Success with fig cuttings.

I mentioned in another thread I was going to try to keep them warm with a seed heat mat but it was drying out the moss from the bottom while leaving the top damp. So I've yanked that idea for now. Trying to keep them in a warmer room of the house. The best I got is mid to high 60's, and 70 when we are home and awake.

Some are scored, some are dipped in Dip n Grow, and some are au naturale.

And thanks to a member who gave me a bunch to 'play with' as I figure out how to make this work in my house and climate.

Please grow many roots and very little mold, little cuttings.

Amen to that !!
Looks good I don't use a heat mat and they root just fine.

Looks good Nicole, no heat mat needed they should be fine.

Good luck to all this year!

Good luck Nichole. Let me know if you want to give the RdB and MF another try at rooting.

Navid.

Good Luck! They should be fine Just a little slower at cooler temperatures. BTW I am using the same type of plastic containers. They help to keep everything separate and organized.

The cooler temps worry me only because it does slow things down. The slower they take the more chances mold have to get in there and ruin my day. Last year I had a handful I tried to root, plus some hydrangeas I rooted at the same time. The hydrangeas did great but I lost the figs to mold.

Trying to think positive!

Nichole - I'm sure they will be fine  - mine are done the same way.  Last year I tried in bags with perlite and paper towels in plastic bags and it was a disaster, I felt so bad about the wasted cuttings :(

This time I went with the sp moss, and decided to use bins since I have them anyway.   I put some of the barely started to root cuttings in the garage for a couple of days to slow them down - I bit off more then I could chew!  Since they are in sp moss I am not worried about mold at all, some have been in the bins for over 3 weeks with no sign of mold. 

Good luck with those cuttings.  :)

Good luck. i dont use a heat mat eather if i need under warmth i pop them on top of the fridge or my stand up deep freez. the top get just warm enough from the heat of the moter and stuff running. nice little trick that works well. but not all can fit up there so i just put them where i can and have had equal rooting in alot of places. my house ranges in temps from low 60s to mid 70s. i need to get a load of fire wood to keep it steady.

I hope on hope you are right. I wrung out the moss as much as I could and I air them out 3x a day.

Question --

If you open the container and smell mold, is your next automatic step to put in new moss and re-scrub them down? One of my containers is very faint for possible mold. After it's aired for a few minutes I can't smell it anymore. Just curious as to what you guys do when faced with something similar.

Non mold question: How long should I wait before handling the cuttings to peak for roots? 2-3 weeks?

I had smelled mold in one of my containers but no mold was on the cuttings. Found out it was on the lid and 2 sides of the container itself. So I cleaned the container and everything was fine. Guess I got it before it spread to the cuttings.

A light spraying with a weak peroxide/water solution will handle any mold the Sphag doesn't.  Spray the top of you bin with it as well,  I cup per gallon with 2 tablespoons of Blackstrap Molasses for the fungus Gnats and other insects.  I generally do not have fungus gnats in my Sphag but I spray it lightly anyway.  BTW- Blackstrap Molasses also will deter ants, it doesn't kill them but they will not cross it.

Would you recommend giving all the containers a light misting with that mixture even if I don't smell mold?

I always spray mine and I use the shoeboxes like you or salad boxes when I can get them.  If you see any mold anywhere it will take care of it, mushrooms as well.

thanks for that tip

Long story short, I had to clean out and replace the moss in one of my boxes. I put these cuttings in their container 8 days ago and I'm seeing roots sprouting and tons of those firm bumpy areas. I predict an explosion soon. At least within this box.

I think I am approaching potting time with some of my cuttings (YAY!)
If this were your cutting, how would you pot it? There are roots all over, including the tips of both ends, and there is a green node right in the middle.
Just pot it up to the node and let the top roots die off?

I would let it root ALOT more then in the pic and yes pot up to the first node and let the rest die off.

Thanks Anthony!

No prob keep us posted and good luck with it.
PS I usually let mine root until there's about a 2 inch ball of moss stuck to the roots and then I pot it up to a 32oz deli container 70/30 potting soil perlite mix do not remove the moss just bury it.
I basically just lift out the cutting from rooting bin and whatever sticks to it goes in the next pot.
Also I don't put the whole cutting under the moss just the bottom end and I try to leave the other end facing up on an angle if you can picture it in your head.

I think I am picturing what you are talking about. I can see why you'd do that, looking at my results. Probably helps minimize mold since there is less of the cutting blanketed in the moss. 

I'm going to hold off potting as long as I can. I have a small amount of mold on a few cuttings. I'll wash them off with bleach/water solution and see how much time I can buy them.

Looking good Nichole!! 

I bury mine in moss!  Most of them have rooted on the bottom only,  if they root higher then the soil line when I cup them, they dry up and fall off.

I wait also till there are a lot of roots, I think there is less chance for them to rot if there are roots to use the moisture in the soil.

I just spent my evening going through cuttings and potting up what's ready. I'd guess maybe approx 1/3 was ready for pots. Mission, Marseilles VS Black, Desert King, and LSU were the graduates today. Everyone else has roots but they aren't ready yet.

A little baby fig leaf peaking at me through the moss. This is a mission fig.


Roots!


My set up. I think I'll need to snag another light. Maybe two more.