Cuttings Video - A novice approach :)

[GreatLakesBrad]

3rd year entrenched in the hobby, tried my hand at plenty of cuttings this year. Plenty to learn. Hopefully some more mature material in the future! Always up for constructive criticism. Cheers.

LINK:
Great Lakes Bonsai - Cuttings 2019

 

[coltranem]

Thank for posting. It seems we got into the hobby around the same time. The video was a good documentation of what you have learned.

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

Compliments on the use of centimeters (once, but still!).

I like the enthusiasm and the laid back vibe.

Constructive criticism: The rooting hormone is IBA, indole butyric acid. Not IBU. IBU is commonly used for ibuprofen ;-) If you ever get your hands on some 90+% pure IBA rooting hormone and you're dissolving it, it's going to smell like literal shit due to the IBA decomposing into indole (somehwat orange in color) and butyric acid (colorless but damn smelly). Ginkgo Biloba seeds give off the same smell; butyric acid. Smell that once or twice, and I'm sure you'll never forget about this.
I'm sure some people are going to make some DIY-rooting powders with Ibuprofen. You can't stop them! But now you can tell them the difference.

Tiny addition: if you have plants that are sensitive to calcium, use a gel instead of a powder. Rooting powder is bound with calcium and clay particles to make it stick better to damp surfaces. Gels are made with binding agents that should stick just as well, but they contain way less calcium. Azaleas and other low acidity plants might perform better/faster with gels.

Disagreement: I disagree that cuttings require a lot of aftercare and that they're difficult to make. I honestly water my bonsai trees more often than my cuttings.

Positive: you seem to know what you're doing and you're not spreading bad information about the things you don't yet know. The low budget way of doing cuttings is right up my alley, we don't always need special domes and what not. Whatever works, works.

 

[AJL]

Thanks for your post- I grew a lot of my earlier pre- bonsai from cuttings so share your enthusiasm for experimentation!
To date I have successfully grown Fuchsia, Berberis , Dawn Redwood,Lilac and Willow all from larger diameter(@25mm diameter) hardwood cuttings taken in autumn. I tried Coast redwood but it failed to root. Ive also grown very large diameter willow -the size of fence posts which root easily, just keep well watered till established and ideally seal the top cuts!
Do you drill drainage holes in your plastic boxes and tennis ball tubes?

 

[GreatLakesBrad]

Compliments on the use of centimeters (once, but still!).

I like the enthusiasm and the laid back vibe.

Constructive criticism: The rooting hormone is IBA, indole butyric acid. Not IBU. IBU is commonly used for ibuprofen ;-) If you ever get your hands on some 90+% pure IBA rooting hormone and you're dissolving it, it's going to smell like literal shit due to the IBA decomposing into indole (somehwat orange in color) and butyric acid (colorless but damn smelly). Ginkgo Biloba seeds give off the same smell; butyric acid. Smell that once or twice, and I'm sure you'll never forget about this.
I'm sure some people are going to make some DIY-rooting powders with Ibuprofen. You can't stop them! But now you can tell them the difference.

Tiny addition: if you have plants that are sensitive to calcium, use a gel instead of a powder. Rooting powder is bound with calcium and clay particles to make it stick better to damp surfaces. Gels are made with binding agents that should stick just as well, but they contain way less calcium. Azaleas and other low acidity plants might perform better/faster with gels.

Disagreement: I disagree that cuttings require a lot of aftercare and that they're difficult to make. I honestly water my bonsai trees more often than my cuttings.

Positive: you seem to know what you're doing and you're not spreading bad information about the things you don't yet know. The low budget way of doing cuttings is right up my alley, we don't always need special domes and what not. Whatever works, works.

Argh, IBA indeed. And I knew that. Facepalm.

Sometimes CM is more appropriate to describe than inches... I love 'Merica but... "hey, the entire world uses the metric system..." "nah, let's go with something that makes zero sense instead!" I often wonder what the historical reasoning is behind that. Not our best move.

Interesting re: the gel - I had tried this on a few before learning about Hormex... I still have it but your knowledge on it working for different species is helpful!

