I just read my article and I guess I didn't proof read it well because there is a mistake in the first paragraph. Dan Trimmer's article DOES NOT demonstrate how some people keep the proliferations in water for them to grow roots. I must have intermingled to different sentences. It should say that some people put the prolifs in water to roots them or something to that effect

My what big proliferations! I get a couple each year, but nothing like that. And I do put them in water to root, but wait as long as I can before cutting it.

I don't have enough proliferations to have to use paint, but that is a great idea to mark them. Really enjoyed reading this

Excellent article Michele, excellent! You explain things so easily & well that I can't imagine anyone having any trouble understanding it.

Michele is that potting mix the same as Fred's? 9 parts pine bark and 1 part sand?

Great article Michele! And I only wish my prolifs looked like yours!

JWWC said:Michele is that potting mix the same as Fred's? 9 parts pine bark and 1 part sand?

Yes James it is. I don't necessarily measure it out when mixing it for the pots I just eyeball it until it looks right; it doesn't have to be exact.

Nice photos to show what you are describing in your article. I don't get many prolifs, but I pot them up similar to your article. I had not read about the 9 parts pine bark and 1 part sand mix. Will have to try that. Is it pine fines? I have heard about using alfalfa pellets. I really need to try that! Thanks for reminding me.

The pine bark I prefer is the small dime to nickel size pieces. The fines will work, they just break down faster.

@tink3472 I missed the article the first time around, Michele. Great descriptions and for those of us who sometimes misread, the pictures tell it all!

Well, what if the prolif has hardly no roots at all? You can root it in water? Just plain water or do you add anything to it and do you change it out everyday? please explain more about that. Michelle I have never had a prolif grow roots like THAT !! wow! I only wish... I am interested in trying this. I feel an experiment brewing...

I just cut the scape an inch or two below the prolif and stick it in water. Then make sure the water level does not go below the bottom of the prolif until it roots. I usually change the water every day or two. After it gets roots, I plant it. I've never added fertilizer but I found two articles that said they use a fertilizer.

http://www.daylilies.org/ahs_d...

http://www.daylilymeadows.com/...

Frillylily said:Well, what if the prolif has hardly no roots at all? You can root it in water? Just plain water or do you add anything to it and do you change it out everyday? please explain more about that. Michelle I have never had a prolif grow roots like THAT !! wow! I only wish... I am interested in trying this. I feel an experiment brewing...

I can't tell you about this as I have no idea. I have never done it and have only heard of people rooting them in water, sorry.

blue23rose said:I just cut the scape an inch or two below the prolif and stick it in water. Then make sure the water level does not go below the bottom of the prolif until it roots. I usually change the water every day or two. After it gets roots, I plant it. I've never added fertilizer but I found two articles that said they use a fertilizer.

http://www.daylilies.org/ahs_d...

http://www.daylilymeadows.com/...

Thanks Vickie for supplying those links

Thanks guys, that is most helpful. I will check out the links and if I do my experiments I will post regularly the progress... or not as the case may be!

ok so here are some pics I took of a scape in a public garden today. Maybe I don't know what a prolif is ! Well the obvious ones are well... obvious. But I seen several like these and wondered if they would root where they meet the scape if they were put in water. It appears at first like a branch of the scape. But you can see how the two look different. The top branching (in red) is one continuous growth-a part of the scape. The "branch" in black appears to have a defined joint. However, none of the prolifs I have seen, in fact probably none of them had a stalk of their own, or any blooms. This branch is performing just as the other branchings-it has multiple buds (that have already bloomed now this late).
Any thoughts on this?

You can try and get that to root, but you may need rooting hormones and anything may root if you add rooting hormones However, that to me appears to be a normal branch off of the main scape coming from the bract. I was told (especially with seedlings that are being watched) that any bract is a possibility for branching.

My prolifs have always had leaves. Here is a picture of Newberry Festival in 2009 with two proliferations that are circled in black. The leaves on the prolifs are a lighter shade of green. I don't remember if I tried to root these particular ones or not, but now I would not let the scape get this brown before cutting off the prolif.

@blue23rose I see there is still green on the scape on the side where the prolif is on. As long as there is still green on the scape the prolif is being fed and will continue to grow. I always leave them on if there is still green.

tink3472 said:You can try and get that to root, but you may need rooting hormones and anything may root if you add rooting hormones However, that to me appears to be a normal branch off of the main scape coming from the bract. I was told (especially with seedlings that are being watched) that any bract is a possibility for branching.

so the spot where it is attached to the scape (the one circled in black) is called the "bract"?