You will receive 6 thicker and 5 thinner unrooted cuttings (also known as scions).
These are from America's most popular Golden Delicious Apple tree.
There trees grow well in Zones: 5-8.
And their blossom is beautiful!
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Each cutting is 6-7 inches in length.
Diameter of thicker cuttings is close to diameter of a pencil,
crayon or a fountain pen.
Thinner cuttings are semi-hardwood.
When you have both, hardwood and semi-hardwood cuttings, your chances of successful rooting or grafting increase.
These will be cut from our mature tree the day of shipping to you and will be wrapped in moist paper.
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From the Internet - how to root these cuttings:
1. Use one part sand and one part peat (or other kind of lose soil) and fill a pot with this mixture. Another growing medium mixture is one part peat, one part perlite and two parts sand.
2. Dip the cut end in rooting hormone.
3. Stick the cutting into the growing medium in the pot about halfway and press the medium firmly around the cutting so it stands upright on its own.
4. Moisten the cutting and soil with water from a spray bottle.
5. Cut the bottom from a clean, clear, two-liter plastic soda bottle. Screw on the cap and set the bottle over the cutting in the pot, creating a mini-greenhouse. Alternatively, set the entire pot inside a clear plastic bag and seal it closed.
It is important to keep the bottle or bag from touching the cutting.
6. Place the pot in a warm location out of direct sunlight. (sunlight will stimulate growth of leaves; this is not what you really want, you need to stimulate growth of roots).
7. Remove the cover and mist again, if needed, to keep the cutting evenly moist throughout the rooting phase. Roots should emerge and leaves will appear on the cutting after a few weeks.
8. Transplant the established cutting to its permanent location in late winter or early spring, keeping the root ball intact.
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From the internet - steps for rooting:
1 Combine equal measures of milled peat moss and perlite in a bucket.
2 Pack the wet peat and perlite mixture into an 8-inch-deep pot. Press the surface to expel the excess liquid. Poke a 4-inch-deep hole in the center of the mixture.
3 Press the cuttings of the crape myrtle cutting into a rooting hormone (sometimes helps).
4 Insert the hormone-coated end of the cutting into the prepared planting hole. Press it in until its lowest remaining set of leaves rests just above the surface. Firm the peat in against the stem.
5 Place the potted crape myrtle cutting outdoors in a sheltered, lightly shaded area away from direct sunlight and wind. Cover the top of the pot with a large clear plastic bag to create a humid greenhouse-like environment.
It is important to make sure that the cutting develop roots before leaves. This is why I plant my cuttings in clear plastic cups (or clear plastic soda bottles) - to see the roots. Sometimes cuttings develop leaves only (no roots), -- these plants usually do not survive. This unfortunate development takes place when the cuttings were placed near bright light. I prefer darker places in my room to stimulate growth of roots first, not leaves.
When I see ROOTS developed and some young leaves - I move the seedlings to a sunnier location on window sill. If the weather is warm (no risk of frost) - I move these seedlings to a shade outside. Placing them too soon under direct light is risky - the sunlight will kill the leaves. Young seedlings need 2-3 weeks in the shade to adjust to the natural light.
I wanted to share some of my experiences with these cuttings. Experiment #22. Picture number 4.
In June 2017 I sent crepe myrtle cuttings to my customer. The cuttings were wrapped in a dump paper and plastic. Something was wrong with his adddress and 12 days later the package came back. I opened the package and I saw small sprouts. Then I placed the cuttings in water, and in 1 week I saw this 1-inch long white root. I planted the cutting in a pot with soft wet soil.
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Experimentation with cuttings is an excellent therapy. I am one of those who believe that people need plants. People need to see green leaves, and they want to be happy doing simple things and accomplishing what they can every day. In addition, this hobby can be profitable - you can grow seedlings and sell them several months later. We can make this planet a little bit greener, cleaner, and healthier!
My favorite method for rooting involves a clear plastic container (Like a shoe box from Lowes or a clear-plastic container for cakes) and live moss from the nearby woods. There is an opinion that live moss has anti-mold properties. Also, it is easy to place layers of moss - like clumps or "shelves" with plenty of humid air in between - and then to place cuttings. It is easier and safer to lift the clumps of moss without damaging fragile young roots - when you inspect the cuttings periodically.
Horizontal placement of the cuttings often leads to several roots growing at the cutting ends and in the middle, potentially producing 2-3 plants from one cutting. I keep the box at the room temperature, 5-6 ft away from windows. Last several photos illustrate the moss, and roots growing at one end or both ends, and even in the middle. Some people call this horizontal+live moss method "simplified" aeroponics (Wikipedia: aeroponics is the process of growing plants in an air or mist environment without the use of soil or an aggregate medium). Recently I decided to use very short, 3-3.5" long, cuttings. My experiments with short fig cuttings were surprisingly successful: those short 3-3.5" cuttings produced roots at the ends and even in the middle! I did not use any rooting hormone, and based on what I have read, rooting hormone may or may not contribute to the success.
When I see approx. 1” long white roots, I gently move the cutting to a “pot” made of a clear plastic water bottle with 3-4 holes on the bottom. Clear plastic allows me to see the growing roots. I use regular potting soil, used coffee grounds and even used leaves of mint after drinking mint tea, offering overall loose soil for the roots to propagate. I can see air gaps in the soil (avocado roots seem to like these cavities), and the roots rapidly growing in this porous light-weight “soil”. Normally I place those plastic bottles with rooted cuttings in larger clear plastic containers like Sterlite 55 - 65" storage totes. I spray some water on my plants and keep these large containers closed. This creates a nice, warm humid environment, so I do not have to worry about watering my young plants too often.
Some people prefer other, direct methods for rooting. They put cuttings 2" deep in the soil and then place a clear plastic bag on top of the pot with the cuttings. I believe that 2" deep is not the best. When I use this method - I plant my cuttings deeper, so only 2" of their tops are above the soil level. One reason is to keep the most of the cutting surface in the moist soil. Another reason - is that I saw roots growing in the middle of the cuttings.
I never tried heating pads. I know that some people successfully use the back top portion of refrigerators for heating of their cuttings. However, I found an "opposite" ... when I placed cuttings in moist potting soil and left it sitting in the unheated garage (meaning cooler temperature and stable moisture level due to very slow evaporation during rather mild winter in Virginia) - many cuttings produced roots. This is just as another simple idea for those who likes experimenting.
Different people use different rooting methods - from dump paper in a zip-lock bag placed on top of refrigerator to a sophisticated ultrasonic fog system. I can't provide advice and/or take any responsibility for what my buyers do with my cuttings or how they perform rooting, grafting, etc. And unfortunately, my name is not Rockefeller, meaning that I can't refund every unsuccessful rooting experiment. Thank you for your understanding and good luck to you!
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