I've got about 6 rooted cutting, with leaves. Recently noticed leaves starting to brown on the edges, and growth slowing down.

At the moment 4 are covered and 2 are not placed on a window sill.

Any suggestions at to the placement and watering of these cuttings?
What is key to keep them growing until spring?

Thanks

Keep out of sunlight and do not over water. If necessary, cut off a soda bottle and use it for a "greenhouse" over the plants.

Hi, thanks. I have placed soda bottles for a few of the but the leaves are getting to large and touching the sides.

What other options do I have?

Hi, thanks. I have placed soda bottles for a few of the but the leaves are getting to large and touching the sides.

What other options do I have?

Some have used gallon bags and props to hold the bags up. You need to keep the humidity to the leaves while not allowing them to touch the plastic. If the plant is really growing well, start to wean it out of the tent to normal air. ( i am talking about 4-6 inches of new growth)  Take the tent off and on, increasing the time with the tent off slowly introduce sunlight non-direct at first.  Good luck

I was having the same problems with covering them plastic bags. I went and bought a big clear plastic storage bin at walmart and just covered the top with plastic wrap it seems to be working well and the plants have more room to grow before hitting anything.

3 liter soda bottle, milk jug, plastic bags, Saran Wrap, large storage box, a greenhouse...

It is possible to be creative and cheap. It doesn't have to be pretty, or fancy, or sophisticated, or glamorous - it just has to hold in the humidity.

Jon, just out of curosity, how much humidity do you think the future fig trees should have?  70%?  80%?  Just curious.  thanks!

The issue is moisture. The less moisture that a cutting/plant loses, the less it has to take in to make up for the loss. The more leaves you have, the more surface area to lose water from, the greater the loss of water. In situations where the leaves outpace the growth of leaves early on, intake may not be able to keep up with outgo.

By increasing the humidity around the plant, you decrease the moisture loss from the plant, reducing the need to intake additional moisture. By covering/containing the plant in a soda bottle or other enclosure you allow the plant to shed moisture into a small, closed system. Eventually the system reaches an equilibrium point where the moisture in the container is sufficient to preclude further evaporation from the leaves.

We don't necessarily need to add moisture, or know what the percentage is. The system will reach a natural balance. Taking the cover off, or not using one, makes the "system" bigger, requiring greater amounts of moisture to reach equilibrium (due to larger volume of air).

If you sweat/perspire/glow in a humid environment. such as the South, you do not dry off very quickly (if at all) because the air is already saturated with moisture. Conversely, in Arizona where the humidity might be 2-3-4%, you will dry off very rapidly. In Arizona, you will need to drink a lot more water because it will evaporate right out of you, even if you don't sweat.

The plant behaves the same way that you do

Eventually the plant grows/matures to a point where it can take in sufficient moisture, with a better developed root system, and the issue is minimized. Compare yo0ur own baby, needing feeding every few hours, and not being able to do much of anything for itself. Eventually the baby grows into an adult and eats 3 meals a day, and can go for several days without any food, if necessary.

Dezigner,  I would place them indirect sunlight but water and moisture is key now that they have leaves.  Thanks for the information Jon.  You are the MAN! 

The reason I question humidity is last year after my cuttings rooted and leafed out, trouble started.  Summer hit the Charlotte area fast and it stayed hot.   I placed some newly rooted cuttings outside in daylight and shade while a few I left inside.  It was March and we had 90 degree day heat and 70 degree nights.  Those outside did well while those few inside did not.  However, they bounced back after I placed them outside.  I am thinking the air outside had more moisture.  I should have kept better notes on humidity but I totally forgot to watch the humidity. 

I did a test on air temperature.  Those cuttings placed in a very large shaded area like a porch did better than those placed in a very small shaded area like a shelf.  I am thinking the air moisture was greater.

This year I plan on using a cold frame.  The reason I need a CF is I want a portable large tent to place on all my cuttings when they leaf out.  So I am thinking I can get a portable cold frame that's 4 feet by 2 feet and at least 18 inches tall.  I can place the CF inside my basement with indirect sunlight and maybe....maybe if I control the humidity things will work out fine.  Well this is that time of year for experimenting....right?  cheers,