This was addressed in a recent thread on the roses forum where Kim R (roseseek) posted a link to an entry on his blog that provides detailed info on the technique (with illustrations). Check it out . . .

Here is a link that might be useful: Kim's

This looks intriguing to me. I got very a very good strike rate from the Anna Olivier cuttings I recently rooting, but all the Cl Crimson Glory failed. Something that would get them to root faster might mean I could get them to be plants before rot sets in.

Please let me know how it works for you, Jackie.

Paula

I'm going to try this method in a few days, Jackie. Thanks for your very timely post!!

Sherry

Here is a link that might be useful: If only sweat were irrigation...

Saw this post on the roses forum also, and may try it since everything else I have tried so far has not been successful. Plesae let us know how it goes.

Also I have questions on whether rooting hormone is used or not, different posts have different methods....

Paula - I am just leaving for the Celebration - I will throw in some cutting of Cl Crimson Glory, in case you want to try it on them.

Jackie

Kim prefers Dip N Grow. I've got several that I started a week ago, will let all know how it goes.

Thank you, Kerin. I consciously left it as "rooting hormone of choice" because some find theirs preferable to others. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. However, I find the powders disadvantageous for several reasons. They are anhydrous, they attract moisture, and if put on too thickly, can become gummy like under cooked chicken breading, and cause the cuttings to rot. Powders come in set concentrations. The liquids, whatever brand you find and like, absorb into the cutting tissues and don't attract water. They also can be varied in concentration quite easily so if a 15X concentration fails, try a 10X or something in between. I've had my successes with about a 12.5X (half way between the 10X and 15X on the beaker). You put the same amount of concentrate in the beaker each time and vary the amount of water to create varying concentrations. The instructions provide suggestions for different types of material.

The major points to make sure you give appropriate attention are:

1. Don't leave too much water in the newspaper. If it is too wet, it will rot. It needs to just be thoroughly DAMP.
2. Make sure the bag or wrap you use to seal the "burritos" maintains the moisture in the paper. If it dries out while maturing, they will fail.
3. A few days to a week longer than the suggested two week period can help...a little. Too long, a full three weeks and longer, appears to be counterproductive. Too long without light and they seem to use up their stored stocks of nutrients and appear to be more likely to fail.

Well, I found half of a tall Bow Bells cane hanging by a thread today, so after I got 'upset' I thought I'd just use this new technique. I only had dry rooting hormone. Hopefully, the cuttings won't rot. See you in two weeks!

Sherry

Here is a link that might be useful: If only sweat were irrigation...

Kim wrote:
"I find the powders disadvantageous for several reasons. They are anhydrous, they attract moisture, and if put on too thickly, can become gummy like under cooked chicken breading, and cause the cuttings to rot. "

Well, NOW somebody tells me! ;-)

I had old powder so I figured if some is good, more is better. (Only one week to go for my first batch! Woo-hoo!)

I'm trying it. Fingers crossed!

Thanks, Jackie.

Paula

We never had much luck with powders.
The gels work far better for us, FWIW.

Jeri

Wondering if this has a better chance of success based on age of wood. Will new growth with spent flower bud still root?

Well, yesterday I "put up" about 30 cuttings from deadheading Mme Abel Chatenay. I could have ordered the Dip N Grow online but didn't. I needed it too quickly for MAC. I tapped off the excess powder. Hoping for the best.

Sherry

Here is a link that might be useful: If only sweat were irrigation...

OK - here is my status update on this experiment. Today (2 weeks and 2 days after they were wrapped up) I unwrapped 6 cuttings of Le Vesuve. Three of them were larger, old wood, and three of them were spindly new wood. All of them, of course, had the remains of the flowers cut off, and had been dipped in liquid rooting hormone. All of the leaves removed, they had been wrapped up in very well wrung out newspaper, and put in plastic bags, and then into a cooler.

None of the cuttings had rotted or grown any fungus on them. None of them had visible roots sticking out. However, ALL of them had callused, and ALL of them had small white bumps growing where they were callused, which I took for the beginning of roots.

I potted them up in one gallon pots, which I then put on a counter which is surrounded by windows on our glassed in back porch. It gets a lot of light but no direct sun. They were put under an upside down small fish tank, which I use to protect rooting things from my cats - who spend most of their time on that porch, and who previously delighted in throwing cuttings in plastic bags onto the floor! Anyway, now the cats like to lay on top of the fish tank - they take turns.

