Any comments on how well it works?

http://www.growingthehomegarde...

In January,John Matthews,our visiting lilium judge/stage decorater/lilium grower legend-aged 89 was explaining to me this process,but i was going at 100 mph[trying to bench all my lilium stems,],up uintil now you raised the subject,.,.aparrently you can strike a menagerie of plants using various parts,this way,..,

so awesome.. I had no idea either!! thank you for sharing.

Well, let's some of us give it a try then!

by goodness I think I will!
gotta go lift some sand from the kid's sand box...lol

If you look at the miniscule bulbs that form in and around the stem roots on a removed 'spent' stem,yuo'll find this is somewhat the same process,.

Hmm, Anthony, interesting. Where's Pard, I bet she knows all about this. And Rick.

I'm here, have heard of it, never tried it. I suspect it works best with some lilies, not so well with others.

I bet it works with the cheap ones and not the expensive ones.. my luck ,that is.

Seems like a cool idea. What could it hurt pulling off a couple leaves to try it?

Well,...a possum tore one side of my Robina stem...it made the stem grow in the shape of a very sharp 'S',but it bloomed perfectly about 6 weeks later

I'm definitely trying it.

It never hurts to try!!-thats why i only have 1 child

Poor kid!

My response is the same as Pards. I've heard of it, but not tried it, and suspect it works for some and not others.

I did try rooting some stem cuttings of Lilium prumulinum once, when the stem rotted one season at the soil line. The rest of the 3 foot stem was in perfect condition so I had nothing to lose if I tried it. With 4-5 inch cuttings and 4-5 nodes per cutting (All but the top 2 or three leaves were removed on each), I managed roots on about 20% of the cuttings in sand, enclosed in a clear plastic bag, outside in the shade. Unfortunately, bulbs never formed. Merely because it is what I had on hand, I used IBA talc at 3000 and 5000ppm. Rooting seemed equally well at both concentrations.

Getting back to the linked anecdote, nothing frustrates me more than people supposedly explaining something without complete information. Missing is the most critical: the rooting hormone!!! Is it NAA, IBA, a mix, cytokinins...WHAT? And what concentration? Too little might not do the job, and too much will inhibit it. Most of you that are familiar with my posts know that I try to be as complete as I can with my explanations. I just don't understand what is so difficult about it.....

I agree with Rick... I need more details. Maybe one of you can help....What is the rooting hormone product and where do you get that and how much do you use?

we call it rooting mix here and its available at most good horticultural supply outlets,..,i've never used it. I typed 'rooting mix' into google and came up with heaps of answers,.,.'happy rooting reading',..,an old lady i knew,used to just dip the end of the freshly cut fucshia in the powder and then pot it.,,.,.oh oh,my brain is unfurling like an almanac-- i used it,many years ago,.,.i cut a tall rubber plant into 4 pieces and repotted them[with success [from memory]..

What I would like to know is how is the bulblet made with nothing but a skinny leaf to live off of for a month? I mean, scale bulblets feed off the nice plump scale...

I really don't know what the rooting hormone is for. Bulbs and bulblets are botanically considered modified leaves. Of course at some point roots will need to grow but I think the bulblet would come first. But what do I know!!

pardalinum said:What I would like to know is how is the bulblet made with nothing but a skinny leaf to live off of for a month? I mean, scale bulblets feed off the nice plump scale...

Hypogeal geriminating lilies and other plants produce tiny bulbs or other structures from what is stored in the seed. While it is true that seeds are totally jam-packed with necessary building blocks, it wouldn't be far fetched that a leaf blade (at least 100-1000 times more bulk) would possess the needed "stuff", too.

Of course these bulblets are very tiny in relation to scale bulb standards.

I really don't know what the rooting hormone is for. Bulbs and bulblets are botanically considered modified leaves. Of course at some point roots will need to grow but I think the bulblet would come first. But what do I know!!

Actually, a bulb scale is a modified leaf. I suspect the the basal plate (a modified stem), however miniscule, is differentiated in the new bulblet prior to the formation of any scales. A bulb is modified leaves, stem and roots, altogether.

Enough with the nit-picking.
Of course, something has to trigger the change to produce different kinds of cells, even if were just regular leaf cells to modified leaf cells (scales). Not only that, there are many, many types of leaf cells within a leaf. Which might you think would not need any coaxing to change shape?

A little more positive thoughts on bulb production from leaves here:

http://www.srgc.net/forum/inde...

Thanks, Polly! I find this interesting. Might even try it!