To cut or not to cut, that! is the question

[DavyJones]

Hi there friends. I have this unruly N. x velvet (thanks PK for teaching me the right way to write this...) whom refuses to make a basal of any sort. I'm thinking of cutting it in half, and sticking the cutting in the pot to hopefully spur some bushy-ness. See below marked picture!

<a href="http://s299.photobucket.com/albums/mm317/herrkaleun7/Plants/?action=view&current=velvet_marked-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm317/herrkaleun7/Plants/velvet_marked-1.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

First of all, should I do it? I have never taken a cutting before, and this plant is supposedly hearty after all. Things to note... From those arrows downward, the cutting has become very woody. It originally had two leaves below the soil line, but when I repotted it once, I planted it deeper due to the fact that it had become woody. I digress. The main point, from where, if anywhere! would you take a cutting. Also interesting is that the newest leaf on top, is larger then the last two produced.

And, on a side note, if anybody can explain the circled "?" item, I would appreciate it. That has been there since I received the plant, and has not changed one bit. I think it's a failed activated node or something. Thanks in advance for your help friends! I'm going to learn this hobby if its the last thing I do.

 

[elgecko]

I let my plants grow higher then that before cutting.
Mine get around the 3' high when they start to form basal shoots. That is the only time I cut mine back.

 

[Capensis]

I wouldn't.

 

[xvart]

I wouldn't either. Is that "?" an aborted flower?

xvart.

 

[DavyJones]

I don't have any idea what the "?" is whatsoever. It was on the plant when I received it.

 

[phissionkorps]

Its a spent flower, not an aborted one. They end up getting pretty long and get thin when they dry out.
Don't worry about the wood.
Personally, I'd try to train it to grow horizontally/downward. That will without fail activate a basal or a lower node from the woody portion. Every time one of my plants ends up growing downward, it activates at least 2 basals. I've some things with 6 basals at once, but I won't remove them until they get a bit bigger.

 

[DavyJones]

Personally, I'd try to train it to grow horizontally/downward.

Would you just tie it downwards using stakes? Or actually tilt the plant sideways like I once saw in an older post?

 

[phissionkorps]

I'd pull it down somehow and leave the pot where it is. I just had an awesome idea though...

Tie some fishing line around the top of the plant, and put a couple of those small lead weights used for fishing on the bottom...only a few grams at first. Then in a couple days, add a few more, then a few more, etc over the course of a couple weeks.

 

[jimscott]

That plant is awfully young to do a cutting. I would wait another year, when it has had a chance to spread and have obvious places for cutting.

 

[philcula]

PK's idea of tying the plant down with a small lead weight is a very good one...as I've done this myself on reluctant basal developers and its worked beautifully. My only concern is that fishing line can sometimes cut through some of the outer layers of tissue from the weight of being tied down so I myself use butcher's twine or cotton string or even knitting yarn. Just a thought.

 

[Capensis]

A little off topic here put if it's that tall and it's not ready to cut, how will I fit my future nep (ventricosa 'red form') in my 10 gallon tank? The tank is only like 11" high.

PS: PK, now it's Dino-Jesus XD!?

 

[Ant]

I think that it is a cutting that it is to early to cut. I had an old stem about the burn out that I cut. It developed roots but, as soon as I picked it up and tried to plant it, the top snapped off! I killed my first cutting after it got roots, how stupid do I have to be!

 

[phissionkorps]

All hail Raptor Jesus....he went extinct for your sins. He's also in yer base killin yer mans.

Capensis,
just train it like mentioned earlier to grow laterally...then lit it grow upwards a bit, etc. Or buy a bigger tank once it gets bigger. Personally, I've cut plants at that size or smaller before out of necessity (emergency cuttings) and I can't remember ever losing any.

 

[DavyJones]

Since I didn't have any sort of lead fishing weights here at school, and don't feel like driving all the way out to walmart right now, I am going to try slowly staking it sideways. Lets see what happens

 

[philcula]

Davey- If you don't have any lead weights then try using a heavy butter knife or a wrench wrapped in aluminum foil...so it doesn't rust in your tank. Thinking outside the box can often lead to new innovations and ideas. I once tied down a huge ampullaria vine with a hammer because the vine was so woody and I didn't have anything else that would work.