes as well in each envelope.  I've had people send me cuttings that had a couple thin small tips with 2 or 3 nodes, and I've had success in removing one tip and seen both root and grow.  It's a fun little challenge!!

Suzi

I have received very thin cuttings from different members and they all rooted for me just like thicker cuttings have in the past.

I generally think that 1/4" is the minimum, but have rooted things as skinny as 1/8".

You are not currently allowed to import anything larger than 4/10", if at all.

I was clearing out my trunk today and discovered one, very green, very thin VdB cutting that escaped from the many I sent out.  It had a tip, was very green, so I burried it horizontally with 1/2 inch of soil over it in semi shade.  If it grows after being in a hot trunk for 3 days, it will be my new champ!!

Suzi

these are more like 1/8". i'm thinking it might be a waste of time for most of the forum members. we'll see how many padded envelope i have left after next few days. 

Pete, I save those padded envelopes and patch them.  Sometimes I cut them in half.  I order a lot of stuff on Ebay... mostly gifts for family, but I get a lot of padded envelopes.  A printer and some packing tape makes them better than new!!

I'm betting that cutting will grow!  Whatever it is, if it's special, someone will want it.  If not, root it yourself and see.  If it bends and is alive, it will root.

Suzi

Hi,
IMO, as long as the tree is dormant, any cutting of 5 centimeters could do it - thin or not - Since end of december I have two cuttings of 9 centimeters long and 3/4 mm thick that are now inside to grow and are now budding out.
IMO, green thin cuttings (with no single mm of hardened wood) from a growing tree could be a problem to root or even to keep them alive when cut off the tree.