Welcome to NGA,
@Devaro.
I've never used cactus soil or sand for rooting (or for anything else, for that matter). During the fall/winter months, I root in 100% super coarse perlite, about a dozen stems per bucket/pot. My plants are all outside, in full sun, being rooted and only if temperatures dip into the 30's do I bring them inside. I don't water these perlite-filled buckets/pots, but when it rains, well, the perlite gets soaked. In my 30 yr. experience, rooting 1000's of cuttings, I'll lose 1-2 cuttings per bucket during the fall/winter rooting process. That's mid-stem cuttings. I seldom lose tip-cuttings.
I'm certainly no expert, but perhaps my experiences will help you, Dev.
