Japanese Maple cuttings [From start to finish: A Guide]

[Bravura Bonsai]

2 WEEK UPDATE WITH PICS

The cuttings in total shade in my shed however we still green 10days after planting and they only started losing moisture and curling up about 3days ago. Even more interesting is how they didnt turn brown and become hard. They are still attached to the plant and they look like a tree that needs water. I think they will root and i will have jap maple cuttings. Also the ones in my shed inspired me to take semi softwood cutting thicker than a pencil with lots of foliage on them. My logic is this: if airlayering works then i should be able to root a thick branch just like how you would take an airlayering but instead of leaving the tree attached whilst it roots you just removed the bit you want to air layer and root it as a cutting instead. I took some small branched nothing too big and i will update that also. Keeping the cuttings away from too much light is probably a bad idea do not do it. The first pic is the wilted pair of cuttings and the second pic with lush foliage is my attempt and rooting cuttings that are too thick and have too much foliage.

 

[Dkdhej]

That logic of yours is quite bold.

You have always failed making cuttings with little twigs and now you gonna try a whole branch?

 

[Bravura Bonsai]

That logic of yours is quite bold.

You have always failed making cuttings with little twigs and now you gonna try a whole branch?

I made sure to use 100% clay and to soak it well. I saw an interesting video as to why air layering works. The tree is shocked but the constantly wet moss soaks the base of the tree so the tree is aware that there is water present but it cant pull any water up so it sends out roots. I am as skeptical as you are but at this point i will try everything

 

[Dkdhej]

I made sure to use 100% clay and to soak it well. I saw an interesting video as to why air layering works. The tree is shocked but the constantly wet moss soaks the base of the tree so the tree is aware that there is water present but it cant pull any water up so it sends out roots. I am as skeptical as you are but at this point i will try everything

Trying things is fine. It is great.
But trying to make a cutting with so much foliage is a horrible idea.

I believe the main advantage of air layering is that the whole branch still receives all the xylem sap will retaining all the phloem sap. This thanks to the hormones thingie gets the branch to produce roots around the callus with not much of a rush, as the branch is still supported by the whole tree.

This allows you tu do it with a branch with a lot of foliage (supported by the tree), this speeds up the formation of roots in the air layer.
This same thing does not work as a cutting. All that foliage mass increases the water needs (by a lot) of the cutting without the support of the tree roots to provide it.

 

[leatherback]

My logic is

Your logic is flawed. Layering work on large branches BECAUSE it is connected to the roots. You only separate the downward path, not the route that is feeding the pant with moisture.

 

[KiwiPlantGuy]

I made sure to use 100% clay and to soak it well. I saw an interesting video as to why air layering works. The tree is shocked but the constantly wet moss soaks the base of the tree so the tree is aware that there is water present but it cant pull any water up so it sends out roots. I am as skeptical as you are but at this point i will try everything

Hi,
How many years of horticultural experience have you got? Why are you trying to disprove everything others have proven when it looks like you have zero clues to complete any horticultural task? And yet in the same thread you ask for help?

Really?? I don’t know why I have read this whole thread, and by the way - keep using your garden soil or clay stuff you talk about because you obviously have not read all the resources section of this website on propagating or potting soils or any threads on this website by experienced practitioners with 30-60 years experience horticulturally speaking.
Good luck with your propagating, push the limits with your written limited experience, and we will all enjoy not helping anymore. Do you want help or is this just a troll thread and I have wasted my time like everyone else.

Go ahead, be rude to everyone, be arrogant and ignorant all in one thread, and then are you going to play “I am the victim” card?. And by the way, research propagation via cuttings, as there are so many books, university papers, etc to help your theory before even starting the practical.
I know nothing about horticulture after 30 years because I never stop learning.
Good luck,
Charles

 

[andrewiles]

This is a truly fascinating thread. Kudos to everyone who has kept focus and provided helpful propagation info. Not appreciated by Mr. Bravura Bonsai ironically, but certainly by the rest of us.

 

[leatherback]

The tree is shocked but the constantly wet moss soaks the base of the tree so the tree is aware that there is water present but it cant pull any water up so it sends out roots.

watch different videos. This is by some silly person having no clue. That is the risk of youtube. Any moron can make videos and plunk them on there.

 

[SeanS]

I wi

I will not be doing this. Im trying to make the hobby more accessible for people like me

With the amount of 2L cokes you seem to be buying, I’m sure you can afford the R100 perlite/rooting hormone combo

 

[Bravura Bonsai]

1 day update after 2 week update

One of the batches that was in partial sun and uncovered is still alive. There is green in the middle of the brown edges that has moved towards the sun. Yesterday i rotated the pot to take pictures and the trees have rearranged themselves to compete for light. They only get light from about 7am til 12pm before noon then they are in total shade for the hottest part of the day. It's so exciting i had ti update. Here is some pics.. the ones in my shade are doing fine the leaves are curled but still wet. I think they might be building roots and using the excess moisture in the lesves at night for respiration. Anyways this is exciting because i have never have jm cuttings live this long.

 

[Bravura Bonsai]

With the amount of 2L cokes you seem to be buying, I’m sure you can afford the R100 perlite/rooting hormone combo

I can afford a lot of things i am actually extremely well off but not everyone can. Not everyone is like us. Someone out there is not doing bonssi because they think it is an expensive hobby. It doesnt have to be.

