well i poke holes in the soil, dip my cuttings in rooting horomone and put them in stay green potting soil thats damp (in a zip lock baggie), then i mist them, then i blow my air into the baggie, and boy do i have LOTS of that!!! LOL
then i zip it shut making sure that its puffy. hang it in a place that has filtered light and in a few weeks ya have roots, most of the time, sometimes it takes a little longer. LOL
oh well the disks won't do me any good right now anyhow, LOL it doesn't acknowlege them!! LOL
we have been at my mom's, they are truckdrivers,, and i love it, they have so much space!! and of course its only 2 miles from hubs work! while i have tons of space at my house OUTSIDE they have tns of space INSIDE!! LOL but i love the smallllllllll town we live in. its so small it might as well be country!! LOL ~Medo

really eg, do you answer your own column??? you do know that they do have questions for you about your bed??

~Medo

Medo said: "you do know that they do have questions for you about your bed?? "

He already told us he sleeps with a camel ;-)

Granny

Here is a link that might be useful: Annie's Kitchen Garden

So you went to a Dodger's game? How cool! I love baseball. Did Manny Ramirez behave? He was always in the news for his antics in Boston. Great player but sooooo much drama!

Cuttings...some will root in water, others won't. It's worth taking cuttings of whatever you want and trying it out. For transportation you can wrap the base in wet paper towels and put them in plastic bags. I experimented with cuttings earlier this summer (brugs Medo!). I put some in water, some in water with rooting hormone and some in soil with rooting hormone. The ones in soil did best, the ones in plain water were next and the ones in water with rooting hormone were not great but I did manage to keep them alive and transplanted to soil.

Is anyone here planning cool season gardens? I want to experiment and am looking for advice.

yes i've done some hibiscus, i cut at a slant, just below a leaf nod, and then i pulled the leafs off up 2, and then i dipped them in rooting horomone. i put some holes in some of my stay green soil, the aqua control. then i put them in the holes, pushed the soil up around the "sticks of fresh growth LOL" then i keep misting them almost everyday, then i keep them in filtered light. so far i have only lost one. and the others are looking very healthy, i'm kinda scared of losing some being up here all this time. but if i don't lose any i'm gona ask my aunt karen if i can have some clippings of her pretty peach hibiscus. it has a pretty white line from center to the outer edge. its just beautiful. seeds for me on some things are just a little to uhhhh....unpredictable. on something like this i'd rather have clippings!! :') so yep, the soil one does work!! alot better than the water in my opinion, because the water has a rotten factor!! if you go to the propagation forum they tell you the only thing that should be in water is water plants, i would also add wondering jews. man they root quickly!! LOL
i like to visit that place sometimes, although it don't move that fast, and george is very smart!! :')
ROFL granny!! LOL yes i too sleep with a camel when he does sleep, one that works nights, so i should say when its his nights off!! LOL
he's trying to quit again. he did for 6 months, then we got around mom and them, dad is the smoker, mom had smoked for many years and then quit, he smokes like a chimney, in that truck really bad, so its kinda like she's still smoking, so being here its making it hard for him not to smoke. ahhhhhh i know what i want to say, and so i have to erase and redo it cuz my letters keep getting mixed up!!! LOL **big grinn** LOL
but ya, so i decided i'd try and wash some walls and see if that would help, in the living/diningroom, their walls go all the way to the roof. so its gonna be a challenge. can you say mop???? LOL
i'll shampoo the carpet, but the furniture that's not my thing!! that's for sure!! and maybe, just maybe when i go home i won't think there's a smoke factory in my nose even though he isn't here smoking!! that's so weird how the smoke particles are still in the air even though he isn't here. he's a 3-4 pack a day smoker. and the bad part, 2 of those, just sit in the ashtray, i'll rarely see him actually smoke it. its just a security blanket i think. ok enough about dad, love him dearly!! and can't wait till they come in in a few weeks!! LOL WAAAAAAAAHHHHHH LOL and miss my mommy!!!! WAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!! WAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!! LOL
i think i'll go and tend to her roses!! LOL they are beautifull!! :') ~Medo

Medo - Thanks so much for the great info. How do you keep the cutting good until you get home? Should I plant them here in this soil you mention in baggies and truck them across the country with us like that? I don't guess I have much choice, huh? Also, will anything you take a cutting of take root, or is it just specific plants?

Granny - You and EG just keep going with the good ones. hee hee

Mrs. YooHoo - Yep! The game was a blast. I didn't know about the history Manny Ramirez has, but he sure seemed to behave last night. Boy, the crowd went nutso for him, though. As for the cuttings, thanks so much for the extra info. I guess I asked Medo for more info just a bit too soon. That will totally work for me on the way back home. It's a two day trip, but I'm sure they'll be okay.

