GigiPlumeria said: What do you do with the rootstock?

I just keep some for experiments, and give away the rest

Mixed results on my winter cuttings. Some in group vases rotted others I. Single bases are developing new leaves and buds. The difference is on the maturity of the cuttings.

Here is an update on my water rooted cuttings. The less than a pencil size cuttings and cuttings that were still young (less than a years growth) or short cuttings did not make it. However the longer ones seem to be doing well.

This one I removed all the leaves and now starting to sprout back and what looks like new roots developing.




These has tiny buds so I didn't remove the leaves (although some eventually turned yellow and dropped off) but surprisingly the buds are growing and new buds are forming… but there are no roots!






I have one more that has been leafless for more than a few months and another one that keeps it leaves but both have no roots.

So my success rate is poor in this batch but considering that I am rooting them winter time and I have 6 cuttings survive for the warm weather. I think it is a good sign. I will stick the others (with no buds l) in the pot and forget them.

Shoutout to Tiffany, this cutting has bloomed and it had roots (but I broke the roots when I pulled the stem to take a look.)

Looks like we can propagate "hard/older" desert roses cuttings by water. I let it callous for a few days too, see the beautiful bloom:



More buds


This is a different cutting, had to pluck off the mealy, buds continue to grow bigger:

That's exciting and fun! : )

I will have to try this water method. I am planning on trimming Big Red.

Floridian said: I will have to try this water method. I am planning on trimming Big Red.

Make sure the cuttings are mature branches and let them callous. The tender (still green instead of gray) branches all rotted. Also make sure that when you prune, leave enough lengths on the mother plant. I regretted pruning too short and when the mother plant get's stem rot, the rot travels fast like what happened to Picollo.

Big Red before I brought her outside. Lots of yellowing leaves, with flower buds and a single seed horn. The branches were trimmed to about the height of the yellow leaf in the middle last year about this time. Huge new branches, some silver on stems where the new growth starts. Was planning on trimming to ~2 inches from old cut. Maybe I'll start with the leftmost branch and see how it goes first…

I think I will wait when we have a week of full sun to prune! And now rooting the cuttings is fun!

If you can wait until the plant is in growth mode the pruned stems have a higher probability to generate multiple branches.

2ManyPlants said: If you can wait until the plant is in growth mode the pruned stems have a higher probability to generate multiple branches.

and less susceptible to rotting if the cut ends don't heal properly because plant is not yet on active growth.

Second bud open


Roots


More new buds getting bigger:

Okay, I am very impressed how long lasting is the bloom of this water rooted cutting! More buds coming up and more roots. But I have to be careful the roots are delicate and could easily break.


The seedlings that I was able to save via water rooting are now back to their individual pots. I like how I could see the roots starting to grow from emergency surgeries.

Ready for transplanting all rooted in water. It continues to bloom:

That's amazing Gigi!
I'm going to try water rooting.

@2ManyPlants Tiffany discovered it However I still let the cuttings callous 2 to 3 day so the cut end heals. And I keep the water changed every 2 days until roots develop. Smaller cuttings don't do well even with water rooting.

It did work once for me but that stem didn't survive being moved inside. I feel like if it had happened earlier in the year and it had a chance to leaf-out and establish, it might have gone differently.

I had 2 bigger plants but one of them died, so I don't have enough material to do any volume of new props, maybe 1 or 2, unless my little seedlings suddenly get huge this summer. For now, I'll have to live vicariously through whatever y'all share on here.

Best luck everyone!

Tiffany, try to germinate some adenium seeds, the seedlings development are fun to watch, like mini baobab.

Thank you, TJOE! A kind member sent some seeds to me and a lot of them sprouted last summer. I think there are 34 of them. They are definitely cute! Hopefully I'll be able to keep them alive long enough to see some blooms and maybe do some of the fun stuff with the roots like you do.

You are doing great! You might see some bloom this year!

One of my mystery seedlings have buds and hoping that some of my almost 2 years old Universe and Sapphire seedlings will bloom too. I have not yet planted any seeds this season.

That's encouraging, thank you!