Hello I am getting ready to start a bunch of cuttings to eventually plant out in my field. I have been looking for starter plants but have not found any at a price I want to pay. So I will try to root some. I have read that sand and peat mix might be good material. i am wondering where to take the cutting and is it too early/late in the season to do this over the next 3 weeks to a month. What type of rooting hormone should I use? Are these plants considered soft wood? How about a green house environment as opposed to out side. Last year before I left for the winter I stuck several Red Cedar cuttings in heavy compost and had 2 out of 5 root. i would like to do better this time around. Can anyone reccomend a book "rooting for dummies" maybe? Charles Stephens Halfmoon Bay, BC
I took some cuttings from a arborvitae in December (zone 6 Northern Kentucky) I dipped rooting hormone (purchased at Home Depot) on the cuttings and placed them in peat pellets and placed them in tray with a humidity dome. I placed the tray and dome under florescents lights with a timer (16 hours a day) The set up is on a shelf in my basement. I had 80% success in rooting. I planted them this spring and they appear to be doing ok. This set-up may not be practical for a large scale operation. I have been told that a heating mat may help in rooting. You can do a internet search (Google etc) and you will get a wealth of information regarding propagation of arborvitaes. Good luck
Thanks for the tip. I think this year will be just experimenting and then get on with it after I collect as much information as I can. I found a paper though another thread that had good info i will try to find the link and put it in this thread. Thanks Charles PS her is the link posted by OSCAR http://cru.cahe.wsu.edu/CEPublications/pnw0152/pnw0152.html
