Here's a video I thought was helpful for rooting Fortuniana from Davis... especially since I am also doing it in December like the couple in the video! I tend to do rooting from cuttings a little different.... I pour the rooting hormone powder into a plastic baggie and dip the cutting into that instead of dipping it into the rooting hormone jar. And I make the hole in the potting soil first instead of pushing the cutting into it. And I use a combo of sand and EB Stone organic potting soil instead of perlite... but that's just me. I'm not saying it's right just because that's the way I do it... it's just the way I do it.

I thought the video was really helpful though, so I'm sharing it. It was especially helpful to see the cuttings from Davis so I could feel well prepared for what I'm getting. :)

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=vnfY5Qsb_Ds

The 50 cuttings of Fortuniana arrived! I was curious how they would look after being cut and shipped. Davis wrapped them in twine and also in damp newspaper, then also in thick paper and bubble wrap in the box. After unwrapping them they look like this...

Hmmm. How to tell top from bottom? Ahhh... the bud eyes...

Top

Bottom

Here's how I'm starting. Remember I'm a newbie so this isn't a tutorial! More like a "learn with me." :)

Step one: place in water.

Step two: remove bud eyes on the bottom 2/3 of the cutting.

Step three: Cut the bottom 1/4 - 1/2 inch off the base of the cutting (6-12 mm).

Step four: Wound the base on 2 sides by slicing lightly into the cambium.

Step five: place into water while I do the other 49 cuttings and drink some coffee.

I have never rooted so many cuttings at once!!! And I have never rooted "root stock" so removing bud eyes from the bottom 2/3 of the cutting is new to me too.

I think I got better as it went along. But I needed to change my blade every 10-20 cuttings or so. Here's some photos of the process...

Sometimes I sliced into the cambium at each side if it was really thick and the "peeling" cut didn't make it back to the cambium. Not sure how that will work, but it made sense to try it that way. Because these cuttings were really strong and hard! Made it hard to cut... but I'm glad they're strong. Definitely need a sharp blade and sharp shears.

I will update with more of the rooting process once I get thru all of these...

Phew. Done. Ok so I was surprised to see they sent me 60 cuttings instead of 50. Lucky me!

I have my 60 Anderson band pots ready to go. I mixed about 1/3 sand and 2/3 E.B. Stone Azalea potting mix. (Anderson pots are the kind of rectangle pots with a cross cross band at the bottom that vendors usually send "rose bands" in).

This is just my way of rooting cuttings, so please use what works best for you! I put a little of my own soil in the bottom of the pots (it's clay and I like how it holds together at the bottom). Then the potting soil. Then sand. I use the chopstick to push the sand down. It practically mixes itself just by pushing the sand down. I don't really mix it perfectly. It's more layered.

Partly out of laziness/efficiency and partly because it has always worked well for me.

I watered the empty band pots, let them settle to see if they need topping off, then I used the chopstick to make a hole in the potting soil. I dip the wet cutting in rooting powder, stick it in the pre made hole, pack soil around it, and water again. x60. Wow I have never done this on such a mass scale before!

Oh... I also typically insert the cutting with about 2/3 below the potting mix and 1/3 above the potting mix. In these pots that basically means I insert it down to about the bottom.

Done. Now I just wait.

60 cuttings. Wow! Let's see how many take.

Thank you! Are you using something to hold the moisture in or are you going to spritz them?

I am so lucky... we are going to have rain for the next week!!!! Then I can just put a plexiglass cover over the whole bed after if it seems like it needs it. When it's chilly like this I haven't had too much of a problem keeping cuttings damp. I have even used saranwrap and it has worked. :)

Awesome thread Cori Ann! Looking forward to your updates on this.

Julie

Thanks! Me too! :)

Today is the first day in two weeks it isn't at least misting a little. We have had two weeks of rain, sun, showers, sun, storms, sun, misting, sun. The sun has been overcast and a little cloudy, but it's been there. We are forecasted to have 4 days of no rain... then back to the rain/sun. Loving it! :)

No real changes in the cuttings after only 2 weeks of course. Look about the same. I don't want to disturb them by tugging to check the roots (I think of it like opening the oven to check what you're baking... just let it be).

Couldnt find my old plate of plexiglass for the top... probabaly got thrown out in the remodel, so we're having a new piece cut from tap plastics today. Im probabaly also going to line this propogation bed with black landscape fabric. I did it to my other two in the fall and I just ran out of time/effort with this one. It helps to keep the warmth in and to not lose so much soil out of the bottom of the wood raised bed.

Thats the current update! Oh also... not related to roses, my next batch of radish seeds in the flat next to the Fortuniana are germinating nicely. :)

Photo of the plexiglass we had cut from tap plastics to just fit over the top of the raised propagation bed. Bummer that I couldn't find my old piece because my hubby said it cost a surprising $50! Looks opaque or white but it's not. That's just condensation. Checked on em and drew condensation hearts cuz I'm silly. :)

Cori, that's lovely! Such surprise that u could do it in this way!! Love the idea bc I love to propagate my roses too.

