I never considered that success might be a problem. I assumed I'd have some decent little plants ready for spring. Instead, it's early January and I have dozen's of cuttings looking like this;

 

I'm not sure how long I can leave this? I'm wondering what I'm looking forward to if I pot these guys up and don't get them enough light until I can bring them out in April? (earliest)

I know many of you are rooting...For those of you in cold areas...What are you doing as they develop before then can go outside?

You need some type of grow light.

Joe,

I'm using a 50w LED to provide light to grow through the winter- but, i am continuously adding more to my set up. I think i will need 100w before the winter is over.  Although the Pres-elect would not approve, i buy my LEDs, power supplies and current regulators from China. So, i am thinking 50w for rooting and 100w once potted up.  It takes 3 weeks to a month for arrival, but it comes at 1/10th the cost.  i also know several folks who use 50w LED flood lights.  i made the mistake of building my cabinet way too small and short. once the weather turns warm enough to get in the garage, i'll be constructing a taller cabinet/shelving to make it through the winter.  i also severely underestimated the growth of figs.  i can send you more info if you are interested in building, but i do think the 50w floods are the best option- you dont have to be concerned with heat dissipation- i just discovered them too late. 

here is an example of a 50w for $20 USD and free shipping.  you may find it less expensive from China, this one is located in Ohio. 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/10W-20W-30W-50W-Cool-or-Warm-White-LED-Flood-Light-FloodLigh-Outdoor-NEW-UB-/122270260301?var=&hash=item1c77e01c4d:m:mPiKK_axochSgodi5qgJ8rQ

Also, i would suggest the cool white for growing.  The warm white has more red than the cool white, which is more blue.  


At least this is a good problem to have, right?  

johnny

I would definitely pot that up into a well draining mix.

Tomorrow I search for 1 gallon pots in January. Wish me luck!

Hi joe,

I never used lights except to grow tomatoes indoor.
All my rooted figs stay by the window until it gets safe enough to take outside and keep outside. That's when I move them to 7 gallon SIPs if I want super fast growth using the moisture control potting mix from Home Depot. By adding some perlite to the mixture, you will have to add water more often, but get better results.
I stopped adding perlite. I use Osmocote and some gardening lime when I up pot.
In your area, you should get better results in pots since root heating might not be as large a problem for you.

This would be the result of lack of light in a garage. When rooting new cuttings, the ambient light in a sunny room is more than enough.
I don't know how sunny your room is, but I've done it for a while now, and I even left some by the window for a whole year and they kept their leaves indoor. Being in small containers growth is almost at a stand still.

Thanks Sas..... Sun is in short supply around here these days...

I think my first order of business is to find containers. Not much in stock this time of year. I may have to get creative....I have one more place in town to try for actual 1 gallon nursery containers (www.bustan.ca). If I can't find anything there I may be emptying out 4L water bottles from the grocery store....Whatever gets the job done I suppose....

Most retailer moved them off the shelves over here too. As soon as it starts to warm up, you'll have more choices. In the next couple of months I would check at Walmart Canada also.
One thing I don't like to do us up pot too soon. I've lost a couple of plants that way. My goal is minimum root disturbance when up potting.

Quote TorontoJoe:" OT.....I like the threads where we actually discuss figs :-) "

The topic is figs no?, :) this is the kind of topic I like and I'm following this one with interest.In answer to your question "For those of you in cold areas...What are you doing as they develop before then can go outside?".

I've got potting up to do as well. I have up potted a few and it's gone wrong,I think the mix was too wet or I up potted to early.

You and me Joe are almost parallel in our rooting this winter(I'll post pics when I can but its a faff doing that on my phone now with uploading and copying URL's etc whist my daughter bugs me to do Emoji's on my phone).

I'm looking for pots,I think I'll have to buy 1-2litre pots online,no room for anything bigger and my cuttings started out in much smaller cups than yours (0.25ltr water cups from. The water machine at work)and have switched to a much more well draining mix and larger cups(1 pint cups) for round 2 of rooting with air holes on the sides as well as drainage holes.

I haven't had any problems with light levels dispite this being the back of the house and north facing.I know with artificial lights id get bigger plants but I'd rather have better roots.