Ibuprofren DIY powder... I'm dying

I'm about 80% Dutch for what it's worth, wonderful country and have visited once - incredibly friendly people. Thanks so much for watching and the feedback!

 

[GreatLakesBrad]

Thanks for your post- I grew a lot of my earlier pre- bonsai from cuttings so share your enthusiasm for experimentation!
To date I have successfully grown Fuchsia, Berberis , Dawn Redwood,Lilac and Willow all from larger diameter(@25mm diameter) hardwood cuttings taken in autumn. I tried Coast redwood but it failed to root. Ive also grown very large diameter willow -the size of fence posts which root easily, just keep well watered till established and ideally seal the top cuts!
Do you drill drainage holes in your plastic boxes and tennis ball tubes?

Absolutely re: drainage holes - yes, that is a priority especially if I try to root in peat-heavy organic soil (the coastal redwoods that succeeded). I should have mentioned that in the video as being key - thanks for that!

What approach do you take for the Dawn's? Top 3 favorite tree for me and I have 2 large (15-20 feet tall) ones in my yard that I tend to take my cuttings from... I took mine in spring/early summer with the 'throw in water' and peat organic soil approaches with limited success...

Awesome to hear re: the willows - I'm planning to take some large chunks from a tree I got permission for nearby next spring...

 

[PABonsai]

Great video. Cuttings are fun to work with.

One question, with such a high organic soil how did you prevent fungus, especially in the ball tubes?

 

[GreatLakesBrad]

Great video. Cuttings are fun to work with.

One question, with such a high organic soil how did you prevent fungus, especially in the ball tubes?

Took the top off frequently (every other day minimum) for some air movement, and once new sprouts shown, top always off containers.. otherwise didn’t take much other action to avoid it, so perhaps I got lucky on that front.

 

[coltranem]

Were you drinking an IPA at the time. They are rated in IBUs for bitterness?

 

[AJL]

Absolutely re: drainage holes - yes, that is a priority especially if I try to root in peat-heavy organic soil (the coastal redwoods that succeeded). I should have mentioned that in the video as being key - thanks for that!

What approach do you take for the Dawn's? Top 3 favorite tree for me and I have 2 large (15-20 feet tall) ones in my yard that I tend to take my cuttings from... I took mine in spring/early summer with the 'throw in water' and peat organic soil approaches with limited success...

Awesome to hear re: the willows - I'm planning to take some large chunks from a tree I got permission for nearby next spring...

for Dawn redwoods I just lopped some interesting shaped branches off in November after needle fall, trimmed them to 60cm-2 foot lengths, dipped in standard hormone rooting powder and planted about 1/3 deep in a trench in my allotment then forgot about them for 2 years! they seemed to root easily, though not as fast as Willows!

 

[GreatLakesBrad]

Were you drinking an IPA at the time. They are rated in IBUs for bitterness?

Well played. Yes actually - think it was Huma Lupa Licious from Shorts. Lotssss of IBUs.

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

Argh, IBA indeed. And I knew that. Facepalm.

Sometimes CM is more appropriate to describe than inches... I love 'Merica but... "hey, the entire world uses the metric system..." "nah, let's go with something that makes zero sense instead!" I often wonder what the historical reasoning is behind that. Not our best move.

Interesting re: the gel - I had tried this on a few before learning about Hormex... I still have it but your knowledge on it working for different species is helpful!

Ibuprofren DIY powder... I'm dying

I'm about 80% Dutch for what it's worth, wonderful country and have visited once - incredibly friendly people. Thanks so much for watching and the feedback!

It's very polite of you to call the Dutch incredibly friendly, but it makes me question if you've ever been here! It's mostly the opposite of what we're known for.
Unless you've visited the south.. Which you should definitely do if you ever visit again. If you visit at the wrong time of year, when the weather is the worst and most touristic hotspots are closed, you might just be in time to get to Noelanders (now called The Trophy) which is just across the border from Maastricht.
It's harder to find the Dutch bluntness in the south, but it might just be the accent covering it up.