I think the cuttings on the Australis were youngish, is that what you meant? The cuttings on verticillata and thomsonii weren't though, I think verticillata was just out of water/soil too long, and thomsonii I am not sure. Whatever it was it depresses me, I hate to lose anything, and I was especially excited to get the thomsonii....
Tugged a little on the dark pink carnosa this morning, and it feels like it might have anchored itself in there already - except for the yellow color, it looks and feels fine.
Cuttings arrive yellow - bad?
Jen...I would try putting it into just pure perilite, moisen it down with a little super thrive water and put it in some sort of humid thing like one of those litter Pepsi bottles cut in half & then the put back together with the plant inside (minus the screw top lid). Then set the thing outside in good light with no sun on it. Check it every 3rd day for water (I lift it to see if it is light) & water when it starts to dry out.
If it was still looking good a last week, I would say it survived the trip OK, it may be an adjustment problem or not enough light. Good luck with them at any rate.
Marcy
Marcy, here is what is now left of the actual cutting of australis Lisa, there IS one node left on there ...what do you guys think are the chances of something so small rooting?
As for the others, they have no leaves left at all, so this one, by comparison, looks great! I have some perlite and plastic containers I could sub for the soda bottle, so maybe with the australis I will try your method, the others I will wait and see what happens. I am thinking of putting them all outside, the humidity out there should be good.
I had one root in perlite that was just a brown stick with a tiny bit of green on it...I personally think your chances are excellent...
Jen, I would root that one in water with some nutrients, and change it frequently. That way you will be able to keep an eye on what is going on. I have also rooted pieces that small in pure pearlite like Marcy suggested. I just don't cover my cuttings, as they tend to rot when bagged or bottled.
S
I would poke a hole in the wet perilite with a pencil, set the cutting into it, very gently secure it with a bobbypin (not a hairpin, but a bobbypin ,...or you could use an opened paperclip) ), then cover the joints with a little more perilite and water again...then set it where it will stay moist for a few days at a time. I use an aquarium, but since you only have the one...you could use the bottle method, or a clear pitcher with the lid open like Christina shows on her website for cuttings.
This is the way I root most cuttings and it is the one I have the most success with. I have rotted so many cuttings trying to use the water method, I never use that anymore except with common and very hardy cuttings that I really don't mind it they don't make it. Some do OK & root that way...but when I don't want to chance it...I go with the perilite.
Lately I have been setting the little cups of cuttings on moistened spagnum moss in the aquairium and that seems to work even better. Some rooted so fast and much that their roots came out the bottom holes and were all entwined into the moss. Ha. I had to cut the cups away to get all the roots out.
Marcy
Good advice, Marcy...!!! Yes, that australis cutting looks VERY tender and young...
Well, it is official, the carnosa cuttings are rooted, and the outer edges of the leaves are getting green! Australis is in perlite in a 2" pot, set inside one of those half pound clear deli containers, with another same size deli container upside down on top of it, so it kind of makes a little capsule. I have it indoors though, not outside, but it's in a warm, bright spot. If I put it outside, it becomes part of the Squirrel Amusement Park. The leaves still feel firm and look good. I am determined that this one will make it! The girl who sent me the cuttings also sent me a cuttings link that had some good stuff in it.
Thanks for all of your advice!
ROTFLMBO - "Squirrel Amusement Park!"
Karen
Ha! You wouldn't be laughing if you looked out the window and saw one of those little mother&%#@&$'s furiously digging in your brand new $35 pot of tender new sigillatis plants. You'd be reaching for the 12-gauge.
Jen....don't tell me the squirrels got to your sigillatis!! I know that was a big concern of yours. Time to get a dog!! My dog goes crazy at the sight of a squirrel, and scares the living daylight out of them...hehe.
Very few things inspire violence in me - however, I'm with you, mess my hoyas and look out!!! (sorry, the visual of the squirrel amusement park is still funny!)
Karen
Bh34
I am, also, ROTFLMBO, visualizing the squirrel amusement park!!! What's your share of the take?? LOL
Larry
This message was edited Jul 26, 2007 1:50 PM
No, Gabi - the sigillatis is safe. It is outdoors, but it is in the least squirrel-accessible location. I was just using it as an example of worst case scenario.
I am almost embarrassed to say this, but I will, since I know I am amoung like-minded plant weirdos. For the first week or so, I was actually bringing the sigillatis INSIDE at night....I am not sure why, we have no nocturnal squirrels that I know of...and the deer usually don't mess with the hanging plants....but you know I am a little paranoid about real or imagined rampant hoya thieves in my neighborhood. I imagine them lurking through the backyard, coming upon my plants and saying "Whoah! A sigillatis - what a score!!!!" I will wake up in the morning and my poor sigillatis will be gone, in the hands of god knows who....
