Rooting Experiment Results

I just use my snippers and cut the stalk out of the moss...

Well.. looks great.. lots of little roots... I see the likely cause of my difficulty with this method.. is never did I use a mass of moss like that.. I just needed more moss to keep it evenly wet... you know what they say about a picture..

Yup a thousand words!!!...lol...Here are some that I am rooting in tall plastic containers that I saved just for this purpose.
I got brug cuttings from Eddie and they are over 14 inches..lol..

Even doing a green brug cutting..will see how these roots will be..lol..just keeping the moss barely moist...

Sphagnum moss retains a lot of water. I'm curious as to what happens when you plant the cutting. Or do you remove the moss before planting. Otherwise, I would think the cuttings would rot.

The moss is barely moist...not soggy wet..is what I have been trying to say all along..I only put little water in there if needed..it may look soggy wet but it isn't. I am just posting what works for me..if it doesn't for you..then I am sorry.. As I said back in one of the posts, I squeeze all the excess water out of the moss and pack it around the cutting...which means..it is barely moist..not soggy wet.. No I donot remove the moss from the cutting..it would be kinda stupid cuz you would be removing the roots as well..
Everyone has their own way of doing brug cuttings and I am just saying what works for me.

I didn't mean to trigger your defenses. I'm perfectly willing to accept that not all methods work for everyone. That is not what I implied nor was it what I asked. You are correct in that it did not work for me. That is why I don't use it. I mentioned that in a previous post, but I am curious about the moss method and have a few questions. Who better to ask than someone who has used it successfully.

Without squeezing the excess water out of it, moss will hold a lot of water. Once the cutting is rooted and planted, that excess water can't be squeezed out. I just wondered if the moss presented a problem, such as root rot, once the cutting is in the ground or pot.

I understand..that is why I kept saying that I squeeze all the access water out of the moss so nobody won't make that mistake before it happens... I knew to do the trick because my mom raised orchids and I learn from her..lol..my job was to get take the orchid moss bags(still inside plastic bag w holes poked) and put them in big trash cans..Fill it up with water first before I took the plastic wrapping off..cuz if you don't ..dried orchid moss flies everywhere when dry...and you can sneeze or cough BIG TIME! ....She did alot of her cuttings in orchid moss stuff with rooting powder stuff people used. I root ginger cuttings in it as well..lol...
I have never tried to root anything in soggy wet moss...I am sure the cuttings would turn to mush...

How do the cuttings fare with all that moss once they are in the ground or in a pot?

Well soon as it quit raining here..I can take a pic of some that went into the ground along with manure compost...I know Harlot,Super nova, and MEM went into the ground with moss on their roots..MEM just bloomed for me..and Harlot and Super Nova is fixing to bloom too..I got them as 8 inch cuttings last year in October, they went right into orchid moss being overwintered in hothouse, and planted them out in May,2010..I can take pics of them soon as it quit raining..lol.like I said..I don't have time to do them in the root water dept..

I'd love to see some photos of them. You need to send some of that rain this way! We got a bit of rain yesterday. Just in time to perk the pastures up a bit. Don't look forward to another drought.

Here are some pic of my cuttings I rooted in moss over the winter. Then planted in the ground in May,2010. I don't spray for anything that is eating on my leaves..just hand pick them off...Cuz I have chickens and 1 duck that helps debug my flowerbeds..
Super Nova

Here is a pic of Harlot. She is fixing to bloom..Done the same thing as Super Nova. I do not use mulch because my chickens will scratch it all out..LOL..

MEM bloomed already.

Here she is after. And the flowerbed was weeded..lol..I couldn't weed this bed due to so much rain we are having..Rained this morning again..

Too much rain waaa waaa.

Moodene, They are doing well and don't seem to have a problem with the sphagnum moss near the trunk. Great! I'm with Ken. Don't expect sympathy over the rain from those living in drought prone areas. lol.

At one time I briefly considered getting guinea hens to help combat the grasshoppers, but decided I would probably just provide more food for the local coyotes. We have a ton of them. You should hear their nightly serenade.... like a giant choir.

coyotes are not a problem;

Not here either..must get a pic of Babe..daughter of that big daddy above..kenboy, ya like your Pink Velvet rooted cutting I sent home with Maggi????..lol...

Yes and someday I am going to plant it.

This is Blue, a 50 lb Australian Shepard mix. Even with her around, coyotes will sometimes travel between the house and the barn 200' away. Coyotes don't bother the calves, but cows are still weary. I have seen them make a circle with their calves in the center of the circle similar to the way Musk Ox defend their young. Then a few of the older cows take off after the coyote.

