Getting a cutting to root can be difficult at times. But it is really tough to lose a cutting on up-potting, which has happend a lot to me. For me the worm turned when I started using a heating mat with a temperature probe and timer under a sealed humidity chamber set to 80F. I also noticed robust and rapid root growth using 16oz cups filled with 2/3 strained perlite 1/3 peat moss (kudos to Frank/FMD for the concept of the medium). Attached are two pictures: a black madeira only 7 days in said mixture, transitioning out of the chamber tomorrow; and a picture of an Adriatic JH a minute before up-potting to a 1-gal. I also give the cuttings a nutrient solution, but I do not think that is the main reason for this healthy rooting.

Very nice! Do you start the cuttings in that mixture or they are a next step after a moss/paper towel stage?

Greenfig so far I find Spaghnum Moss to be a consistent rooting starter and I look forward next year to trying Ascpete's pre-soaking in the fridge. Straight Perlite also seems to be working provided you do not overmoisten the perlite. I have also had success with rooting plugs but they use a separate humidity bin that is not at all quite as "tropical" as my sealed humidity chamber.

Do you use any kind of transplant shock solution when you pot up?

Musillid, I haven't heard of any transplant shock solution, what is that? I first transition the cup for several days to outside the chamber but still on the heat mat under T5 lights. At night it goes back in the chamber. After that, I put it into a 1-gal container under lights for about a week, no more chamber. I water sparingly. After that the 1-gal goes outside into a shady spot (provided temperatures are warm, as they are now).

Swore I'd never root cuttings over the winter, inside, ever again, but....

After talking with Rafael last night, I'm going to do it again.  His system is easy and looks like it works.  Problem for me was never rooting but transitioning into cups.  Any pics of your setup to share Rafael?  What type of nutrient solution do you use?

I always use a transplant solution, I find it helps, I very seldom get a droopy up potting.

Danny, I use a 1-gal pitcher of aged water mixed w cornucopia plus for general nutrients, rapid start (for root growth), Cal Mag, and a little peroxide for disinfection. Seems to work well, although I do not claim it is the reason this method is succesful. I do not have any pictures from last winter, but if you pm me with your email I can send you a short video I filmed (2 mins long maybe). Also here is a link to some of the water bubbler rooting I did last year, and some pics of setup and a rotted cutting (what NOT to do!)

http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/water-vs-paper-towels-6773449?pid=1281693547#post1281693547

Edit: don't forget to drill 3 holes in bottom of the cups for drainage, the environment is quite moist so if it does not drain out of the cup you might drown your roots, which you obviously want to avoid.

Rafael,
Thanks for sharing your procedure and results...

When I first started cultivating summer cuttings I tried Dan A's "Summer Rooting Method" for pre rooting cuttings and it was extremely successful, but was a little labor intensive ; ) , The bottle had to be vigorously shaken at least twice daily and the water had to be changed at least every 2 days.
  

I've tried several different variations and have added the hydroponic aeration for automation. With either variation, Shaken Bottle, Vase with Air stone or Bubble cloner the roots appear in 2 to 3 weeks. The key is to keep the water clean and just above the bottom of the cuttings, only 1 - 2 inches deep. The roots will grow much faster in the moist (humid) area above the waterline. I'm currently trialing a Bucket Bubble cloner (Air pump and air stone only) which has 7 inches of air space above the water line.
 

I plan on trialing the Bubble Cloner for rooting dormant cuttings after reading Snaglpus' successful results and building several DIY Bubble Cloners... http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/show_single_post?pid=1284197705&postcount=14
  

IMO, the key to successful rooting of dormant fig cuttings is good aeration while maintaining 72*F - 78*F and 85% - 90% RH at the cuttings, regardless of the rooting methods used. Above 79*F organisms may flourish and cause rot (similar to damping off), below 70*F rooting will be slower and may give other pathogens a chance to get established.