Medo - Thanks again for the additional info. Wow! You and Mrs. YooHoo are very knowledgeable! I sure came to the right place, huh? Also, be sure to tell your husband to stay strong on the not smoking thing. My husband, Steve, and I just quit 3 months ago. It is so worth it if he hangs tight and just stays away from direct smoke for awhile. Then, it gets to the point where he really won't care any longer. I'm finally at that point now. It's a great feeling. Plus, we're saving tons of money. LOL

~Angela

angelady, congratulations on being smoke free for three months! When I first quit, I would seek out smokers and sit downwind from them, just to suck in that second hand smoke. I'll bet it took three years before the smoke actually started bothering me, now I get up and move if anyone near me lights up. Not only do I feel much better...I haven't had a lingering cold or bronchitis since I quit...my tomato plants don't have to worry about getting a virus from the tobacco on my hands, LOL!

Here is a link that might be useful: Annie's Kitchen Garden

i'll tell him. and congradulations!! that's an awesome thing!!
your just bad granny!! LOL **big grinn**

i just tried everything when we came back from oregon and cali. from my brothers wedding, about half of it stayed, i think i did good. :') then later i lost some of that!! LOL darned ks weather. turn on you in a second flat!! LOL drier than a bone. well at least it seems that way!! LOL ikept mine moist, and kept mine in a bucket with a lid. LOL my sil gave me one. she was so sweet!! she's the litteral bomb!! ~Medo

Hi,I've been reading these OT threads and wanted to chime in about rooting cuttings.I root lots of plants.I cut at a slant and use mostly new growth well actually always use new growth.I dip in the rooting powder and pot them up and sit my cuttings in the shade with a saucer under them to hold a little water.I keep them moist but not soaked.The trick for me is to leave them alone.I use to tend to want to check to see if they have roots yet.I remedied that by using clear cups with holes for drainage cut in them or using small pots and you can see the roots coming out the bottom of the pots.I have I'd say 90 percent success with my cuttings.Good luck.Debbie

Oooh, I miss so cal. Now there is a place to garden, lol. My in laws live in San Diego. In their garden, they basically toss out seeds and jump out of the way as they grow.
Grats on quitting smoking! That is an enormous act!

Granny - I also would stand downwind from a smoker for minute if I got a chance. It amazes me how far away I can smell smoke now that I'm a non-smoker. I only did that for 2 or 3 weeks, so it surprises me that you did that for 3 years. Now, I'm one of those crazy people who will hold their breath for quite some time until I get past the smoke. It's hilarious what a 180 I've done.

Medo - I'd feel blessed if half my cuttings make it. Maybe I'll have beginner's luck, though, and they might all make it? That'd be cool!

Debbie - Wow! Thanks so much for chiming in. That makes it sound very simple. I like the idea of the see-through cups a lot. I am definitely going to do it that way! I also wouldn't have known to look for the newest growth. I'm going to do that as well.

~Angela

Carolyn - I noticed your posted reply that stated, "I am going to start vermiculture soon here and you begin composting by adding plain soil in addition to the other items."

I'm probably going to go with vermicomposting myself. I had no idea that you start with plain soil. From what I saw with my little research on the subject is that you start with a "bed" of different items that seemed like greens and browns do to me now for regular composting. Am I wrong? If so, I best go ask some question in the vermicomposting forum, huh? Every time I think I get a grasp on a plan and knowing what I'm kind of doing, then something else comes up, and I realize that even with all that I've learned and read up about for a month now, I still know nothing!!!

~Angela

welcome to one type of gardening or another angela!! LOL where we think we know a little of something and we know absolutely nothing!! LOL
yep debbie is really smart!! i've traded with her a few times!! she's so great and love her to pieces!! :'))
p.s. i'm not very knowledgable!! LOL Hee Hee!! just ask tabor, he'll tell ya!! LOL i wanted to do vermi, i looked some things on youtube on how to make some beds, looked pretty cool!! but i didn't see anything about soil, just a bunch of greens, like the stuff you'd use for composting, actually. and they compost it for you and you use that, its like their poo and the compost. so actually you have 1 source of manuer, just need 4 more. LOL **big grinn** ~Medo

LOL, I haven't started yet Angela, but they recommend in many places that you start with newspaper, a bit of soil and some veggie leftovers.
Are you doing this as a project for science? I am.
Here's what I have so far:
http://whatcom.wsu.edu/ag/compost/Easywormbin.htm
http://www.oregonsoil.com/about.php
http://www.wonderworman.com/

On the wonderworman site, that lady will answer any question you have quickly AND with specifics. She's pretty awesome.

Thanks! Those links are terrific! Yep, I guess I do need more than just vermicompost. I was thinking that it was sooo good that it would replace refilling the beds every time I replant. I don't know if I'd even have enough for that anyways, though.

BTW, I just got my first cutting. I got it from a friend of ours here in California that we visited today. I planted it about 4 inches down in the soil when I got it to my mom-in-laws tonight. It looks really happy, and I've been talking to it. I am not sure if I planted it too deep or not, so I guess we will see.

