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Rooting Nepenthes

I have a Ventricosa, Venetrata and Sanguina to chop up,
they have a few basals and have been growing like weeds.
I'll be making some cutting from the fresh green sections
(because woody vines don't take well right ?)
from the vine.
So do I just cleanly cut them,
make a slice/slit down the middle(like a half inch) to split the stem a bit then put it into a pot with Long Fiber Sphagnum and perlite?
Can I use peat or is sphagnum the way to go?
Sorry I feel like a newbie and don't want to kill cuttings :hail:
 
How to take cuttings is a matter of taste to some degree. I prefer single node cuttings and I either cut at a sharp angle (45˚ or greater) and split the base, so that more of the cambium is exposed; and depending upon the value of the plant or just to ensure that it roots, I generally use Rootone or Clonex and straight long fiber sphagnum as a medium. I found that peat-based mixes retains far too much moisture . . .
 
BigB,
Interesting... pretty much EXACTLY as I have done it for years!

I have tried a few other ways, but always come back to this is one! It's like a no-brainer for me....
And I always use rootone (unless I run out) for everything (non-CP's too), as I was shown that back when I was in my teens, and it has given me good results ever since!

I sometimes use 2 nodes, and occasionally trim back the leaves (trim off the pitcher is usual for me), as it helps the cutting lose less water thru transpiration (and sometimes do that when dividing and re-potting plants too). The less (or no) roots can't keep up with the plants need for water.
For cuttings however, so long as the humidity is high, it seldom seems a problem.

Well, seems some things at least don't change! Which is nice. (I learned all this from an old nurseryman as a kid, and it seemed magical at the time!)

Good luck all! :water:
 
Yeah, I forgot to mention to trim the leaves in half and remove any pitchers. It's late after all . . .
 
Pretty Much The Same Here
Although I don't split the base / Will try that next time / Does it make much of a difference???

I usually put the cuttings in a bowl of water with a few drops of SuperThrive & a little liquid root stimulator for a few minutes while taking other cuttings & getting things ready

Dip them in Rootone
Wrap some wet moss around the steam & pot them in their normal soil mix

Some make it some don't
But have a pretty high success rate

Grow tips seem to be the easiest
 
Pretty Much The Same Here
Although I don't split the base / Will try that next time / Does it make much of a difference???

Splitting the base simply exposes more of the cambium tissue to the rooting hormone than would a diagonal slice -- and further ensures rooting. I have never lost a cutting to that method, even some of the "touchier" species . . .
 
Also if you want to watch the root-growing progress, you can just put the cutting in a vase of water too. I've got a sibXhamata cutting taking off in an old vanilla extract bottle.

P5040010.jpg

(paper towel around the bottle because the bottle is dark and I don't want to boil the plant alive in the sun)

and it's almost time to pot this baby up:
P5040011.jpg
 
Also if you want to watch the root-growing progress, you can just put the cutting in a vase of water too. I've got a sibXhamata cutting taking off in an old vanilla extract bottle.

Nice job.

Starting the cuttings in water -- while a popular method for some -- doesn't necessarily lend itself to all Nepenthes; and if the cuttings are valuable to you, I'd still go with a compost . . .
 
Alright I need to find or most likely ship some LFS out here and buy some rootone.
Thanks for the help.
 
  • #11
Another method that I've seen, though I can't remember where, is to root it while still attached to the mother plant. It was achieved by making a deep angled cut into the stem (I think it was about half way through?), packing it with damp sphagnum moss, with a wad of it around the stem too, and placing a plastic back, tied top and bottom around that section. The top part of the stem roots into the damp sphagnum.
 
  • #12
Air rooting like that is used on plants that take so long to root, they'd die before it happened. It's also great for other plants, because it doesn't deplete from the stored energy while making roots. You basically cut into the area, add rooting hormone, wrap damp LFS around it, and tightly seal with plastic. It's cool because as long as you wait, it has a really high success rate (and is pretty cool to open).

http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/ornamentals/airlayer/airlayer.html
 
  • #13
jm82792,

Yea, that's good stuff!
Seems expensive, but then it is now anyway!

I think you could try other things more readily available to you also.
Perhaps when you get some LFS, you could try rooting in that, along with some other mixtures.
LFS isn't magic really, so I am sure that if you try other things also, you will find what is best for you.

Good Luck
Paul
 
  • #15
I think you need to talk to local orchid & nepenthes shops, like Sam Estes at Leilani Hai'pu Nursery or some others. There HAS to be an on-island alternative for you.
 
  • #16
I'll see, the nursery where I bought nepenthes from just uses peat n perilite but maybe they use LFS to root.
Leilani as far I know is a big operation that is closed doors,
and if I'm going bother him it's when i have a greenhouse waiting to be filled :)
 
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