I will let you know what happens next.

Jackie

Congratulations Jackie! One thing...if you have a high level of humidity where you are, you may want to lift that fish tank to let in some air. In Encino, my failures were mainly due to covering cuttings. It's too humid here and they rot. In Canyon Country, it was DRY and they'd dry out in a day or two if I didn't cover them. I understand why you need to protect from the cats amusing themselves, but wonder if a screened frame might not provide you greater success? I'd hate for you to get this far and then have it be too humid/wet for them. Kim

Thanks Kim - we are still in the middle of our nuclear winter here - it is cold for this time of year, and supposed to rain again tomorrow! So, I guess I would say it is damp out. I will lift up the fish tank once in a while - my DH wanted to put it up on pieces of wood so that the cuttings didn't get too hot or humid - hot is not a problem right now, but I guess humid might be eventually.

Jackie

Cool! Do keep us updated. It's great to discover a new rooting method. Now I have to go try this myself.

I have a similar report to Jackie's but with one difference. I also wrapped my cuttings (from Jackie's particularly nice clone of Climbing Crimson Glory) in barely damp newspaper and a plastic bag for two weeks and two days. This morning I opened them to find nice callousing and the white area that looks like the start of roots. However, one cutting also had cottony fuzz on one bud. Too bad. I cut that part off and put the rest of the cutting into a clean gallon pot, and the other cuttings in a different pot. I set them both under dappled shade on the north side of my house to see what happens next.

Rosefolly

I was cutting off one of those long octopus stems that was heading in the wrong direction on Abe Darby so decided to try it since I had it handy.

At 19 days one of the four fairly large diameter new wood cuttings has definitely callused but with no roots yet, and the others look like they are starting to callus. I wrapped them back up and will check for roots in another week or so.

They've been in the house where we keep the temperature at about 78/80 degrees. I'm interested in how it's working for you all. Thanks for the reports. I'll keep you posted on my little experiment.

Kim gave me some cuttings last winter. I used that method on them. The first cuttings were Rugelda, and I now have two plants and a possible third. With the other three varieties, all cuttings callused, but one variety had some fungus by the time I took it out of the newspaper and all of those died. I moved the callused cuttings into bands in a terrarium, but most eventually died, rather than growing roots. I still have one in a band.
Jill

Jill, I'd suspect the humidity was too high in the terrarium. Try them uncovered, outdoors in partial shade. I plant them deeply in the pots so the majority of the cane is buried in the soil. It seems to prevent them from drying out while permitting the green wood to photosynthesize what's needed to get them going. I've lost VERY few so far and I am thrilled!

So far, I've gotten viable plants from every variety I've tried it with except for Souv. de Rose Marie, which I'm not really upset about. The other Lens Mutabilis offspring are more than enough to keep me going with things to play with.

With the "Dark Ages" of rosedom we're falling deeply into, supporting our remaining nurseries and all of us passing along these plants is what is going to keep them around until things improve. It's not just fun, but necessary. Had it not been for those lone voices in the wilderness maintaining odd, obscure and historic roses until the last Renaissance arrived, there wouldn't have been anything for us to resurrect. Kim

Just opened my Bow Bells (a little late). The three cuttings were black and had some furry fuzz growing. I noticed there was condensation inside the bag. Air temperature in the house is about 79. Too warm for this method? I checked the Mme Chatenay cuttings. They were still green, so I'll try to root them the regular way rather than lose them.

Sherry

Here is a link that might be useful: If only sweat were irrigation...

Sherry, it sounds as if your paper was too wet. You really have to wring it out so it is ONLY damp, not wet enough to form condensation. Your 79 degress may have been too warm, too. Is there anywhere you can keep it a whole lot cooler, say in the sixties or a bit below? It's that in the work room beside the garage because there are no windows and I seldom open the door. All outside walls are densely shaded so it doesn't heat up. Styrofoam roofs help with that, too! Kim

Tried this since everything else I have tried has failed.

I took two cuttings from three plants - one long cutting cut in two.
Peace - just planted this year, had not bloomed yet.
Ards Rover - planted this year, with spent bloom.
Lady Hillingdon, planted last year, with a spent bloom that was removed a couple of weeks before I took the cutting.
Opened the first two, cuttings complete black, and peace was nice and moldy.

