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Velcome to my labOratOry

This is what my cuttings look like today! I am so happy to see growth!! Thanks to those who sent me cuttings to start my collection! Much appreciated.
Meg

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I think this is Celeste

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Oops photo didnt attach :-/
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Looking good, I always like seeing cuttings take root and learn new methods while sharing what I have learned. that's why I love this forum. always something to learn and share.
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Yes, im learning! Washed cuttings that had mold and using the cup method with those. Also, letting cuttings air a little at night inside (picture above). Yay!!
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In the meantime and while fig cuttings grow, I am eating DRY figs. Not the same but oh well..,

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Originally Posted by garden_whisperer
Looking good, I always like seeing cuttings take root and learn new methods while sharing what I have learned. that's why I love this forum. always something to learn and share.


Thx Garden Whisperer!! Learning from u & other pros :-D
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Originally Posted by Smyfigs
In the meantime and while fig cuttings grow, I am eating DRY figs. Not the same but oh well..,

Never seen a dried fig before. I had some from a foil package but they didnt look like yours. Yours looks like figs. The ones i had looked l8ke prunes. Your look very good

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Congratulations!  Your journey to the fig side is now complete.  Soon you'll be selling plants on ebat to get enough money for your HID system   :)
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Originally Posted by rcantor
Congratulations!  Your journey to the fig side is now complete.  Soon you'll be selling plants on ebat to get enough money for your HID system   :)


RCantor:  Lol...yes, right!  I'm not that sophisticated.  HOWEVER, I do LOVE figs and anything is possible!  It fascinates me how much knowledge is on this forum.  I absolutely love it!  
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Originally Posted by sppsp
I like your laboratory. I use those big plastic storage containers too.



Sppsp:  Yes, I found the containers to be because they stack nicely fit well inside my tiny greenhouse, for which I paid $49.99 at Big Lots!  I got the containers at Walmart for 69 Cents!  I am trying various growing methods to see which work best for me or for different variety of figs.  I also do a lot with my worm castings.  I have a great worm tea recipe that is totally like a growth hormone for my tiny trees. They have grown like twice the size in just a few weeks.  I'll post pictures sometime on the weekend.  I also use worm tea to keep my plants healthy...it's like a deterrent.

 
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Originally Posted by figpig_66
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Originally Posted by Smyfigs
In the meantime and while fig cuttings grow, I am eating DRY figs. Not the same but oh well..,

Never seen a dried fig before. I had some from a foil package but they didnt look like yours. Yours looks like figs. The ones i had looked l8ke prunes. Your look very good


Dried figs can taste good but nothing like a fresh fig, right? These actually still have the shape & look of a fig, which is good.
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Hey Meg! Keep us posted on that growth hormone magical worm tea! That sounds right up my alley! 
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Hi, Inkinbrushes: Well, the status is...with my first batch I lost about 4 cuttings using the Sphagnum moss method because it was really difficult to control the moisture. Mold was a challenge as was keeping them moist. Lost 3 or 4 pieces (halves).

I then switched all cuttings to the perlite in cup method where they did fine but they were really slow in growing roots. It was painful to watch. Lost anoter 3 or 4 pieces with this method.

Next, I bought a heat mat & T5 grow light, potted the same cuttings in soil & put them near my back door. They are doing good so far! I still water them with worm tea and add castings to the soil as well. I think I only lost two pieces here.

For my 2nd batch I bought a cloner. I'm not handy with tools or I would have enjoyed making one. After a few weeks only a few had roots but most were mushy.

Next, I trimmed the mushy ends and switched all cuttings to Mai's bag method. This was last week. Today, they all look good so I am HOPEFUL for these :-)!

And next week I will start another batch but I have decided that the Mai bag method is my favorite method. It just feels more controlable and likely to be successful for me.

By the way, I also tried the wet papervtowel method and i think I was too impatient early so I abandoned that one too. Fig rooting teaches patience:-)
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Originally Posted by Smyfigs
I also do a lot with my worm castings.  I have a great worm tea recipe that is totally like a growth hormone for my tiny trees. They have grown like twice the size in just a few weeks.  I'll post pictures sometime on the weekend.  I also use worm tea to keep my plants healthy...it's like a deterrent.


Tell us the recipe when you have time.  I still have worm castings from last season.
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Hey Rcantor! my recipe is pretty basic but it has been great for all of my plants as a natural fertilizer as well as a deterrant for many pests. If you want to try a good experiment, spray one side of a tree/bush with this recipe and watch it grow huge while the side not sprayed grows at a slower pace. You'll see a difference. Its even a deterrant for fleas & mosquitos!

The simple recipe is just add water to a hand full of castings but I make the below recipe twice a year and it makes a big difference with size of my fruit and vegetables...big difference!

MATERIALS LIST:
5 Gallon bucket
1 small (inexpensive) fish tank pump
Aquarium Air stone
Air hose
one old sock and string to hang in the bucket.

DIRECTIONS:
Use a 5 gallon bucket, fill with water. Rain water is best but if you use tap water let the water sit a couple of days so the chemicals evaporate.
Connect the air hose to the pump
Connect the air stone to the hose and drop into the bucket
Put 2 or 3 cups of worm castings (just estimate) into the sock. Tie sock and hang inside the bucket.
Add 1/2 cup of molases
Add 1/2 cup sea kelp

Plug pump and let it airate for at least 24 hours but more days means bactaria will multiply and the tea will be better. I use a sprayer and spray my veggies & trees as well as water with it. I let it airate until I use it all up. If you have a large area to spray the just estimate on how much castings, molases and, kelp to use.
Enjoy!
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Meg,

My best method so far is coco coir. Very easy to control the moisture - just let it absorb the water then squeeze it all out. No need to add more and the mold is quite rare.

estacas_montserrat_1b.JPG khurtmani_1.jpg estacas_montserrat_4a.JPG estacas_montserrat_4b.JPG estacas_montserrat_4b2.JPG b_preta e 2 israelitas.JPG 

It's my prefered method so far. I haven't lost a cutting to mold since i use it and all the cuttings rooted (some take more time than others) without much tendency to leafing out before rooting.

