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First time cutting

I'm planning on making my first cutting of a N.Ventricosa in the coming week.  Anybody have any helpful hints not covered in "The Savage Garden"?  
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Also, I was wondering the other day... If you take a cutting from the top of a plant and root it, will the first pitchers that grow be lower pitchers or upper pitchers?  I'm guessing lower pitchers...
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hmm, I have experience only propagating N.x.ventrata from cuttings................and there is part of ventricosa so.....
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I did like this: my first two cuttings I took summer, I cut them of and put them filmpot which was full Sphagnum-moss,
there went maeby some month and they grew little root.........then I transplant them in real pot......normal peat.......................now they feell great!
look here few pic of them.......first two pic from up

ps: seconf time when I took cuttings I didnt put them moss, but rainwater...........they are fine too........and starting to make first pitchers!
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Here are a few suggestions:

First, I recommend the use of a rooting hormone, even with
the easier species, such as your N.ventricosa, to ensure
success. There is a product called "Dip 'n' Grow", which works
quite well. It is a liquid, which seems to ensure better
penetration into the cutting than most powders. Alternatively,
you could also use one of several gel products available, which
are also good, such as Olivia's, or Doc's Clone Gel.

Secondly, keep in mind that the issue of most immediate
importance in rooting a cutting is the availability of moisture.
So, be sure that humidity is high; if not, your cutting will
dessicate long before it is able to grow roots. However,
be sure that you can maintain the appropriate nocturnal
temperature drop for this species; N. ventricosa is an easy
plant to root, but if it is stressed, rooting may not occur
readily. Also, when you make your cutting, be sure to
cut the root end of your vine segment(s) at a very
oblique (slanted) angle. This serves to increase the area
of the cut surface and therefore provides better hydration.

Finally, regarding your question about upper vs. lower pitchers
produced from an upper growth cutting, I can tell you that
if your cutting is producing upper pitchers, pitchers produced
further down the vine, even after it is cut, will be uppers.
However, when a new, basal node on your cutting breaks,
pitchers produced from that point will usually be lowers.

Hope that this helps you. I certainly don't know all there
is to know about rooting Nepenthes, but I have rooted
literally hundreds of cuttings over the years, so this
advice is based upon experience!
 
Neps,
A lot of sources on cutting in general(not necessarily Nepenthes) suggest that bottom heat is beneficial. Does that go out the window when dealing with highland Nepenthes, or would it be beneficial for bottom heating on those, as long as the temp above soil level gets that temp drop?

All Else,
I would advocate his suggestion on using something like "Dip n' Gro" over powdered rooting hormones. It's idiot-proof if you follow directions and you can't overdo it or under-do it. With the powders, depending on how much moisture is on the end, the powder can cake on thick and make a muck. The gels work, but the are around $12.99 for the smallest jar. "Dip n Grow" is about half that. The difference in cost is immaterial(IMHO) if one works better than the other for you, as the important thing is to get success.

Regards,

Joe
 
I have never used bottom heating to root cuttings
of any kind, so cannot comment on the basis of
personal experience. Have had a lot of success rooting
cuttings, both highland and lowland, including species
such as NN. lowii, rajah, glabrata, tentaculata, spectabilis,
sanguinea, etc., however, so don't think it is necessary,
assuming overall environmental conditions are favorable.
 
Please keep it to the question on hand and rooting Nepenthes cuttings. If you wish to ask if Neps has any spare cuttings available, contact him via PM or email please
 
hi iv done cuttings before first you cut the top part of the stem of but on the cutting their soould be 4 leavs inc the top leavs cut the first bottom 2 of to the stem then the next 2 leavs you cut in half ohh and make the cut on the stem a nice clean one other wise it will rot then after you have cut the leavs you put it in rooting hormone and put in peat and put in a terra but you must do the cutting in spring or summer for best results
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im 12 but i know a lot!!
 
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WHO IS USING MY NAME
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!!!!!!!
 
Do not do that again
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. Anyway, I have great success with the following method;

Take cuttings, dip them in rooting horomone, place in pots of vermiculite, place pots in sealed terrarium under 4 40 watt flourecent tubes with some shading plastic between the plants and bulbs, and with less than 1/2 an inch of water maintained in the bottom of the tank. It heats up a lot during the day, and gets down to 60F at night, with constantly very high humidity. It looks as if I'll get a 100% strike (12 out of 12). Hope that's more on topic...
 
  • #12
Thanks for all the advice guys... So when do I know that the the cutting has rooted and is stable enough for a permanent home? Do I just keep picking it up and checking the roots?
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  • #13
Please keep it to the question on hand and rooting Nepenthes cuttings. If you wish to ask if Neps has any spare cuttings available, contact him via PM or email please

Edited by Tony Paroubek on Jan. 21 2003,10:18

I understand that whomever did this tookover Ragnorak's password and posted as Ragnorak, is that right?
Throwing that aside, what was it referring to? Unless I am overly tired and out of it, I do not see anyone in this thread asking for cuttings from neps or anyone else.

Regards,

Joe
 
  • #14
Many of the easier to root varieties, like N. ventricosa, will
have suitable roots after about three months. I usually allow
at least three months, and then check development by carefully
removing the rooting medium from the pot, and then peeling it
away from the base of the stem to see if I can ascertain the
presence of sufficient root tissue. Exercise care, however,
as the roots are brittle and easy to damage.
 
  • #15
Hi Cchang!
   I have only attempted 1 cutting so far....and I'm batting 1000.  Not too tough when doing Gracilis, though, is it?  
   Now, don't anyone else sneer at me over this  
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Remember how psyched you were on YOUR first success?

Anyhow, I did just like Neps said, though I butchered the actual cut (didn't seem to matter, but it's Gracilis, after all).  I potted the cutting in pure LFS (don't know if that was wise, but it was at hand), and put the whole thing, pot an all, in a zip lock bag.  Placed under flourescents.  I did this about 2-3 months ago, and first new growth was apparent about 3 weeks ago.
 
  • #16
Ragnarok's post was edited as it simply was a request for spare cuttings from Neps, and did not address the issue of rooting cuttings. Something I felt was not appropriate to the discussion at hand. The original request was deleted and the message you see added.
Tony
 
  • #17
That's the thing. I wasn't asking for a cutting. All I said was "wow, you have cuttings of N. raja!" refering to how large it must have been to have done this. I was simply surprised that he had a N. raja so large.
 
  • #18
So, please don't be so hasty in deleting posts, and PLEASE don't pull that little stunt again. Only I have the right to use my name.
 
  • #19
Your post was interpreted as a  request for a N. rajah cutting.  As I have stated and was edited as I saw fit. Next time think about what your saying in your post before you hit the submit button.

T

PS it's spelled N. rajah
 
  • #20
Back to the topic at hand:

I personally like to make a couple vertical slits at the bottom of the cutting. They should be deep enough to reach the tissue that surrounds the hard center core of the stem.

As far as rooting hormone. Make sure it is fresh since it has a fairly short shelf life. You can store unused powder in the freezer to help make it last longer. Also only take out what you need for the cuttings at hand. Don't contaminate the whole bottle by dipping a cutting into it. Another trick I like to use instead of trying to wet the cutting and dip into dry powder.. add a little water to the powder and make a thin slurry. Then you can dab a bit on the cut surfaces with a small brush. It will stick nicely to the stem. Make sure the opening in the potting mix is nice and large so you don't wipe the hormone off accidently.

Usually new growth corresponds to root formation but it is a good idea to check root development very carefully as Neps has suggested.
Tony
 
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