(this is from summer of 2013 and was in my draft folder)
I am pretty excited about having my first success with a softwood rose cutting! I used a potting mix for containers I made mine from compost,vermiculite, and peat moss in equal parts--but I am sure a bagged potting mix with a lot of peat moss and perlite would work. I cut 4" long pieces from a stem I cut after it had bloomed. I wold say the piece that rooted was probably half the diameter of a pencil, pretty thin. I cut the ends at an angle and I took note of which side was "up" so I didn't plant any cuttings upside down. I put them in a recycled 4 pack or 6 pack container that I had bought some other transplants in. I don't think I treated the cuttings with anything. If I did, I used honey. I stuck them in the dirt about 1/2 way and I left a leaf or two on the cuttings, but I had them turned so that no leaf touched the leaf of another cutting. Then I put them inside a plastic bag...either a gray one from Lowe's or a white one from Kroger. I did not seal the bag up tight. I put some sticks, like chopsticks or bamboo skewers in the corners of the container to hold the plastic off the cuttings and I tied it losely shut with the handles. This was a couple of months ago. I put them outside in a shady area and ignored them for a couple of weeks. Then I checked on them, took out any that were dead (just because the leaf dies doesn't mean it is dead. If all the green of the stem goes away, it is dead.) and I gave them some more water and I left them another week or two, then I took them out of the bag.and put them in a place where they got a little sun and I watered them daily. I think I had 2 that looked alive at that point. When I started seeing new growth at the joint where the leaf was, I potted it in a bigger pot. I ended up with one, but I think next time I might have better luck. I think having it outside was a good idea. I think the heat probably helped the rooting process. I think next time I will try making a little "greenhouse" out of a 2-liter bottle. Or little water bottles. I think I will try to root some more today.
I am looking into buying another rose variety. I just learned that 25% of rose varieties are native to Turkey. I really wish I knew what kind of rose it is that my daughter's Turkish grandmother uses for Jam. I think it is a centiflora variety.
I am pretty excited about having my first success with a softwood rose cutting! I used a potting mix for containers I made mine from compost,vermiculite, and peat moss in equal parts--but I am sure a bagged potting mix with a lot of peat moss and perlite would work. I cut 4" long pieces from a stem I cut after it had bloomed. I wold say the piece that rooted was probably half the diameter of a pencil, pretty thin. I cut the ends at an angle and I took note of which side was "up" so I didn't plant any cuttings upside down. I put them in a recycled 4 pack or 6 pack container that I had bought some other transplants in. I don't think I treated the cuttings with anything. If I did, I used honey. I stuck them in the dirt about 1/2 way and I left a leaf or two on the cuttings, but I had them turned so that no leaf touched the leaf of another cutting. Then I put them inside a plastic bag...either a gray one from Lowe's or a white one from Kroger. I did not seal the bag up tight. I put some sticks, like chopsticks or bamboo skewers in the corners of the container to hold the plastic off the cuttings and I tied it losely shut with the handles. This was a couple of months ago. I put them outside in a shady area and ignored them for a couple of weeks. Then I checked on them, took out any that were dead (just because the leaf dies doesn't mean it is dead. If all the green of the stem goes away, it is dead.) and I gave them some more water and I left them another week or two, then I took them out of the bag.and put them in a place where they got a little sun and I watered them daily. I think I had 2 that looked alive at that point. When I started seeing new growth at the joint where the leaf was, I potted it in a bigger pot. I ended up with one, but I think next time I might have better luck. I think having it outside was a good idea. I think the heat probably helped the rooting process. I think next time I will try making a little "greenhouse" out of a 2-liter bottle. Or little water bottles. I think I will try to root some more today.
I am looking into buying another rose variety. I just learned that 25% of rose varieties are native to Turkey. I really wish I knew what kind of rose it is that my daughter's Turkish grandmother uses for Jam. I think it is a centiflora variety.
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