Blue is a beautiful dog...bettydee.
Is your dog a Maremma.. Kenboy?

Moodene...how long did it take the cuttings that you started in Autumn in moss to actually put out roots?
Sorry if you have already mentioned it...but I couldn't find it.
Dianne.

No Seachanger, he is a Great Pyrenees. They get a little bigger that a Maremma and this guy is big for a Pyrenees. The last time I saw Nadine's puppy, she was just over two years old and getting close to 200 lb. They will run a coyote until it can't run any more. Their metabolism is such that even if they do not run full speed, they do not tire easily and just keep on running. We sometimes here coyotes in the area but they keep their distance if our dogs are healthy. Eleanor was hit by a car and does not get around to well and the Beorn will not leave her unprotected. We now have Sis and a four month old puppy named Ginger, so we should have enough to protect Eleanor and the farm and enough to run down any predator.

Here is Ginger with Sis's new puppies;

I don't disturb the cuttings for about 3 weeks. Just add little water if needed..I don't want the moss to be soaking soggy wet..just barely moist..I leave my cuttings outside in the greenhouse and check on them every few days.

Nadine, I did the moss method as a friend from Dg suggested two years ago, it worked for me.
I love the puppys!
( lurking here, hope you don't mind)

Thanks for your reply Nadine...my cutting still looks ok...I haven't taken it out of the moss to check for roots..but the conditions are as you recommended..just a bit of condensation in the bottom of the cup so I know it's damp enough....it is just over the 3 weeks.

Ken ...in Australia we call them Pyrenean Mountain dogs......they are popular in the show ring...but it's the first time I have heard of them being used to protect property.....I think it was your dog's coat that confused me..then I realised it was his summer coat.....what adorable puppies....
Dianne

Here is a pic of my big puppy..meet Babebera and mini pin.name-Peppericka but we call her Pepper..

I am rooting 2 Naughty Nicks in moss in a small pot. It just got some rain since I needed to water it..raining here again..then the sun is trying to peep out..lol..The stems are about the size of a pencil.

Oh I love min pins.. I almost got one of those.. but the vet said it mite break a leg with the kids when they were so small. So we got a beagle. Your Large white Puppy is a real beauty. your NN's look great too!
Question:
Is it too soon to take cuttings?

Babe broke that limb off the momma..lol..I find them on the ground. I have 15 brugs planted in the backyard..lol..if she gets too close to them..well a small limb will break off.I am out on the backyard everyday even when it rains..to check on the brugs and checking on the drainage when it rains..lol..so if I find one on the ground near a momma plant..then I go plant it in moss..

Babebera is magnificent..Nadine...Who is the boss, her or Pepper?

Pepper!!..lol...

I'm wondering if anyone has mastered keeping the cuttings alive after planting a cutting that was rooted in moss?
I rooted a few hundred a couple years ago, but when it came time to plant.. it was tricky to keep em alive.. Several I sent to friends didn't survive after planting either.
I only used saran wrap around the moss.. No need for a cup or pot! It was fantastic.... till it was time to plant.. :(

I was wondering about that myself, but Moodene says hers, which she has planted in the ground, are growing well. I would be tempted to remove as much of the moss as possible but that might damage some roots.

Frosty was a little twig about the size of my little finger, in Moss the winter before last.. here he is today.. Once he was in some soil, he took off. I thought I had lost him twice that winter, but when I pulled him out of the cup, the bottom and roots were intact.. I just kept him going until spring.

I will be planting those 2 Naughty Nick rooted cuttings in pots because I will be trading them off soon as they get bigger..will post pics as I go.

I believe the secret is not letting them grow an extensive root system in the moss. Roots that develop in water are not the same as roots that develop in soil. If the cutting grows lots of roots before you plant in soil, most of those roots will die and the plant will need to grow new ones. If you start your plants in water (moss) plant you cutting as soon as you have signs of roots.

Yup.. But I can let mine stay in moss inside the greenhouse since I have been having rain squalls coming nearly everyday..Today I was able to mow my yard after a week of rain..sheeze...I don't keep those in moss out in the rain but will give them rain water..lol..

Thanks Ken--that was what I needed to know--I think I was letting mine develope too many water roots. Will watch that in the future.

Well I am getting geared up to do some brug cuttings back into the orchid moss deal..I don't root in water or in soil or soiless mix..I use alot of orchid moss for my brug cuttings..
Daisymae--my pot belly piggy passed away last year right before Thanksgiving..so she had to good long life with us..still miss her... Will post pics to show what I do with my brug cuttings....

took me awhile to find this post! it started way back in 2006!