Rooting Hormone Beginner

OK, I'm doing something wrong and I think I know what it is - but not what to do instead....

I make a nice clean cut, dampen it, dip it into the hormone, and plant.
Then they die.
I'm putting them into potting soil - that's what's wrong, isn't it?
But the phrase "rooting medium" is too vague for me.
What's the least expensive, easiest to find "rooting medium"?

Depends on what your cuttings are? Maybe they don't take well to propagation by cuttings. I do the same thing with hardier plants and they come in well. Now... The cuttings will sometimes lose their leaves to focus the energy on rooting. I water root things sometimes. Try taking your cuttings (diagonally to get more surface are for the roots) dip in rooting hormone then put it in a small glass of water. What are you trying to propagate might I ask?

Well, I've tried various things:
lantana
euonymous
azalea
gardenia
are among the most recent.
Thanks for telling me I can use rooting hormone in water, though - I thought it would all rinse off if I stuck it in a glass of water. I've been using the hormone for things I didn't think would work from a cutting in water - like woodier stems.

Not sure if that is what you are "supposed" to do but i use this method on bougainvillea all the time, even if the rooting hormone rinses off, it is still in the water that is slowly consumed by the cutting. It may take several weeks before you see roots form. I do this method in an old shot glass and put the glass with the cutting in a gallon sized ziplock baggie in a window sill to trap in humidity. Like i said, i don't know if this is the method you are "supposed" to use but it has worked for me so far.

Thanks - I'll give it a try.
Meanwhile, if anyone else out there can give me more suggestions I'd like to try any of them!

Any other ideas?

I mix perlite or vermiculite about half and half with the potting soil (I use MG and just found a local source for ProMix) to keep it on the lighter side. I also have a bag of seed starting mix, which I've also used to stick cuttings. I'm just learning about taking cuttings too. Generally speaking, Airier (is this a word?) medium means less of a chance for the cutting end to stay too wet and rot.

I've been successful with several of what are described as easier plant cuttings to root, like Lantana, Gardenia, Butterfly weed and Salvia. I also rooted two pieces of end tip honeysuckle, which actually surprised me as I didn't really expect them to root but when I pinched them off, just thought I'd try for practice and they rooted. Those little cuttings are now planted next to their mama plant outside and doing just fine.

Just keep trying different things and asking questions until you find what works for you. I do place a clear plastic bag over each little pot of cuttings, or use the clear 2 liter cola container cut in half, depending on what I have available at the moment. I also use root tone rooting powder and cut off half of each leaf I leave on the cutting, which I've read "generally" cuts down on the stress for the cutting.

From all I've read, there are No absolutes. Just keep trying. It is very satisfying to see the little gob of roots at the end of the cuttings and know someday that cutting will grow and flower.

Mary

Mary, that's been my experience, too. I have a 25-gallon nursery pot, filled with cow manure, sand, good potting soil and packing peanuts - I stick cuttings and they either root or they don't - the pot is situated where it sits in shade all the time and the lawn sprinklers hit it - that's all I'm going to do. I just wait and see what takes and what doesn't. I pull the cuttings out when they've been in the mix about a month - dead or alive - out they come!

Really, a lot of it seems to be experience, along with trial and error. I would recommend two things - picking up a decent book that not only gives tips on practice, but gives you specifics on different plants - some plants you can only propagate during certain times of the year, certain types of cuttings, need heat, need less water, blah blah blah - there are a lot of variables among plants. My favorite is the American Hort. Society's book (although I'm sure there are many good ones out there) - http://www.amazon.com/American-Horticultural-Society-Propagation-Plant/dp/0789441160/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1248916955&sr=8-1 .

My second piece of advice is to start with something easy (coleus is my favorite easy-to-do, sweet potato vine is number 2) and get a couple of wins under your belt, it will get through the trial and error with the tougher and harder to root plants. There's a thread on here (it might have slipped to one or two pages up) that lists what people have had the most success with.

Best of luck!

P.S. I haven't used rooting hormone yet, although I have some in case I run in to something that just *must* have it - but the powder is like 90% talc and that really annoys me! You can also use a tea made from willow branches that might work as well for you.