But, I got over it. The sigillatis, along with all my other hoyas, stays outside at night now. (Though one of the first things i do when I get up is peek out the window and make sure they are still all there!)
Yeah, I know, I'm weird.
No, you are NOT weird, those 'other' folks out there are Weird!!! 8>)) Depends on the neighborhood, just when you think everything is all right, ...watch out...!
Larry
Darn. I was wondering why the sigillatis wasn't outside when I came by trying to steal it!!
No, just kidding Jen. Even if I KNEW where you lived, I would never steal your pride and joy. But on a TOTALLY different note, you should consider leaving your more *rare* hoyas outside at night...you know, for the early morning sun. Hehe ;)
No Jen...you're not weird. There was a time I used to carry mine (when I only had a little tray full) back & forth in for the night & out for the day. Ha.
We that love our hoyas can all relate to that worry.
As far as the squirrels..you might want to think about making or getting a little cage to put the plants in when outside. I remember seeing on the cactus forum somewhere where a gal had built a dog kennel sized cage for all her plants (sort of like a greenhouse..only just made of hardware cloth), as she lived in a wooded area like you, and couldn't keep the squirrels and other wildlife out of her prize plants. It worked like a charm.
Then you could just watch the amusement park scenario take place on the roof of the cage. Ha
Marcy
Oh, I could imagine how those squirrels would react to being locked out of something, they would have a real problem with it!
I would do something like that, the cage, if I were planning on staying here long term, but I am not. Now it is a matter of putting the plants in spots that the squirrels are not likely to climb up or jump on. So far so good!
Jen...having grown this plant for years and lost hundreds of cuttings....grow H. sigallatis dry...and like H. carnosa.
Gabi...your H. rigida MAY be H. pottsii...doesn't look like H. rigida...but then, flowers will tell.
Just thought I would mention it incase you started trading....
Carol
PS Nice scores!!! That H. serpens is awesome!!!
Having seen Gabi's rigida in person ( that was the one with the peduncle on it, right Gabi? :-) I wasn't sure what it could be not ever having seen rigida in person...it doesn't look like the pottsi I have, but now that I think about pictures I have seen of pottsi, you might be right...and I wouldn't be surprised. The hoyas they had there came from Ted Green, so I would imagine that is where they got their names from too, but someone got things confused, because some of them were definately mislabeled - like the so-called latifolia Gabi got, and they had a retusa there with a name beginning with a "P" and there was also that dischidia that sort of looks like H linearis but not quite - it is much thicker and more succulent. So the rigida possibly being wrong doesn't surprise me.
Carol, I grow all my hoyas on the dry side, even bella, so sigillatis will get the same treatment, thank you though, I haven't been able to find too much information on it. It just finally dried out this week -that means it took over 2 weeks to dry, AND it has been outside!! Not good. It looks fine though, when I finally had to water it, I did not soak the whole pot, just the top few inches, which is kinda how I water all my EA plants now. I haven't decided about repotting yet, but it will spend the winter in the one choice coveted spot here: the foyer atrium, with skylights, and no gas heat, but it doesn't get too cold. In fact, this winter I am going to try to fit as many plants as I can in there. It is just too pitiful watching them try to survive in the main part of the house.
Oh...I never thought that rigida could be mislabed. But I wouldn't be surprised, cause as Jen said my variegated macrophylla was mislabed as latifolia. Well, I'll be happy either way. Thanks for pointing that our Carol :)
Gabi
Just wanted to let you all know that I pulled the little Australis Lisa out of the perlite tonight and we have what looks like 3 or 4 very healthy looking half inch roots!!! I paged back thru this thread and it looks like I put it into the perlite around July 26th, so that didn't take very long at all. :-)
Thanks for the suggestions and the help, everyone...I will keep her in her little covered enclosure, it gets some air thru the seams where the lids meet, and give the roots some time to develope...it is so great to be able to come here and learn something from every one elses experiences, I put it in the perlite as per one suggestion, watered it with nutrients as per another, and got results....seems like no big deal, just a little cutting that some people would just throw away, but I am very happy that it might make it!
ok, so now it has roots...I am also noticing a little black stuff on the lower stem where the roots are, probably the fungus someone mentioned is a problem when rooting in perlite.
What do I do now? I was going to just pot it up in my mix this morning, but figured I'd ask ...should I treat it for the fungus first?