Now when i pot them, it's another story - i have a bad infestation of gnats and they are giving me a headache.

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Hi, Jsacadura:  Yes, those roots on your cuttings look really nice! One thing that was a big factor for me was that I am out most of the day and then I get home late pretty much every night so trying to keep a good balance with moisture proved difficult.  Also, when I started rooting my first batch, it was in late September and the summer heat was not my friend.  And, even though I kept my cuttings inside, the moss would dry up quickly.  I will definately try moss...maybe I'll start a couple of cuttings in moss next week.  Do you cover your container with the cuttings or do you leave it open?
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Originally Posted by Jsacadura
Meg,

My best method so far is coco coir. Very easy to control the moisture - just let it absorb the water then squeeze it all out. No need to add more and the mold is quite rare.

estacas_montserrat_1b.JPG khurtmani_1.jpg estacas_montserrat_4a.JPG estacas_montserrat_4b.JPG estacas_montserrat_4b2.JPG b_preta e 2 israelitas.JPG 

It's my prefered method so far. I haven't lost a cutting to mold since i use it and all the cuttings rooted (some take more time than others) without much tendency to leafing out before rooting.

Now when i pot them, it's another story - i have a bad infestation of gnats and they are giving me a headache.




Jsacadura: just curious...what variety is that fig you have that has leaves like a clover? I have one that looks very similar...

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  • Jodi
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Meg's comments... Next, I trimmed the mushy ends and switched all cuttings to Mai's bag method. This was last week. Today, they all look good so I am HOPEFUL for these :-)!

And next week I will start another batch but I have decided that the Mai bag method is my favorite method. It just feels more controlable and likely to be successful for me.

Fig rooting teaches patience:-)



I think we are at the same place on this Meg. I had all theses same challenges. I did have some success with rooting cuttings straight into a large pop bottle with the top cut off and holes punched in a tub with the heat may. I just ran out of space for all the cuttings to use the pop bottles. So I now have a ton invested in Mai's method. Praying over them daily! Best wishes to your figlets too!

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Yup, Jodi, we are at the same stage! I also had a challenge with space.  I was using a small portable greenhouse that I put in a shady spot, which worked really well until I got some small trees that I began to nurture and then no more space!  I am using a space in my living room (yes, my husband will be nominated for sainthood...) with my T5 grow light (my neighbors are getting suspicious) that stays on for about 7 or 8 hours.  I put my cuttings out on the weekends for fresh air...just waiting for them roots!
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Meg,

If you are referring to the top left one, that variety is Bebera Branca. But the leaves are very young and they will change.

A couple of weeks later they are already a bit different, they will become multi lobed leaves like the one on the 50 liter pot in the photo on the right:

b_preta e 2 israelitas_Fev_2016.JPG vaso_bebera_branca_Novembro.JPG 
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Thanks for the recipe!  8 hours of T5 light is less than most of us use.  If your plants aren't lanky then keep going but if the internodal distance is long then you may want to bump that up to 10-12 hrs.
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Jsacadura:  Yes, the upper left is the one I was referring too.  Right, they do change.  I realized the other day that one of my cuttings (from a tiny stump my mom found) had very different leaves even as a tiny cutting (see my photo above).  So it caught my attention but like you said, they do change so I ignored it.  But then you posted your message and there's a similar fig leaf in your photo.  Okay, so I'll keep an eye on my cutting and I'll have to compare it when it fruits.  I'm hoping it makes it.  So far so good.  I literally got like 4 sticks from the stump but it had been "trying" to grow for years is what my mom says. Well, we'll see.


Rcantor:  Thanks for your suggestion.  I do have one cutting that is very lanky so now I understand why this is so.  I will bump up the time as you suggest.
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Originally Posted by Smyfigs
Hi, Inkinbrushes: Well, the status is...with my first batch I lost about 4 cuttings using the Sphagnum moss method because it was really difficult to control the moisture. Mold was a challenge as was keeping them moist. Lost 3 or 4 pieces (halves). I then switched all cuttings to the perlite in cup method where they did fine but they were really slow in growing roots. It was painful to watch. Lost anoter 3 or 4 pieces with this method. Next, I bought a heat mat & T5 grow light, potted the same cuttings in soil & put them near my back door. They are doing good so far! I still water them with worm tea and add castings to the soil as well. I think I only lost two pieces here. For my 2nd batch I bought a cloner. I'm not handy with tools or I would have enjoyed making one. After a few weeks only a few had roots but most were mushy. Next, I trimmed the mushy ends and switched all cuttings to Mai's bag method. This was last week. Today, they all look good so I am HOPEFUL for these :-)! And next week I will start another batch but I have decided that the Mai bag method is my favorite method. It just feels more controlable and likely to be successful for me. By the way, I also tried the wet papervtowel method and i think I was too impatient early so I abandoned that one too. Fig rooting teaches patience:-)


Meg, I can really identify with your experimentation with different techniques, challenges and learning along the way! And yes, fig rooting does teach patience as in some cases, I've probably slowed progress by not being able to leave them alone long enough, lol.
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