The bit I'm worried about next is hardening them off in spring

The two in the front are over a month old and the two in the back are over a year old. The mixture is regular potting soil from Home Depot. No fertilizer or rooting coumpound was ever added so far. I will not add anything until I up pot.
If you look at the one in the back(one year old), there was a time a couple of weeks ago, that I forgot to water it so it got stressed and shed all its leaves. It's pushing new growth now.
There's really no specific time to up pot unless you want growth. It's like a bonsai tree, if you have the right humidity nutrition and light, it could last in a pot for a long time.
So the larger the pot the faster the growth for figs, especially if you have a great potting mixture.
When I up pot, I usually like to do it after the freeze threat is gone.I usually leave the new ones in a shaded area for a couple of weeks outside until I start to see active growth then I move to a partial sunny location.
The ones I left on the patio in the shade for a whole summer, hardly grew compared to the ones in full sun.
In your area if you could have the pot in a shaded area and the plant in full sun when ready then it's better. This way you can maximize sun and keep the roots cool. In my area the ones in partial sun do better as root heating is a problem. This is one of the reasons, I don't like to use one gallon pots and prefer larger SIPs, but in this case space could eventually become a problem.

Joe, greenhouse megastore has nursery pots and I have found they ship very quick. I've had orders at my door in 2 days. They ship to Canada. Not sure if the turn around to Canada will be as quick.

With growth like you are getting, you may want to consider 2 gal or 3 gal pots instead of 1...which is really 3 quarts.

http://www.greenhousemegastore.com/product/elite-nursery-container/nursery-pots

Happy growing!

The perils of success.  I started cuttings last year, late Dec-Jan.  When leaves sprouted, I put them under lights. My main lesson was that the more you supply bigger pots and water, the bigger the plants will grow.  By April, I had plants >2' high filling out 3g pots.  Prepare for a lack of space.  Then be ready to acclimate the plants to outside conditions whenever you move them out.  I'd suggest a week in deep shape then a week in mottled shade before full sun.

I'd definitely up-pot the cuttings.  Then if you want, you can somewhat retard growth by not up-potting again when they get root-bound and/or buy somewhat restricting watering.

p.s.  Did I learn my lesson?  No.  I've got more cuttings now.

I did find that thelocal source (above) has the pots I need in stock.....and cheap! So I'm good there.

It's looking to me as though either the window or grow lights would both serve the intended purpose......that being to get me through to spring without harming the them. I think if I get 1/2 gallon pots I can do the window but if I do 1 gallon or more......I just don't have that many windows. So I'd be needing the lights to set up in the basement. It's decision time....

In either case they'll be going into 6 gallon buckets as their semi-permanent home when they go outside in spring.

I'm glad I'm not the only one who's been through this. It's certainly better than trying to figure out why cuttings aren't growing....

Only 70 days, 20 hours and 22 minutes until spring..... But who's counting....

Maybe try root pruning these small starts to retard their growth without killing them. It could buy you some time till spring.

Joe,  I think you will have more than enough lighting!  Wish i had that much wattage, my friend!  I realized later that he real topic is "should you up pot".....i missed the target.   i am moving to 1/2 gal pots as soon as i can.  my theory is, a greater mass of soil can withstand more mistakes from me, so once i see about half the root growth you have, i am moving up, continuing to use the same airy medium that i use in the cups. So far i've moved four.

Joe D, thanks for the hardening off solution.  i dont have much shade here.  maybe i put them in the garage and leave the door open so the sun shines in?  that's the only shade i have- that or the south side of the house.

Sas, as a homesick Texan in Kansas, I want to let you know that talk of sunny windows, day light or heat is down-right mean! All my figs live in a basement right now; i'm fairly (completely) unfamiliar with basements and basement plant management.

I  am longing for my return to the land of two seasons; hot and not so hot.... although you did get some real cold temps this week.  my dad had to struggle to keep the greenhouse warm enough to protect his temp sensitive plants; the tropicals, you know.  How are your figs making it?  are you covering them at all?  Bastrop thermometer got down to 18°F this week.  

johnny

I'm off to hunt for pots now......

Thanks all!

I wish I was having your problem.  I am having a different problem but I will post separately.

I personally think you should put them in the 1 gallon pots and under lights.  That way you will have some really plants by the time the weather warms up.

Johnny

I have nothing protected this year. I promise to report as soon as spring arrives.