I've read so many posts from people who don't have much luck rooting in water, yet others root nearly everything in water. I wonder why some nearly always have good luck and others don't. Of course, city water varies considerably and that could certainly make a difference. Also lighting...too much or too little...would that make a difference? Temperature? I generally have very good luck rooting in water, with a few exceptions of course. What's your experience and any guesses as to why it doesn't work for some?
Curiosity question about water rooting your experience?
Not a clue. Wish I did! Everything rots in water! Except......
I have had luck wrapping some of the smaller hoya stems in Spagnum and growing in water: like lacunosa, H. bella etc. But in straight water...they hat e it. and my wat er is PURE rain water with no chemicals.
Carol
I am a big fan of water rooting and it works really well for me. I like it because I can see when plants are rooted and it keeps me from tugging on new cuttings to see if they are rooting. I have been collecting dark, heavy glass bottles and add about 10 drops Hormex to a gallon of water. (I use either rain water or water that has sat out a couple days) I place the bottles on a heat mat in a spot that has good air circulation and as soon as the roots form, pot them right up in soil mix. I also try to mist the cuttings as often as I can. It may be overkill, but, I do steralize the bottles before I use them and when I find a cutting has rotted.
Some Hoyas, however, just don't want to root in water. If I do not see nodules starting to form in a couple weeks, I will take the cuts out of water, dust them with rooting hormones and plant them in perlite.
If you don't already have one, you might consider investing in a heat mat. Bottom heat makes all the difference in the world.
Try a couple different ways and see what works best for you. I really like to see what is going on when I have a new cutting! Plus, I like the look of dark glass bottles along a window sill and there are many really cool glass bottles to be found!!!
Mel...I agree with you about bottom heat. Especially when trying to root anything in fall or winter. However, it can be hard to come up with a way to heat on a window sill. I finally did find a reptile type pad that was narrow enough to go there. Then I put a piece of glass over it and a small pad as it was TOO hot. (remember, you only want it warm...not HOT). I also have a bottom heated aquarium that I have good luck rooting in that has a heat unit on the bottom of it. However, that must sit back a ways from the window so I added a small light on top of it and cover half of it with glass.
I have luck sometimes in water with "certain" hoyas. Bella seems to root OK in water. Also the usual carnosa types. However, if I have something I am not sure of....I always go with the perilite in a clear plastic cup with holes burned in the bottom. They almost ALWAYS root that way for me.
Marcy
Marcy,
When rooting cuttings in perlite, how moist do you keep it? Do you use straight perlite or mix it with a little potting soil?
Also, when using perlite, do you set the container in a saucer of water? I read a previous post where someone else did it that way. If not, how fast does the perlite dry out?
Sharon,
I nearly always root my cuttings in water and like Mel let the water stand for a couple of days to let the chlorine leach out of it. I always make sure the bottom end is freshly cut before putting it in the water so that the cutting is able to remain well hydrated while it goes about the task of developing roots. This way I don't bother about misting or enclosing it to retain humidity. Some plants are amazingly fast at putting out roots - 4-5 days; others have been known to take a bit longer than 2 weeks. So long as the cutting looks firm and healthy I don't worry as it does usually root - in fact I've rooted about 80 different types this way. I like to see the roots developing too and pot them up as soon as they are an inch or so long. The plant then seems to establish and to grow away very quickly.
Sometimes I have problems with established plants of Hoya bella which suddenly seem to lose their roots causing the plant to wilt badly. I find taking cuttings and putting them in water is a great way to plump up these cuttings which then root away - thereby saving the plant.
Matt
I have lots of holes burned into the bottom and 4 holes on the sides of those plastic cups so the water does tend to go through rather fast. I have done it both ways (having a saucer of water & not) The bellas especially do better if sitting in a saucer of water. Last year I had a towel on the bottom of the ones in the aquairum and it would become very wet after I would water. Then it would get very humid in there for a day. I usually water every few days (3 or 4) depending on how fast everything seem to dry out in there. If the cups you use are clear plastic, you can see the little water condensation on the inside of the cups of perilte. When I no longer see any sign of water, I water again.
This year I have a few more of them sitting in little saucers & when those have been dry for 2 days, I water again until the saucers have about half inch of water in them.
I have also experimented using half vermeculite & half perilte and that mix holds water a little longer, but I seem to get rooted plants just as fast using the pure perilte so why bother mixing.
HTH
Marcy
I have rooted certian Hoyas in water, the mysterious H. carnosa 'snowball' roots like crazy in water, and soon get huge roots. Like Mel alluded to, you need dark glass or a solid container that won't let light through, as light kills roots. Also, put it somewhere with very subdued light that stays warm. I usualy root in 50/50 perlite/peat, and this has worked for everything but dishidia pectinoidies, which I had to root in pure spagnum moss, like Carol mentioned here not long ago.
Lots of really great, detailed information. Thanks...I think I got new tips from everyone!
Mark - I didn't know light kills roots, I just thought Mel liked the looks of the dark bottles over clear. Thanks for the clarification.
