Rose Propagation - Four Weeks Later

It has been four weeks now since I attempted to propagate some cut roses. They were already wilted and looked past redemption, but the outlook has been positive so far.
The rose stems have sprouted leaves and some leaf stem, and they look alive and well. It noticed some decay from two leaves touching the wet bag, but I have pinched them off.
The leaves are vibrant and I expected to see roots when I gently tipped the pot over today, but I was shocked to discover NO ROOTS! Oh no!
I think the leaves were subsisting on the water in the bag, the nutrients from the old stem, and photosynthesis from the new leaves. I decided to take action since this can only last for so long.

RESCUE EXPERIMENT #1: First, I cut the stems shorter to remove the now rotted bases. This revealed healthy new stem.
I'm hoping the base of this growing leaf and stem can grow some roots so I am planting them with their bases touching the soil. In order to avoid rot, I sprayed the top of the soil, the stems, the leaves, and the inside of the plastic bag with a mild mixture of water, baking soda, and dishwashing soap.
RESCUE EXPERIMENT #2: I took a stem bud cutting from one stem that had a good, healthy leaf and stem base combination.
I kept this cutting fresh in water that had a little of the anti-fungal mix in it.
I dabbed some rooting powder on the base of the stem bud cutting as opposed to dipping it into the bottle. The cutting is just too small and short!
I didn't want to risk using potting soil, so I found some small aquarium gravel I had handy and washed it clean with soap and water. Then I gently planted my stem bud cutting into this wet medium. I'm really not sure if this will work, but I'm all about the experiments for these rose cuttings because I really want them to work out! (And I've got nothing to lose!)
Then I sealed the stem bud cutting into a plastic bag, and tucked it away into a shady location with indirect sunlight.
RESCUE EXPERIMENT #3: The poor stem that had the stem bud removed now has a gaping hole. There is still another leaf set below it, so I'm going to try and minimize the damage (which is pretty hard considering what I've done to it!)
I don't have any sphagnum moss, so I found a cotton ball and pulled it into a fluffy state. I also collected some scotch tape.
I dipped the cotton ball into my anti-fungal tainted water and wrapped it around the giant hole in the stem. Then I gently pressed the excess water out.
And sealed it all up with tape! I'm sure the "real" gardeners out there would cry if they saw this tutorial, but I'm really not sure how else to fill this hole up! We'll see what happens.
Then I placed this oddly bandaged stem back into the soil, with the lowest bud touching the soil like his other buddy, and sealed it all up in my clear plastic bag.

I hope at least one of these experiments will work. I'd be really, really disappointed if they don't. Perhaps I've used up all of my green thumb magic on the impatiens and dahlias. Those propagate like nobody's business!

PREVIOUS UPDATES!
Rose and Geranium Propagation - Week 1
Rose and Geranium Propagation - Week 2
Rose and Geranium Propagation - Week 3

Happy Gardening!

UPDATE 05/03/2011 - This particular rose propagation experiment didn't work out. The cuttings didn't have enough airflow and the environment was too moist so the cuttings went moldy/mildewy. Also, I believe that the rose stem was not fresh enough. I also do not recommend the corn meal idea. I think it just encourages more mold due to the sugar content.

Alternative option: I tried propagating stems of rose cut from a live plant, both miniature variety and large variety, and it worked. I took a 5 node stem, not too young or too woody, added rooting hormone to the base, planted it into a shady spot in the garden, and watered regularly to keep the soil moist but not soggy. It will take a while to root, but it will keep growing. My propagated rose stems survived through winter and are doing well.

Good luck with your propagating!

Impatien Propagation - Three Weeks Later

I'm really loving this flower propagation thing. I have so many more plants now than I began with! I can't wait until they start blooming. It's going to be beautiful!The little impatien cuttings are growing really nicely. I decided to check up on how all the stem cuttings that had no roots last week are doing, and I was pleasantly surprised.
They've branched out lots of little roots and they look like little impatien trees! It's pretty cute.
The roots kind of remind me of noodles...
Out of the 20+ stem cuttings that I have made, only 3 don't have roots. That's a pretty good success rate. Two of them were kind of moldy or something, so I guess I might have over watered those ones or tucked them too close to each other.

Another thing that I noticed with the impatiens is that the roots grow out from all over the cutting base- not just from the leaf node. Perhaps it is not necessary to ensure a leaf node at the bottom cut for impatiens?
I moved all the rooted impatien cuttings into a big pot with 3 of the dahlia cuttings and some of the marigolds I started from seed left over from last year. I think it will look quite lovely when they start blooming, and it's satisfying to know that all of these flowers were "made from scratch" in a sense.

I added more marigolds after I took this picture. I have so many that there's really no need to be frugal. I think I might actually have too many marigolds. I didn't expect the saved seeds to grow so well.

LAST WEEK!
Impatien Propagation - Week Two

Happy Gardening!

Dahlia Propagation - Three Weeks Later

Another week has gone by! My how time flies! It's time to see how the dahila stem cuttings are progressing.I gently tipped the dahlia cuttings out of their pot. Unlike last week, the cuttings did not separate from the soil easily. Do you know why?
Because they had grown roots! And the roots were actually clinging to clumps of soil! Despite gentle rinsing in the water, some clumps of dirt just wouldn't separate from the roots. That was okay with me; it's a good sign that the roots are growing well and doing their job.
Check out this Dahlia! Not only does it have a flower bud that will likely bloom in the near future, it also has an amazing root system!
It's a whole bushel of roots! What a difference one week makes, huh? And this was just a bunch of tiny root buds last week!

