7/17/15 Seedling cutting technique post

(Brian) #1

On the 7/17/15 Black pine cutting blog post I see that you used dip n grow for either a 5 second or 5 minute submerge. I note the increase in rootage from the 5 minute dip. My question is what dilution of the solution did you use, 5x or 10x or 20x?

Also, do you think if you used a higher dilution such as 10x or 20x, would using a lower dilution like 5x yield a better result?
And would you believe there to be any downside to using the 5 minute submerge which proved to yield more roots?

Thanks so much!

(Jonas Dupuich) #2

Great question. It looks like I used the 10x solution (I just updated the article to reflect this).

I’d guess that a stronger solution would produce more roots - up to a point. I’ve seen photos, such as in the original Bonsai Today article, of cuttings with far more roots than what I saw on my cuttings. I’d like to try the stronger solution at different exposures to see what happens this spring.

The downside comes when the stem is covered with roots. Too many roots will be harder to straighten out in the future. As I’m nowhere near this point, I’m interested to learn how to optimize the process to get even more, but not too many, roots. Thanks for asking!

(Brian) #3

Thank you Jonas! I will probably experiment with both the 5x and 10x dilutions. I did a dozen at 10x for 5 minutes a few days ago. And a handful at 5x for five seconds as well. We will see what happens!

(Jonas Dupuich) #4

Thanks Brian, am looking forward to seeing how this works out - do take a photo when the results are in.

Considering the season, are these being grown in a greenhouse?

(Brian) #5

That was actually another part of my experiment. in my zone here in NY it’s of course out of season to start seeds. But seeds are cheap and I need something to pass time during the winter months. So I have started them indoors, in my bathroom under a grow light.

I did this last season with trident maple and had decent results and think I was successfully able to extend the first growing season for them by doing so. I’m not getting ahead of myself with the pine though so we will see how things turn out.

(Brian) #6

Any idea what causes purplish needles?

(Jonas Dupuich) #7

My best guess is that cold can cause purple needles. If it’s not that, then I’d expect it to result from some form of unhappiness like improper water or light.

(Brian) #8

Thanks Jonas. It can’t be cold. They are in an area that would not dip below 65 at the coldest. My thought was light it I wasn’t sure if something else could be involved. The cuttings have been growing well under grow lights. Two bulbs6500k. To see if it made a difference I turned on the other two bulbs making it four bulbs. I noticed a change in one or two cuttings after two days and a couple others in the following days. I have since reverted back to just the two bulbs. My guess is it was too much for them.

(Jonas Dupuich) #9

Ah, interesting. Seeing what happens when they move outdoors may offer a clue too.