I also have pretty good luck rooting in water, so was hesitant to try using perlite...ya know, 'if it ain't broke....' I like the idea of perlite because it will support the cuttings at the right height. I've gotten frustrated with finding just the right size jar, bottle etc. for the various size cuttings. Also, some have bends/curves that make it hard to prop up just right in water. Perlite sounds like a great solution.
Marcy, I like the idea of the clear plastic cups so you can see the condensation...I'll start using those instead. (One of those 'duh!...why didn't I think of that' things :-))
I used to not notice a chlorine smell to our water, but lately it's become quite noticeable, so I've started keeping several gal. jugs filled with water and let them set a couple of days before using.
Thanks everyone for all the tips. Now I have some new things to try and I'm sure my success rate will be greater!
Don't worry about light hitting the roots. The "light kills roots" statement may hold true with other sensitive plants but the "tough" Hoyas will not have trouble with it unless you let bundles of Algae grow on them.
My prefered method is initial rooting in a plastic bag, which takes 1-2 weeks and then transfer to a pot with a cut soda bottle or plastic bag over top until plenty of new growth shows. I've heard people say that they dislike the plastic bag method because of all roots that grow across the whole stem but to me it's not a beauty contest and this method has yielded the best survival rate on severely stressed cuttings that had been in transit for over 2 weeks.
Milan
Milan, after the plant is potted up and grown enough to remove the plastic bag, do the roots above soil level dry up and drop off? Or could you just clip them off to improve the looks of the plant? Your method does sound like a 'safe' method to use, particularly for those that are prone to rot in water or difficult to root cuttings.
They'll dry up and you can clip them off if you feel it is needed to improve the "look" :)
For some reason I always seem to do better rooting in water. I have a shelf and flourescent light above my kitchen sink. I put just enough water (with Superthrive) in a glass to touch the bottom node of the cutting.
Last cutting I started wasn't taking off in the water so I blew some air into a qt plastic zip log bag . Sprinked a little water around the plastic, threw the cutting in and sealed it. I had enough roots in 10 days that I was able to pot it up.
H davidcummingii is in pretty bad shape. My fault as I transplanted it to a larger pot and didn't get the roots buried deep enough and then I let it dry out. I am trying the bag method to save some of the dehydrated cuttings.
Sharon, thanks for asking this question, as it was very helpful for me too.
Mel, Marcy, Mark, Matt, & Milan (unusual all names beginning with M's) you were all helpful to me. I learned a lot. I was never very successful with using just perlite in the past, but I never put holes in the bottom of my container, another lesson learned. I also don't have a heat mat, but have used a regular heating pad, still without a lot of success. I tried Milan's bag rooting strategy and was successful getting roots on 2 new cuttings of onychoides. I did put a little sphagnum moss in the zip lock bag with the cuttings. I opened the bag to give it some air every couple of days. Before I tried this, I had the cuttings in damp sphagnum moss for at least 3 weeks, thankfully I didn't lose them, but they had no roots on them either, until I tried the bag method. They were in the bag about 1 week when I first saw a teeny tiny root. The smallest 1 node cutting showed the first root, but now look the larger cutting, with a lot longer & more roots. I am really pleased with the sucess. The other lessons I learned, is to let the water sit out a couple days. Thanks everyone, you have made me one step closer to having more confidence it rooting cuttings. Deb
P.S. Don't run for your glasses or think you need your eyes checked, it's just an out of focused picture, sorry.
This message was edited Aug 15, 2005 9:13 PM
I have been snipping cuttings to root on several plants and putting them all in plastic zip lock bags. I 've also dated the bags, so I can see how long it takes before seeing any signs of roots. Milan do you keep the bags in the dark? Many of you seem to use dark bottles for your cuttings, so I thought if I put them in a dark place, it might speed things up. How dark of a place should I put them? I know Carol has said to mail cuttings in zip locks, and that cuttings often have started to root during the transit. If this process continues to work for me, I just might get brave again and start ordering cuttings again. Deb
Milan is in Germany/Spain right now Deb....I don't know if he has access to a computer there.
Deb, I believe the leaves need light. If the bottom stem part is in the dark (as in a dark bottle or potted in soil mix) that's okay because the leaves are still getting light. I would think that placing the baggie in a dark space would slow rooting down. If I'm wrong about this, someone with more knowledge or experience please correct me!
Lilypon, thanks for letting me know about Milan. Sound like he travels a lot.
Sharon, it does make sense about the leaves needing light. I know when vines have grown behind things which were deprived from light, they were a sickly light green color when I pulled them out. Thanks!
O.K. this ziplock bag rooting has caught my interest. I'm assuming you can do several starts at one time. Do you just mist the inside of the bag? And do you zip it all the way shut? If so, how often do you open it up and let some fresh air inside? Oh a new project how exciting.
Tami
Deb and Tami here's a thread where Milan (PanamonCreel) answers your questions: http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/445774/
I shouldn't answer for him but I think it will be awhile before he checks in again.
This message was edited Aug 17, 2005 10:16 PM