 

[leatherback]

I can afford a lot of things i am actually extremely well off but not everyone can. Not everyone is like us. Someone out there is not doing bonssi because they think it is an expensive hobby. It doesnt have to be.

sometimes it is best to ensure you understand the prooven way of doing it, en show that you can do this properly. And then deviate and look for shortcuts.

 

[R3x]

I wasn't going to reply here because you've already received all kinds of answers I would give. However looking at the pictures you just posted I've decided to give it a try.

What you are trying to do can work. However chances are so slim it's practically pointless to do. If one out of thousand cuttings root for you would you consider it success and declare your method working? Surely not. As many here have written: this is well researched area. For vast majority of woody plants you need well draining substrate with air being able to access the area of the cut. That dramatically improves chances of producing roots. Root production takes time and energy. Energy is produced in leaves via photosynthesis, so there needs to be some leaves and some light for them to work. However this goes against the need of time because the leaves are the main surface from which water evaporates from the cutting. Therefore amount of leaves is usually reduced to reduce the water loss. Also environment with enough humidity helps here. Another thing to consider is using rooting hormone on the cut.

So again: some of your attempts may work. Chances are very small meaning it would be hard to replicate and declare a working method. Even the methods described above do not produce 100% success. But their success is measured in tens of percent (like 50-60%).

One more note: it that maple is not of some special variety I find growing Japanese maples from seeds very satisfying. In two years they can grow up to 1 meter. Also seeds are varying so you may get interesting traits with them. So maybe give that a try.

 

[Bravura Bonsai]

I wasn't going to reply here because you've already received all kinds of answers I would give. However looking at the pictures you just posted I've decided to give it a try.

What you are trying to do can work. However chances are so slim it's practically pointless to do. If one out of thousand cuttings root for you would you consider it success and declare your method working? Surely not. As many here have written: this is well researched area. For vast majority of woody plants you need well draining substrate with air being able to access the area of the cut. That dramatically improves chances of producing roots. Root production takes time and energy. Energy is produced in leaves via photosynthesis, so there needs to be some leaves and some light for them to work. However this goes against the need of time because the leaves are the main surface from which water evaporates from the cutting. Therefore amount of leaves is usually reduced to reduce the water loss. Also environment with enough humidity helps here. Another thing to consider is using rooting hormone on the cut.

So again: some of your attempts may work. Chances are very small meaning it would be hard to replicate and declare a working method. Even the methods described above do not produce 100% success. But their success is measured in tens of percent (like 50-60%).

One more note: it that maple is not of some special variety I find growing Japanese maples from seeds very satisfying. In two years they can grow up to 1 meter. Also seeds are varying so you may get interesting traits with them. So maybe give that a try.

Thank you for this. I am sure the tried and true way works im just looking for something that will work for me. Even a 1% success rate at this point will feel like a 100% because nothing has worked.

 

[ConorDash]

Why are your cuttings going brown and crispy? You mention moisture and hydration but think it through, why are they are not hydrated, specifically?

Its fine to do experiments and try things, no matter what it is, but its not helping anyone if we don't understand WHY something does what it does. Whether it fails or not, try to understand why it failed, or why it succeeded.

Some information I got from Ryan Neil, as I don't really want to contribute much knowledge as I am not good enough to do so (I don't want people following my unproven and inexperienced opinion); Rooting hormone does not cause roots to form. (Mind blown).

 

[eryk2kartman]

I would suggest to start with Willow cutting, they take off easily, even a big branches.
But as they say - people dont listen to the others, they have to learn on their own mistake.....

 

[JoeH]

Good lord what did I just read? This is the guy that has the nerve to trash Nigel and then start this thread and be a complete jackass to people that are trying to be polite and helpful? Have a nice life mate.

 

[SeanS]

1 day update after 2 week update

One of the batches that was in partial sun and uncovered is still alive. There is green in the middle of the brown edges that has moved towards the sun. Yesterday i rotated the pot to take pictures and the trees have rearranged themselves to compete for light. They only get light from about 7am til 12pm before noon then they are in total shade for the hottest part of the day. It's so exciting i had ti update. Here is some pics.. the ones in my shade are doing fine the leaves are curled but still wet. I think they might be building roots and using the excess moisture in the lesves at night for respiration. Anyways this is exciting because i have never have jm cuttings live this long.

You're on the right track! Roots need the green pigment from leaves to grow, so when a cutting needs to grow roots it draws the green from the foliage and sends it down to the part where roots need to grow. Once the roots are growing and established it sends the green back up to the foliage part of the cutting, with extra water and nutrients that the roots sucked from the soil. When you see the crispy brown foliage start greening up again it means the roots are established and the cutting is ready to be styled.

Considering it is now Autumn here in SA, have you considered how you will overwinter these cuttings? Do you think they will have enough time to grow the roots necessary to be ready to go dormant? The average first 50% frost date in Johannesburg is 24 May.

 

[leatherback]

Roots need the green pigment from leaves to grow, so when a cutting needs to grow roots it draws the green from the foliage and sends it down to the part where roots need to grow.

yup, this is NOT how it works.

The green pigment captures light, transforms it into sugars. The growing tip creates hormones that signal to the roots: I am growing, you should be too. The accumulate at the cutsite, and thus trigger a rooting response.

Chlorophyll does NOT move down to become roots.

 

[leatherback]

Why so angry?