Just wondering if this is normal and if not, is there anything I can do to stop it.
Several of my fig trees that I took cuttings from last fall and over the winter are loosing lots of clear sap at the cut. I just don't want them to lose a lot of vitality and would like to stop the flow if I can.

Thanks
Grant
z5b

No it is not normal.

When cutting/pruning twigs surging-spring; any oozing sap is normal/expected
(I have seen grape vines actually dripping drop-by-drop for a while, then they self healed).

Cutting/pruning in the fall they should not ooze much then; and certainly, certainly
not the following spring!? (are you sure?) (where are they?) (what else did you do?)

Try some of those tree-wound/pruning healing applications.
They come in both tar and latex based products, plus others...

http://images.search.yahoo.com/search/images?_adv_prop=image&fr=mcafee&va=tree+pruning+sealers

A far for figs go; they ooze latex and one way to stop the bleeding is to
just sprinkle some sand on the wound - it makes it 'clot' faster....

I would like to see a closeup pic, if you can post one. I would make a fresh cut and see if it clots and dissect the old cut to see if there is some sort of pathogen causing it. 

I'll see if I can get a pic.
Yesterday I tried cauterizing a few of them with a propane torch, today they are still leaking.

Could they have been cold injury damaged?

I have never seen where a cut leaked fluid for more than a day or two at most.  Sometimes cuttings will grow shoots before the roots are ready to support them.  When this happens, the shoot dies off and sort of decays/liquifies in place.  This sometimes results in liquid at the tip.  Could it be that the top of the branch where you made the cut was injured (due to cold or other factors) and is now decaying, which is causing the fluid to leak?  Can't think why a healthy fig tree would ooze for more than a day.

Unfortunately I could not get a good picture, the back-round is nicely focused but the tip of the cut is very out.
Brent, I made another cut below, and another, and another,  leaving only a 3 inch stub. Every cut down seemed to be a bit better at clotting, and a little more like latex, but still not the thick milky white that  a plant normally shows when pinched or cut.
The uppermost section had no pathogen in that I could see, the pith was spongy and wet, but again the wetness was not latex but clear fluid.
Tim, Rob, I do not think it would be cold damage. the problem is only on a few of the trees, started last year, and all have been in the same conditions for storage and outside this spring, coming into the house when the weather turns cold. The one plant that mostly concerns me because it is a one of a kind for me, does have leafing shoots coming out from the base.
Might have something to do with the weird weather. I noticed today that some of the cut ends on my grape vine are also leaking, and they were pruned  in early February.

Grant
z5b

Grant, when I have that problem of focusing, I'll usually put my hand just behind the cutting to force the camera to focus forward.  You can also place a piece of cardboard behind it if your hands are smaller, this will drown out the background.   Most digital cameras have a "macro" mode that forces the camera to focus close-up, on the knobs and buttons "macro" mode is typically indicated by a flower symbol - see this blog for more info:  http://oosidat.blogspot.com/2011/02/macro-photography-amateurs-perspective.html

Grant,

The torch is a good idea ( sometimes ).
Try puttings ashes on top of the wound, it should stop it.

In the future try to put some candle wax or lay some latex paint on the cut while dormant.

I do not you oil based paint or that tar stuff they sell for trees.

Good luck

That product is like a styptic pencil, which is basically superglue.

Pruning seal comes in different size cans with applicator brush built into the screw off lid.
It works for me and i use it like in the old commercial for
Brylcream, "a little dab will do ya".

My Brown Turkey did that a few years ago. I didn't do anything about it, and it eventually stopped, with no ill-effects.

Thanks to All for the helpful input.
in future I will use some sort of pruning seal on the cuts.
funny thing is that none of these cuts bled when I made them.
did not have any ashes, but crushed some dolmitic lime into powder and put it on the bleeders.
seems to have stopped all but the one plant.

Thanks again.
Grant
z5b

I have had the same thing happen but I had severely cut back some 5-6 year old trees because they were hacked back in a horrible fashion.  They only started to weep or ooze about 3-5 days after I had soaked them.  I added more soil as the pots they are in are open, with no bottom, so I watered thoroughly to make sure all the air pockets etc were out.  They only started this week and I have been watering them for 3 weeks (they get watered a lot in the greenhouse) but I think it is from root pressure, it was in the process of sending all the water and sugars to the buds up top but now when it's pruned it goes out of the cut that is not healed, I have been wiping it off but think I will try putting some epsom salts on top, the cuts I made in the fall do not weep, only the ones I made about a month ago.