So far, I have found the most success in propagating dahlia cuttings and impatien cuttings. I have had a 100% success rate with these dahlia cuttings, and the impatiens are doing similarly well. It's fantastic!
The dahlias that I transplanted last week are doing really well. Their leaves look alive and fresh, and they hold their shape, so I know that water transfer from the roots to the leaves is going smoothly.I turned the pot sideways, and I noticed that the roots are growing so well that they're actually growing out of the bottom of the pot!

I hope you're having fun with your gardening too! If you have a dahlia in your garden this year, don't forget to try this fun project of propagating them!

Happy Gardening!

Advertising Rate Change Starting July And Mytutorlist.com Upgrades

I just want to send out a huge thank you to all the lovely people that help support this blog and Mytutorlist.com through paid advertising! It's thanks to you that students can come freely to Mytutorlist.com to find academic support and resources. Mytutorlist.com also gives tutors a place to find teaching opportunities and other jobs.

With a new upgrade this month, Mytutorlist.com also offers a place for anyone to buy and sell books, furniture, used items, etc. It's free to make a post, so start posting!

More upgrades are coming soon to make Mytutorlist.com even better, and I'm so excited about them. I'll be sure to let you know once they are available.

For those of you who may be interested in advertising on Mytutorlist.com and/or this blog, the time is now.

I look forward to introducing you as one of our newest sponsors.

*************************************************************

Impatien Propagation - Two Weeks Later

It's two weeks later for the little impatien cuttings too. Do you want to see how they are doing? Well, here are some happy pics :)
Based on the sorry condition of a few side leaves, this impatien stem cutting is from the original batch that was placed into a plastic bag (which you should not do!) It has one very long root!
This delightful cutting has very nice leaves so it was part of a batch that was planted a little later. It has a good collection of little rootlets growing out, and some flowers have developed at the top. I would normally pinch back any flowers on a cutting, but since there are already a good deal of rootlets to support the cutting with water, I think it will be okay. If you are wary, you can pinch back the biggest blooms so that the plantlet can focus on the roots more before the younger blooms open up.
This cutting only has a few roots, but they will develop readily over the next few weeks. I am confident it will do just fine.

I have moved any cuttings with root growth to a bright but shady location in my garden where they can continue their development without too much drying sun. I have watered them well and expect them to survive without any problems.

Propagating new impatiens was very easy, huh? In two weeks, I have already found cuttings with developing roots. Some of the cuttings, however, have not developed roots yet. I have repotted them and will check on them again in another 2 weeks time as they can take up to 4 weeks to put down roots.

UPDATE!
Impatien Propagation - Week Three

Happy Gardening!

Dahlia Propagation - Two Weeks Later

While I was checking up on the 3 week old geranium cuttings, I also checked on the Dahlia stem cuttings I propagated 2 weeks ago.
All of the cuttings are still alive. The original larger leaves look a bit pale and thirsty (prompting me to shower them regularly with water), but additional leaves are developing readily.
I gently tipped the contents out and rinsed the stems in a pot of water to inspect the progress of root development. Almost all of the stems show some root growth. Some stems had a single strong root growing out.
Some show budding root tips all along the buried portion of the stem. It's quite amazing.
Some are a little farther along in root development than others. I put this particular stem in its own pot since I know for sure that it will do fine. My friend Joanne will probably call dibs on it when it's ready to transplant :) (Right, Jo?)
It's amazing to watch Nature at work. I love how resilient these plant species are in trying to create new life from cut-off stems and leaves.

UPDATES!
Dahlia Propagation - Week Three

Happy Gardening!

Rose And Geranium Propagation - Three Weeks Later

Well, it's three weeks later! Let's see how the rose and geranium cuttings are doing, shall we? The geranium cuttings are still alive and well. One of the single leaf-with-its-stem is starting to yellow, but all the other leaves and stems are doing well. I have taken the plastic off for about half a week now.In a moment of curiosity, I decided to gently tip the container upside down to see if there were any roots developed yet. I rinsed the cuttings in a pot of water and look what I discovered - ROOTS!
Some of the stems had just a few little roots, but they are good sized roots that look pretty good! I'm a bit confused as to how a new plant will grow from a single leaf, but oh well!
This single leaf stem had lots of roots! Wow, I'm impressed. It also appears to have something that looks like a base where other leaves could grow from, so I think it will do well.
This particular cutting had some pretty good-sized root development, so I decided it was good enough to plant. I think I could have given it another week, but I'm impatient :P
I dug a big hole beside the original parent geranium and buried it with love. Ah, my first propagated geranium. What bliss!
I repotted the rest of the geranium stems cuttings. The 2 root and lotta roots single stem cuttings got their own pot. Once they have some more leaf development, I can transplant them or give them away.

Out of the 6 cuttings that I started, 3 of them do not have any root development yet (50% success rate). Surprisingly, the largest proper stem cutting is one of them. I wonder if the thicker stem is more aged and doesn't develop roots as easily anymore. The perfect cutting was a thinner stem cutting from the top or side. I am going to let them continue to attempt to grow roots since they have not wilted.
The geranium leaf cutting experiment shows that the leaf cuttings don't work. Look how shrivelly they are! Terrible...
The rose stem cutting experiment is going very well. Two of the stems worked, and one didn't.
Look at the wonderful red and orangy leaves growing out from the successful stems! They're beautiful.
They're reaching out now for more sunshine. This is a good sign that the stems have probably taken root. I am leaving the plastic bag on for another week. It is still sealed with the twist tie, but I am opening it each week to give it some fresh air.

Happy Gardening!

UPDATES!

Rose and Geranium Propagation - Week 1
Rose and Geranium Propagation - Week 2
Rose and Geranium Propagation - Week 3
Rose Propagation - Week 4

Happy Gardening!