Hi everybody, I'd like to to request your help to solve this conundrum.

About one month ago I made cuttings of two hardy hibis in my garden.
I put the cuttings in a "propagator", consisting in a small container filled with a mixture in volume of two thirds sand and one third ordinary potting compound. Each propagator is covered with an ordinary clear plastic bag kept away from the cuttings using sticks. I have used rooting hormones on all cuttings.

My cuttings now look pretty good, with most of them now sporting great looking new growth but there's a major major problem: no roots developed. By no roots I mean absolutely nothing: I basically have the same cuttings I planted one month ago with leaves on them.

If this can help the plastic bags I've used are a pretty close fit on the containers and I kept them on the north side of the house where they got just a little direct sunlight in the morning.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

I can't really help you, but I will say that I completely reject this notion that people have that cuttings can't touch the bag or each other. If something is going to rot, it is going to rot whether it touches the bag (or something else) or not. Mold goes after dead and dying tissue, not healthy tissue. it has nothing to do with whether a plant tissue touches something! But if the bag is exposed to direct sun, ever, that might complicate things.

According to "The Reference Manual of Woody Plant Propagation," Hibiscus syriacus roots best outside in October/November using hardwood cuttings. Tip cuttings rooted 100% of the time without hormone but basal and mid-stem cuttings root better with hormones. It takes a couple months. Average rooting without hormone is 80%.

The summer rooted cuttings, using greenwood and hormones were only 50 - 60%. Maybe winter rooting is best...

If your shady location is not very bright, moving them to a brighter spot (but still not all sunny) might help them root quicker. Or if you have a thick white bag instead of a clear one to cover them with (or something equivalent), they could be in the full sun just fine... benefiting from the warmth as well.

If your cuttings are growing, I'd guess they've formed callouses at least. Putting them into a sunnier/warmer but still wet place as they naturally prefer may help them fill out in the ways they haven't yet.

DaisyI said:According to "The Reference Manual of Woody Plant Propagation," Hibiscus syriacus roots best outside in October/November using hardwood cuttings. Tip cuttings rooted 100% of the time without hormone but basal and mid-stem cuttings root better with hormones. It takes a couple months. Average rooting without hormone is 80%.

The summer rooted cuttings, using greenwood and hormones were only 50 - 60%. Maybe winter rooting is best...

I am trying to root Hibiscus moscheutos, not H. syriacus, so that may complicated things since, well, it ain't got any hardwood.

November is not really an option here because they will be already dormant by then: leaves have already started to yellow due to longer nights/lower night temperatures. But I'll try rooting a third Hibiscus I have in a couple weeks or so to see if there's any difference.

Anyway I have moved the propagators to a sunnier part of the house: they should have a few hours of sun in the morning there and be shielded by the afternoon sun. We'll see how they play out.

Thanks everybody for the replies.

ElPolloDiablo said:

I am trying to root Hibiscus moscheutos, not H. syriacus

The bane of common names...