Opened Lady Hillingdon and one had callused!!!

This is huge for me since I have tried so many methods and cannot get anything to work.

Lesson learned for me - paper may have been too damp, older and thicker cuttings work better.

With only three roses not large enough trail to assume newer roses won't work.

I will try some more....

Kim, it's either the refrigerator or nothing. My garage is about 95. 60's are gone bye bye until maybe November. That might be a better time to try this method for me if it requires cool temps.

I just checked my Mme Abel Chatenay cuttings. (I know it's been a long time. I was procrastinating cuz I didn't want to see the bad news.) Two cuttings were callused!! So I'll stick them in pots.

I'll try not wetting the newspaper completely. I squeezed out as much water as would come out.

Thanks, Kim.

Sherry

Here is a link that might be useful: If only sweat were irrigation...

You're welcome Sherry! I know the method is going to take some tweaking to work in other areas, as does everything else. Originally, I felt thicker cuttings were going to be more successful. That doesn't explain the 18 foam cups of China roses (really thin, twiggy cuttings, a quarter the gauge of an eyebrow pencil) out front pushing roots out the bottoms of their soil balls. It also doesn't explain the thin cutting of Escapade developing nicely into a maturing plant in a pot. I do tend to try to make thinner cuttings longer than thicker ones and that appears to have helped. The China cuttings are all five to seven inches long. For any new shoots sprouting from the, I just cut them off leaving the side buds alone so there isn't a lot of softer growth. The "joints" and increased growth buds appear to help, like the traditional "heel" always suggested to take with cuttings.

Apricot Bells, Patricia Beucher, Jacqueline Humery, Pink Clouds, Mutabilis, Annie Laurie McDowell, Sevillana, Ebb Tide (simply because the prunings were TOO nice to toss and to determine if the method MIGHT work with it), Rosarium Uetersen, some Wichurana hybrids of my own creation, Silver Moon, Escapade, the two China roses, a purple polyantha, some of my Fedtschenkoana hybrids, IXL from a few inches to four feet long, Dawn Crest, cuttings I sent home with a friend which were treated and wrapped here, and I don't remember what else. The genetics play a role as some just don't have the genetic ability to form callus well nor to form roots which will support the plant efficiently. The level of stored nutrients available in the cutting will determine success. Any pathogens already on the cutting when wrapped should also play a part. I'm not sure how wide the range of moisture there is with the paper, but too wet WILL cause failure as they suffocate, drown, rot. I haven't experienced what I might consider too dry yet. It appears temperatures higher than the sixties degrees F range are too high and inhibit callus formation.

As I've collected the cuttings, I have dropped them into a bucket of water to hold them until I was ready for processing and wrapping. Perhaps if they are too dry when wrapped, that might play a role in failure? I collected, cut, stripped foliage, bundled and tied together with twist tie and a strung label on the tie, then dropped into the water where they waited for collection to finish. Then, I'd shake off the water, dunk them into the Dip'n'Grow and wrap. The wrap would then go into a plastic bag, sometimes several together, then into the work room.

I haven't tried any really soft cuttings yet. My impression is they would benefit from mist propagation to prevent them from collapsing where harder wood, perhaps better described as hard wood cuttings, seem more appropriate for the method. Traditionally, you'd use a flowering stem from a recently shattered flower for propagation. I have used that with the wraps and they have worked. I've also used wood older, more mature than that and that has worked. I haven't used anything newer or softer than that with it. They have just 'felt' too immature.

Hey Sherry, do you have an old rolling pin you wouldn't mind getting printing ink on? That might make a make-shift wringer for your paper. You should be able to squeeze out even more water than possible by hand, and it should be a lot easier on your (MY) hands!

Tried this last week on Peace and Blossomtime.Too early to tell on Blossomtime, but Peace is starting to callus. Thank you again for sharing this method. Looking forward to hearing from others who are having success with it (especially since i have tried numerous others and failed).

Congratulations! FUN, isn't it? The China cuttings I potted when I created this post, are leafing out! Kim

Here is a link that might be useful: Cutting Wrapping June 21 post

Sad to say that all 5 of the Le Vesuve cuttings that I tried this on died quite promptly after being potted up (2 were put outside in the shade, and 3 were put under glass on my back porch, but with plenty of air).