I am finding myself already thinking about trying cuttings of trees now! I am crazy. I am SO TOTALLY addicted to this gardening stuff now. LOL Instead of driving down the road looking at all the vacation stuff, I am staring at the different greenery wondering if anyone would notice me coming up in the middle of the night and pulling down the branch and snipping some new growth. ROFL

~Angela

LOL i know exactly how you feel!! LOL did you take the leaves that are in the dirt? and some more a few up? that way when it grows back, you know you did great!! LOL
sometimes i think hmmmm..... that would look in my yard!! so now i'm trying hibiscus, i love them because they are soooo huge of a flower. and sometime i want to try hydrangea. this is such a great way to fill your yard and not cost you a dime!! LOL coming from one at the beginning of the year would make them turn to toast!! LOL **huge grinn** ~Medo

I'm here in Oregon. It's like the shire Angela: everyone gardens, and if you stopped and tried to take a cutting, probably two neighbors would start arguing over who's cutting you should take, and you'd walk away with more information than you started with. In LA? You could get shot. I wouldn't chance that action, lol.

LOL now that would get suck, out of all the things in the world to get shot over, a plant!! OHHHH MYYYY!!! LOL
has anyone in cali come across Sarcostemma cynanchoides or climbing milkweed?? i'd love some seeds if you have any :') i'm so sure i have something to trade you!! :') even some cuttings if you'd prefer!! i have a friend that wants them really bad!! LOL ~Medo

Medo hibiscus grow very easily from seeds,hardy hibiscus anyway.Tropical hibiscus don't always have seeds so cuttings are better probably.The hardy ones will bloom the first year from seed and return each year,here in GA anyway.I grow the tropical ones in pots and overwinter them,I don't want to lose them to the cold.Also the hydrangea roots fairly easy.I have some cuttings rooting now of them.
Angela,I've never rooted any trees other than ornamental types that bloom,like crepe myrtles,etc.Good luck on that!Debbie

LOL You're right. I probably would get shot! You done scared me right out of that one. LOL I guess I'll have to sneak my cuttings from public places only now. hee hee

~Angela

As for the leaves, no, they were at the end of really long stalks, so there weren't any leaves on the stalk itself. I will have to try to figure out what kind of a plant this is. I'll ask her if she knows what it is, but if not, I'll be searching thousands of online pics until I see it, I guess. LOL

~Angela

or here's a really wacky idea, but it just might work (LOL) you could snap a pic and post it here and one of us might know what it is!! LOL **smiling :')** ~Medo

Medo, I'll look around. If I find any, I'll email you. I end up with weird odds and ends in my seed box, lol.

Angela: even more ot, lol: My hubby and I worked with youth in so cal for a while. When we were down there, some guy shot two kids (yep, shot both of them) who were trying to steal his pumpkin leaf bag at halloween (do you guys have these in Tx? They're leaf bags that look like jack o lanterns?). I guess he had watched too many zombie movies... The people out there are really kind and if you find one who really gardens (you know, not the kind who has paid someone else to make them look like a greenie?), they'll usually be pretty excited to talk to you.

OMGoodness, we have them leaf bags!! but no one ever got shot for them!!
when we visited my aunt in cali i asked some guy what kinda plant he had growing, he said i don't know you'll have to ask my gardener. i was floored!! literally!! i mean i thought, ya know everyone did their own gardening, but apparently everyone on that block had a gardener!! how crazy!! that's JUST NUTS!!!
~Medo

Carolyn - You're so right. If someone came over to my yard and wanted a cutting, I would feel honored. That would basically be a compliment, and I'd offer them to take a look around to see if they wanted anything else.

Medo - LOL I think I will post a picture if this plant lasts when we get it home. It's my first go, so I'll feel blessed if the plant makes it. It's looking a little sad, but overall like it will make it. I'll keep everyone updated on how it does when we get home. As for having gardeners, it's sad, but I almost always presume that the person didn't do their yard themselves these days. I know my neighbor did his, but as for everyone else, I never hardly see them out in their yards at all.

Debbie - That's exactly what I was looking at snagging the other day when I posted! I think it was a crepe myrtle! I didn't actually get it yet. I got scared with all the talk of people shooting me. LOL

~Angela

keep misting it and i hope it will make it! or if you have a camera with you, you can now. you do don't you?? dont you?? LOL **big grinn** ya and finger nail clippers work good too, LOL to take a really quick clipping, but that was all befor i just went up and knocked on the door and said may i have a clipping of your beautiful plant?? its just so pretty!! of course tabor and hubs go "ohhhhhh GOD" and get so embarrased but i tell ya, you make friends and get to talking about plants and next thing ya know, your like, come over sometime and i'll let you have some of mine, geeze i have TONS of little ones you'll make my hubs happy to get rid of some!! LOL and BOOM you made a new sord of friend. LOL me being the giver i give away tons of plantlings. LOL you wouldnt know it by my back yard though!!! LOL i want crepe myrtle soooo bad!! they smell so good in the spring!! and hydrangea!! oh heck i want the west coast!! its so beautiful!! LOL ** sheepish grinn** LOL also..... you can get seeds from your dried fruit, like the gojio or somthing like that, it doesn't fry them, a guy sent me some, and lo and behold i had tons of seedlings, i don't recommend doing them in the winter!! LOL unless its outside!! LOL ~Medo