Fellow fig enthusiasts, please lend me your experience!

I've got rooting cuttings down to a near flawless system, and I'm pretty stable in caring for them after they're established, but I suffer a lot of casualties in between.  I root them in plastic shoe boxes with slightly moist sphagnum moss then once they have a good amount of roots I pot them up.  I've tried a variety of methods and still can't quite nail it.  Either my figs dry up on the top or rot or amazingly both at the same time.  Some years I've had much better results than others, but it seems like as I get more experience in every other aspect of growing I get WORSE at this part!

I've tried putting them in pots of just perlite, of a mix of perlite/bark/compost, of just dirt, of perlite and just dirt, of just compost.  I've put them in smaller versions of 'Bill's Buckets' that my grown figs do so well in, I've tried them in sealed cups so the moisture can't escape.  I've tried a variety of these buckets outside inside of a larger bin to keep in some humidity, I've tried this inside under lights.  I just can't get better than a 50% survival rate with anything!

Please help.

I think the #1 thing I learned this year (I'm a total newbie, btw) is that roots don't like to be disturbed.  I did the best when I rooted directly in a cup, using a fluffy mix with a tiny bit of water every 10 days or so, and a loose sandwich bag on top.  That way, you can see the roots growing and you don't up-pot until you've got crazy strong roots. I lost about 30% to mold or drying out, but 70% isn't bad for your first year!  I tried lots of other methods (bag method, direct pot without humidity, etc.) and this is what worked best for me.  No heat mat, just located over a heat register during the wintertime, in the light of a south-facing window.  Hope that helps!

I transplant my seedlings & cuttings in a mixture of potting soil, lots of perlite, and compost. After transplanting I lightly water it down with highly diluted Superthrive to help get it over any transplant shock and get it going. I keep the soil moist, but never wet or soggy. Light airy soil and good drainage is key in my experience - prevents wilting and root rots. I have had great success to date with this method. Good luck!

Your rooting environment could also contribute to the failures.  My main floor living area has higher humidity and a more comfortable temperature than my basement does.  After they root, I place them in a clear cup with a mix of Pro-Mix BX, more perlite, and some coco coir.  They go into a clear rubbermaid bin, covered with clear plastic and a lamp shining through.  Even after transplanting to a 1 gallon pot, they still go back into the humidity bin until around mid-May when the night time temps are near 60.  Of course, you must consider how developed they are before going outside.

A good idea is not to drown the cutting when transplanting, that will cause root rot. I suggest prewetting your media with some superthrive and light fertigation. You can also trap moisture w saran wrap and a rubber band and let it sit for about a week. As for your shoebox method, a lot of people have success with moss, and they should chime in. I myself was able to get roots, like you, but had trouble transitioning and abandoned this method for this reason. My other methods work a lot better, though nothing is perfect.

Similar to others who have weighed in, I have had the best luck rooting directly in potting mix (Pro-Mix BX with some additional perlite and pine fines thrown in).  I avoid compost or outdoor soil because of the microbes which can cause problems for rooting cuttings.  Pre-moisten the potting mix so that it is damp but not wet.  Set up the cutting vertically in a 16 oz (or somewhat larger cup depending on the cutting size) cup so that all but one bud is buried.  The cup should have several holes in the bottom and sides.  Then cover the top with another cup that has 1-3 holes, depending on your ambient humidity.  I put the cups in a bin with heat provide from below to keep temps between 72-80.  No moisture is added to the bin itself and I keep the lid ajar for air circulation.  The cups are suspended off the bottom by a wire cookie rack.  The bin is exposed to light.  After a week or two start to monitor whether the soil needs water.  I add small amounts of water using a 10 cc syringe with no needle directly into the holes on the side.  You just want to maintain the moisture in the mix that it started with.  Once roots are seen on the side of the cup I cover the lower cup to protect the roots from light.  Once roots are visible I slowly wean it off the humidity trapped by the upper cup by introducing more holes or offsetting it to allow more air circulation.  After 2-3 days of this I remove the upper cup entirely.  I start adding fertilizer to the water once I see roots.

I like the spaghnum shoe box rooting too. I wait until they have a decent amount of roots about an inch or two long and then pot them in my normal media made of 40% compost, 40% peat, and 20% perlite microwaved to kill off any bugs. I add about 1/2 tablespoon of plant tone, dolomite lime, and green sand per gallon along with 1/20th teaspoon of BioZeus mychorrizae. For container size, I prefer two liters over cups. I'll spray about 8 grams of water with a spray bottle in the mix around the roots when I'm potting up and then add 125g of water with gnatrol (1tsp/gal) in it. 100g from the bottom, 25g on top and then note the weight of the container. I also cover the top with sand to try to keep the gnats out. Cover with a clear cup with a 1/4" hope in the top by T8 lights. Every few days, I'll tip the cup a little more to acclimate to ambient humidity and check the weight then add water as needed. Moving them under the lights when they green up and the cups comes off. With 16 oz cups, I add about 35g of water half on top and half on bottom.

I've probably lost about 10% this year potting but I think that may have mostly been when I tried adding neem cake to the mix or removing from the moss to early. One was trying to up pot from a cup too early and the roots sticking to the side. Ended pulling all of the roots off of the cutting. Now I wait to up pot until the cup is full of roots and the soak up all of the water in about 4 days.

Direct potting didn't work well for me at all. Neither did the bag methods or perlite.. Water rooting worked ok but takes forever and still haven't up potted them.

Good luck.

Your slightly moist sphagnum will hold a lot of water when you put it in potting soil and water it.  This excess water will kill your roots.  If you try to get the moss off the roots you'll break a lot of roots.  I don't think you can win with sphagnum moss.  Sorry.