I have found Le Vesuve difficult to root using other methods in the past (best success is to layer it, but that takes forever), so I will keep trying. All of the cutting had callused (after 2 weeks), but none had any roots when I potted them. So, next time I will wait 3 weeks to see if they actually develop any roots.

I am sure this will work eventually!

Jackie

My cuttings of Jackie's especially nice clone of Cl Crimson Glory all died soon after being potted up as well. I suspect that I am not meant to grow this plant. I'll just admire Jackie's. And Jon's.

Rosefolly

Interesting, Jackie. After I burrito'd the dozens of Mme Abel Chatenay cuttings I had one left that was overlooked. So I stuck it in my favorite semi-shady spot with a bell-shaped vase over it like a cloche. The squirrels and such like to chew on things and dig them up so I thought this would protect it and since we were in a drought, I thought it would be good for moisture retention as well. Well, it is doing wonderfully. The two calloused-but-no-roots cuttings that came out of the burritos and were potted up went brown within a day or two for me, too.

I was able to root one of two Le Vesuve cuttings last year just by sticking it in a band pot and leaving it in a saucer of water in the shade. I guess our humidity is good for something. I potted it up and gave it to a friend.

I'm excited about this Mme Abel Chatenay cutting doing so well. I will love having another one of her.

Sherry

Here is a link that might be useful: If only sweat were irrigation...

This is one area which is going to require "tweaking" to fit your personal conditions. Some will be cool and damp enough to leave them in full sun. Others, (like mine appears to be) will require more shade and some watering.

Keep track of your prevailing conditions as you work the cuttings and let's see if we can come up with some suggestions to make it more "cook book" for those who aren't as in tune with their gardens and gardening. Thanks! Kim

For the chronically lazy (me!), the stick-it-up-to-the-tip-into-shady-ground-and-ignore-it method does work, given luck and an easy-to-root variety. For special roses, not, but if you've got a bunch of cuttings and a little shady spot...

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I wonder if planting the whole cutting up to the tip will keep them from drying out? There is that tightrope to maneuver squarely between them drying out (too dry) or rotting (too wet)

hoovb, that's what I've been doing with the cuttings in the foam cups. I figured burying the majority of the cutting in the soil would keep it damp, cool and mostly dark while the roots formed. I don't grow Le Vesuve, so I can't comment on the particular variety, but it's working with the others so far. Once they begin to leaf out, I transplant into gallon cans, raising the level so only the bottom third or so of the cutting remains under ground, providing more root zone room for the further development. Some stop right there and don't go any further. Many others continue growing and produce nice plants. Other than mist, in the appropriate conditions and done properly, has given me greater success. But, that is expensive and room absorbing, something better left to more of a commercial situation than hobbiest pleasure. Kim

Rosefolly - when I try again with Le Vesuve I will also try with my Cl Crimson Glory. Maybe I can produce a little plant for you. Not going to happen until it STOPS BEING COLD AND RAINY (again!), however.

Jackie

Jackie, unless it's too cold and rainy for YOU to be outside, this might be better weather to try rooting again. Kim

Jackie, that would be wonderful. Thank you!

Rosefolly

A couple of questions pls
When stripping all the foliage, does that not damage the main cane you are trying to root? I have been clipping it off and wondering if it makes a difference.
What is a 12.5x concentration of dip m grow? How many parts concentrate to how much water pls?
Also, I like the idea of doing these in bulk. Wondering if leaving the twist tie on when wrappedwill damage the cuttings or not.
Thank you!

I've not had any issues with damaging canes or buds by simply pulling the foliage off the stems. I figured the chances of the remaining stipules and stem parts remaining on the cuttings would provide dying material which would be more likely to introduce mold in the wraps.

The 12.5X concentration is about half between the 10X and 15X markers on the vial included in the package. It felt as though the 10X might be too strong, while the 15X seemed a bit weak, so I compromised, with pretty good results.

I haven't left ties or anything on the cuttings while wrapped. I didn't want anything other than the cuttings and the paper so nothing would rust, be more likely to rot or need to be dealt with when unwrapping them for potting, but I guess you could leave them tied together. Kim