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Propagation

dhawksworth1201dhawksworth1201 Posts: 19
in Problem solving
My sister is having a go at propagating some laurel. 
She has used root hormone powder on the cuts and has them in compost pots. 
She is watering them but trying not to over water.
At the moment, they don’t look good, a bit floppy and lifeless. I was thinking they maybe need more water, but they probably don’t even have roots yet. They were potted 1 week ago. Any advice? 

Thanks!

Posts

  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    Are they outside in the open? Striking cuttings is a race between roots growing and the top growth wilting, and those ones look as though wilting has won :( . That's why cuttings (soft ones anyway) are better with something like a propagator top or plastic bag over them to keep the humidity in.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    Cuttings are best placed around the edge of a pot rather than in the middle, a technique which means you can put 3 or 4 in one pot.

    The compost needs to be gritty or opened up with perlite so it drains well and stops the cutting rotting and the leaf area needs to be reduced to prevent excess transpiration.  Water the cuttings well after takingthem then let them drain and keep them in the shade from strong sunlight.  Some cuttings to better with the humidity provided by a plastic bag over the pot.

    See here:- https://www.rhs.org.uk/propagation/semi-ripe-cuttings 
    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
  • bédébédé Posts: 3,095
    edited June 2023
    Minimum watering whilst cutting down on transpiration.  Open sand/perlite compost.  Plastic bags (mist propagator or dew-point cabinet.) Keep out of direct sun.

    Your sister may need to start again.  Cutting each leaf in half might save few. 

    A landscaper I knew had a double row of ex-railway sleepers 2 high filled with un-modified soil (actually London Clay but from ancient woodland).  Covered with clear polythene. He grew laurel from hardwood cuttings, 18" long, planted in November and left until needed.   He also grew yew and conjfers.

    The edge-of-the-pot idea originated with clay pots;  the edge of the pot would have a higher level of oxygen.

    It might be worth trying just water.  A technique discussed in a current(-ish) thread.
     location: Surrey Hills, England, ex-woodland acidic sand.
    "Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    Those cuttings look very soft, green right down to where they go into the soil. I've never done laurel cuttings but my instinct says semi-ripe cuttings (where the lower cut end is  firmer growth that's started to become woody) would be better than softwood cuttings, and I think I'd take off more of the leaves as well to reduce transpiration.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
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