This is one method I really like especially when rooting cuttings in the fall that will have to stay indoors for 4 or 5 months. The 2 litre plastic pop (or Soda for you US folk:) ) bottle works well because it has enough volume that the cutting can be left alone for as long as you like in this setup. Last year I left a cutting growing in one for almost an entire year. With 100% perlite you don't have to worry about fungas gnats either. The top of the pop bottle has a ridge just as it tapers to the cap. I cut just below the ridge so that I can still place the detached top back on it tightly to create I humidity dome for the new cutting. I also cut holes in the bottom of the bottle for drainage.

One very important step when using perlite is to sift the dust and small particles out of it. If you don't the dust with collect around the cutting which will stay too wet and rot the cutting. Unfortunately the perlite in my area seems to have a lot of dust and small particles in it. I end up losing quite of a bit in quantity but it is worth it in the end. I just use a colander for separating out the larger pieces only. I do this outside and avoid breathing the dust (which is not good for you!).

I score the cutting in a few spots and apply liquid rooting hormone. Once potted up I water it good and let all the excess drain out. I put the top on and put in a warm location. I take the top off once a day to let it air out a bit. Once it starts leafing out and you see some roots I first take the screw cap off to gradually let it adjust to drier room air. After a few days I take the top of completely.

The nice thing about perlite is that its easy to tell when moisture is getting low as it is very light when dry. With the plant I let go a year I would just wait until the leaves started to droop a little and then give it a good watering.

Getting a cutting to root is often the easiest part and many cuttings are lost at the potting up stage for various reasons - overwatering.. shock.. roots being damaged, etc. This method eliminates all these problems. Once it has a very nice root structure it is much more stable to pot up when convenient.

I bought a bag of oil-dri and might try a few cuttings with adding some to the perlite to give it a bit more moisture retention but still give it the nice aeration which is good for the cutting.

Anyways for those new to rooting I'd recommend giving this a try.
Tyler

 
 

Nice instructions, seems simple.

At what point do you introduce dilute nutrients, and what sort of nutrients do you use?

The first few times you water after you have roots, do you just water thoroughly and let drain or do you use a spray bottle and water sparingly?

Pretty cool!  When does winter hit your area Tyler?

Calvin I would start using nutrients once its leafs out well and good roots showing. I am going to start adding some with the one on the left as it has a lot more roots now from when I took this picture a week ago. I just use MG 10-10-10 water soluble.  I don't use a lot though because honestly I am not wanting this to grow like crazy since its indoors for such a long time. I should be waiting until December or January but this gives me something to do year round lol.

With the watering I add enough that it drains out the bottom. I think if you have the right size perlite it shouldn't be an issue because it won't retain too much.

Dennis things usually don't get bad here until at least later in November but we get snow in October occasionally too. Honestly our area can have crazy fluctuations one year to the next with the weather.

I am wondering that How long it takes for cutting to plant like this in your picture?

Sorry Ricky I'm not sure what you are asking there lol.. The cutting on the left was started in August and the other in September. Or are you asking when can you remove it for planting in a larger pot?? My reason for using the larger container here is so that I can just leave it as is for as long as I want over winter. If you want to just use perlite to root the cutting and then pot it up to a larger container using a soil mix I would use smaller cups initially rather than a 2L bottle.

Thanks for the detailed instructions...  im def going to try this as soon as i can get some cuttings.  were do you store your bottles when indoors?  this will be the first time i try somthing indoors during winter months and this is only my first year with the obsession.  thanks again.  hopefully everyone who tries this will have some good pics to share in a short while.

I started these in the cupboard above the refrigerator. Once its colder and the furnace is running on a regular basis I would start them in a plastic tote that would sit an inch over the floor register. Once leafed out and growing they will go under my T-8 grow lights in the basement.

Once plant is to be up potted, what difficulties do you encounter, if any, removing it from the pop bottle?

very nice Tyler
I've also been doing cuttings in straight perlite and had good success.
mine were in cups but I like your idea

Good post !!! I am going to try this as well.

Nice Tyler, I will try this.

Do u put in any drain holes in the bottom?

Tyler
Nice simple way of rooting cuttings and many people are having success with this method!
I may switch to using pure sifted perlite this year for growing cuttings and hopefully prevent the heart break of losing cuttings to rot.

In the past I thought by maintaining a 80/20 mix (perlite/soil) the plant would be better conditioned to the soil when up potting to regular container soil mix. 
Do you find the fig has any problems adjusting when moving it from the perlite to your soli mix?
Do you bare root the fig tree and lose all the perlite before up potting to your container?
Thanks 

macmike.. yes I put holes in the bottom for drainage.

