rooting rosemary cuttings

Help!

While attempting to put up shelves for grow lights and seedlings, my husband managed to drop a shelf with attached lights onto my prize rosemary plant that I've babied through two winters now. Four big branches were broken off (Waaaaah!) and I want to try to salvage as much as possible. The last time this kind of thing happened I put the branch in water where it slowly died and dried up. Is there any way to successfully root any of these casualties? Should I be cutting them towards the tips where the stems are more flexible (less woody)? I stuck one of the branches into some potting soil along with a few sprouting peas, but would like more expert advice on what to try with the rest before it's too late.

Thanks in advance for any helpful hints!

McCool...yes, use the tips for rooting. I would slightly bend them from the tip and where the "flexible area" meets then more "woody" area is where you want to snip them. Then strip the lower leaves about half way to two-thirds up from where you snipped them.

If you have not rooting hormone powder, then you can use ground cinnamon. (Moisten the stem end and dip into the cinnamon.) Stick the cuttings into a fine potting soil and water in. (Use a pencil to make a hole in the potting soil and stick the cuttings in the hole, this keeps you from wiping off the cinnamon.)

Store the pots/trays/containers/whatever out of direct sunlight but yet not in the dark and keep moist. Only water the soil, not the cuttings. For best ease, put the containers w/cuttings in a plastic white grocery bag and lightly close the top to help hold in moisture. Open the top as days go by to allow it to aerate and allow fresh air inside.

Hope this is helpful to you!

Shoe.

Shoe! Does the cinnamon actually contain rooting hormone the way willow bark does, or are you using it more as an anti-fungal?

I actually have a rosemary plant that's been overwintered for several years now... and I started it from a cutting that just happened to root in water... no plan involved, as the rosemary was being used as filler in a flower arrangement! But I think sticking the cutting in moist (not sopping) potting mix as Shoe suggests is the way to go. Plastic wrap or plastic bags work well for keeping humidity high around the cuttings, which keeps them from wilting before they grow good roots... I like to stick a couple of chopsticks or something into the pot with the cutting to make sure the plastic doesn't come into contact with the cutting itself... Otherwise, the moisture that condenses on the inside of the plastic will contact the leaves and could cause rotting. A little ventilation as Shoe suggests will also help prevent problems.

Good luck!

Howdy, Critter. To my knowledge cinnamon does not contain any auxins (rooting homones, in this case) that contribute to stimulating root production. But yes, you hit the nail on the head, it does work as an antifungal (definitely) and can possibly contribute to staving off certain molds/mildews/damping off, etc (the verdict is still out on that one).

Hey, Critter...I'm thinking that rooting rosemary in a float tray might be a great and easy way to propagate them...consistent moisture to the cuttings but yet not an overload on the topgrowth. What'cha think...sound good to you?

Shoe.

To save everyone a bit of grief I read that rosemary can be rooted only in a green glass. I bought one at a thrift shop but after many tries it didn't work.

Thanks so much for the tips, everyone. I hope to try this weekend. There was another small branch that had been broken ---- just found it this morning. Boy, he really did a job on my poor plant!

That float tray idea sounds good, Shoe! Somebody posted DIY plans last year for a hydroponic type arrangement where cuttings got a spray of water... sheesh, can't come up with the specifics tonight... will try to hunt up the thread... I remember he said it worked very well for rooting lavender.

I don't know about the green glass... My one rosemary branch that rooted in water did so in an opaque ceramic pitcher!

McCool, I hope you can salvage some of those broken branches... Is the main plant done in, or is it just looking rather battered?

Here it is! VbSparky posted the idea, along with lots of great how-to pictures! http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/495954/

Hi critter,

The plant looks pretty battered, but it's a BIG plant, so hopefully it will survive. This is the first rosemary that I ever successfully wintered over. If I can get any of the cuttings to root it would be a good "insurance policy".

to all

Thanks for the tips....particularly the cinnamon one...I have never tried to root my own rosemary but will give it a shot this year.

HM

Here's an update for anyone who's interested ---- about a dozen of the cuttings seem to have "taken". Hurray!

Now I could use a bit more advice from the experts. When should I get them out of the seed-starter trays and into pots? Also, I think they may have some insect pest or other, but I hesitate to spray them with Neem because I know that can cause problems with young seedlings and am afraid the same may hold true with these newly rooted ones. Any suggestions (organic ones, that is)?