Dear Pete

Thanks for that info. I agree that bubble cloners can work, I learned some hard lessons by drowning a few cuttings by keeping them at the surface, which is too low. A bunch of cuttings did not mind and rooted just fine but then as punishment for my brashness I lost a large group of nice cuttings from rot due to dipping them too close or at the surface. I lost many more already leafed out cuttings by transitioning into cups in normal, dry heated winter environment. I will probably not use my bubble cloner again. I do think that the issue of water roots being different and more sensitive is overblown. My humidity chamber provides a beneficial environment at the ideal temperature. Thats all you really need to get the cuttings past stage 2 cupping, so whether I get roots in long fiber spaghnum moss or in a bubbler or straight into my perlite peat mix, they will proceed to flourish from there. I do find it harder to maintain the ideal water temperature in the cloner. Also, it is a pain to change the water weekly as well. Some cuttings just took forever in the bubbler, perhaps due to the slightly cooler water temperature. How to keep water at 72-78 F??

Rafael,
The water can be kept at the desired temperature by either keeping the ambient room or space temperature at 75*F or using a submersible Aquarium heater in the reservoir. For water rooting the lower temperatures are usually better, because of more dissolved oxygen.

I would agree that once the rooted cuttings have been placed in cups or pots they should be maintained at the 72* to 78*F temperature for at least 2 weeks to get the roots off to a good, fast start, before they're exposed to cooler ambient temps.

IMO many people are over thinking how to root a fig. Bubblers? Really? This spring I took my cuttings out of the fridge March 1st (NJ z6b). I rooted them in moss and then straight to 4x4x9" pots. (3 cuttings per pot). I do not have much room inside the house so into the temporary hoop house they went. I keep an electric heater in there with a thermostat set to 40 degrees. After all threat of frost is gone I take off the plastic. (There is some opening and closing on some hot/cold and rainy days but that's about it.) I get close to 95% out of the moss and the same past the small pots. I pot up from there into 3 gallon and the following year into 10 gallon. I fert with 50/50 10-10-10 and lime. The potting mix is 50/50 pine bark fines and Pro Mix HP. OF COURSE two of the ones I lost this year in the small pot phase were Maltese Falcoln and Ice Crystal, but I will give them another try.

ADelmanto,
You are totally correct, We are all over thinking it. You could skip the pre-rooting in sphagnum moss and plant directly in the 4x4x9 pots as posted by HarveyC, http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post?id=6692131

You could also plant directly in ground or as Multiple cuttings...

Quote:

15 total planted directly in 5 gallon bucket with pre-moistened 5-1-1-1 mix. Left on a covered porch after the daytime temps were above 70*F., nighttime temps were 50*F to 60*F. They were not sealed, treated, covered or watered, but were planted deep, most cuttings are over 12" long. They are now being acclimated to full sun and watered every 2-3 days with dilute Miracle-Gro fertilizer.  Currently at a 73% success rate, 11 out of 15 cuttings have rooted and are growing.
  .

I would point out that a) this thread is not about bubblers, so I am not advocating their use; b) bubblers are just a subset of water rooting, which is a method that goes back to the old country, a search on the forum or google will show many fig growers experimenting with these methods, so I do not agree that it is "over-thinking" the issue, especially considering c) where I live we have something called "winter" which makes ground rooting a good option for about 3 months of the year, whereas I am talking about methods that one can use in a regular home located in zones 4-7 during the cold months. If I lived in Socal or somewhere heavenly I would be ground rooting and lovin' it.

Rafael,
My interest in trialing the Hydroponic Cloners and all the different posted methods of rooting is to get a better understanding of the How's and Why's. From my simple experimentations the relationship between pH, Temperature, Humidity and Nutrients have led to an increased rooting rate and an ever increasing survival rate after rooting, some of which I've tried to document on the forum over the past 2 years.

IMO, Use of rooting medium with a slightly acidic pH (5.5 -6.5), Balanced complete nutrients that can be provided by Hydroponic fertilizers (or water soluble fertilizers) and some basic hydroponic procedures when applied to "Soil" based rooting and growing of fig cuttings can be used in any location and zone to duplicate similarly high rates of success.
.

BTW, these simple procedures can be applied to any rooting and growing method.