Pino, the plant I eventually potted up had a root mass that filled the bottle. I tried to shake out whatever perlite I could but there was still a fair amount within the roots. It has done fine since potting up so there were no issues going to potting soil.

I think perlite is great for rooting. Again though the only reason I am going with a larger container is I plan to leave it in there for at least 5 months. I'm likely sacrificing growth and vigour by not potting up in 1 gallon potting mix once I have roots but I'm ok with that. If you just want to root the cutting and pot it up as soon as possible I would just go with a large clear cup.

There are a lot of ways to grow out a cutting and with any of them maintaining the right moisture level is key in preventing rot and sifted perlite works well to regulate that.

I wish that I can see your post earlier.

I am newbie, I did my 1st fig cutting at Aug with multiple mistakes, I put fig cutting in 1 gallon pot with potting soil and let it sit on windows sill, it does roots but plant is very weak with penny size ( less than 1" leaf) after 2+ months, your method is much better, It produces more healthy plant.

I did my 2nd fig cutting using 20 OZ plastic cup, I can not find " perlite" at Home depot here, I bought potting soil with " perlite", It does roots but plant is also weak with 2" leaf after 2+ months, it is still not too good.

now, I do face with problem on how to take care of them during winter indoor with low maintenance , My house do not have furnace, outdoor temperature will go down to -7 C ( 20F), indoor temperature will go down to 12C ( 53F).



My Mistakes
- Wrong fig varieties - Only get known sweet fig cutting, It has wasted me 5+ years for figs due to wrong unknown fig varieties.
- fig cutting too long, 60% cutting above container, It sucks out moisture and reduces successful rate and produces un-healthy plants
- not using " Perite"  - maintenance moisture/air/softness in soil and give good condition for root development. 
- Container without cover  -- E.X. pop bottle, large "Star buck" cold drink with dome cover, Etc, It keeps moisture and it increases successful rate.
- Clean cutting with mild soap - it reduces mold and yeast eating cutting as well as very young roots at high moisture condition.
- do not use rain water - it contains more mold.

Hi Ricky,( and other newbies)
Think on the positive side. You have learned much by your mistakes. I don't think there is a single person here on the forum who hasn't made a mistake at some point during the learning process especially when it relates to propagation.
Keep on keeping on, read older posts through the search option. There is tons of information relating to rooting cuttings, and many different methods.
I root my cuttings in tupperware containers with coco coir or long sphagnum moss and have terrific success.
Check out the many approaches, as perlite is not your only option

Thanks.  This looks good, and very easy.  Because I usually start cuttings in smaller drink cups, I might try to use plastic bottles smaller than 2-liter.

I'm envious of people having success in perlite with domes on their containers.  Every single one I tried like this last year molded and only two survived.  

I almost always use plain perlite and I've rooted stuff that is ill with FMV like Hative de Argentile. I got like 6 of them to work but I only kept 3.

Apparently Grise de St. Jean is also hard to root, but all three of the cuttings I got a month ago are now in gallon pots. Idk, I really like Perlite.

 
I got the cutting on December 26th and took that photo on Friday or Saturday. Its two siblings are growing similarly well. 

In the past, I've used promix with mycorrhizae a few times but I can't say I noticed any remarkable benefits. Don't give up on perlite, I guess.

levar -- I notice you don't have a top on the cup? How big do you let it get before taking the top off? Guys using the cloners claim they get better results without a top on it... Wondering if this might not be the same?

Tyler,

This sounds like a great method to try on my next few cuttings.  However, I will have to use clear cups though since I don't have pop bottles.

In late December-early Jan. I started to root some cuttings using coir and some perlite.  This seemed to be working and so I decided to recently start a lot more cuttings the same way.  Well now the method that I had success with is no longer so successful!

My most recent cuttings have white fluffy mold and the coir seems to be sticking quite a bit wherever there is a node.  I cleaned the cuttings and let the coir air out for quite a while to remove a lot of the moisture before putting the cuttings back in.  I think my mold problem was caused by too much moisture in the coir or it could be due to something else.  I really hope it's not too late to save these cuttings. Now I will be checking them twice a day!

There's an unanswered question that's come up a few times when discussing rooting in straight perlite. That is, what method, medium and level of moisture do you you use when potting up the first time? The issue some (me included) have found is that while cuttings root very well in the perlite, they quickly rot when potted up to mix. What are the specifics on the next stage?

I'd be sold on perlite if this part could be clarified....