Please let us know the result.

Thanks Daisy! I think for normal propagating (meaning not a bazillion --- or 60 in this case) from cuttings, the baggie method works great. That's basically using a ziplock bag as a greenhouse.

But for cuttings I don't really care too much about, I honestly will just stick them in the potting soil in one of the other 2 propagation beds I have and not even cover them. They usually turn out fine as long as it's not summer and I remember to water them.

These are special though! Virus free Fortuniana stock from UC Davis here in California. I'm excited. I really hope to see a good rooting rate in a couple months. :)

Just another update. We are now having lovely rain, then sunshine intervals, so I took the plexiglass cover off. I plan to keep it off until the rain stops, which is supposed to be in about 4 more days. We are then supposed to have sunshine and no rain for at least a week, maybe more. The plexiglass top will go back on at that time. Let's see what happens. :)

Tell me more about your propagation beds! Are they for holding rooting cuttings so they are not sitting on the ground? I'm curious. I may want to build some. I do mine in baggies, but I usually sit them somewhere in dappled shade. Something like this may work well for me as I will be propagating in large quantities this year. I'm not really sure where a good place to keep them all will be while they root.

Hi Mindy. These are pretty easy to build if you're handy. You can probably buy prefabricated too. They're waist high so I don't need to bend down and so the dogs can't get to them, but it's true that they also keep the plants from touching the ground. I like them because I can either line them with landscape fabric and fill them with dirt, or put pots and flats in them. The top is also all one level (no decorative finials) so I can just put the plexiglass on top with a rock or 2 and it stays put even in storms. I love em! Very handy way to propagate and get seeds going if you have dogs or other things/people you don't want messing with your plants.

Excuse the winter mess. But here are photos of the waist high prop beds.

They should also be easier to keep insects (other than ANTS) out of, too. If you have moles or gophers, these would be ideal. I did similarly for my rose seed tables, only not as elaborate as you've gone. Nice job! Amazing how much nicer it is to work at waist level rather than having to kneel or bend over, isn't it?

Yes! I'm tall and now that I have been working with them I actually wish we would have made them a little higher! They're great though. I do love em. Anyone making these... Play around with different counter heights to see what feels most comfortable.

Yup, that's why when we redid the kitchen, the counters were made 39" high. MUCH easier on backs, but only if you have the height for them.

Doesn't necessarily mean they rooted, but new growth is still fun to see! About a month has passed...

:)

58 of the 60 cuttings are showing new growth. It is still too early to really tell... but it looks like I may have a bunch of virus free Fortuniana pretty soon!

I can feel you excitement! Very cool!

Ok...I'm feeling pretty confident now to say that 58 out of 60 cuttings have rooted. That's my best success rate ever!

They sprang to life this week.

Wow, what a great presentation you've done here Cori Ann!! I love it! It's also nice to see the size of the cuttings UCD sends out. I'm planning to order some of the older hts and florries from them next fall to try and root them.

Isn't it just so fun to do this and actually get results?!! It'll be interesting to see how the budding goes once these are ready for it!!

I'm glad you find the photos helpful! Yes it's lots of fun. :)

Does UC Davis send out cuttings to root? I thought you could only order rootstock cuttings or scions for budding? Well... I guess you could root the scion cuttings... :)

Davis sends out the requested cuttings. If you dis bud and root them, they become stocks. If you remove the buds and insert them into stocks, they are "bud wood". They don't care what you use them for. Yup, root'em if you have'em!

Yeah you can root them. One of the guys who used to frequent the forums, Mike Gleason, ordered and rooted several of the older, more obscure hts. He's a big fan of Jack Christensen, and they have a number of his roses. I wonder what ever happened to Mike? I haven't seen him on here for several yrs now.

It got up to 70 yesterday and I forgot to take the plexiglass off before I went to work ... so when I came home I realized some of the little tender baby Fortuniana leaves got a little crispy around the edges. Oops!

They should still be fine though.

I also saw this little lady bug soldier standing guard against the aphids. Nice!

They're looking good Cori Ann!!

Wow, amazing. I wish you luck. I have not had much luck rooting. I will read your post in more detail later. I would also like to try budding. I bought some budded roses from Wisconsin roses and it was fun seeing them grow from one little bud. I have a fortuniana plant, I'm not sure if it's virused or not. It was rootstock for a rose I had that did not come back one year.

Thanks Buford and Beth. I learned to root from my grandmother a long time ago on the ranch I grew up on. There are a few things I do well because of that type of childhood. And a few things I don't do well at all! ;)

Luckily, rooting is one of the things I took to, I remember, and I haven't lost the touch of. I'm excited to try budding. If they take... and if Fortuniana ends up being a good rootstock here for me... then I could have some godzilla sized frankenstein roses. :) If not, well I'm only out a couple bucks and some time. No big deal. It's going to be fun to see what happens. :)

Some of my little Fortuniana bands are creating buds. Anyone on this thread know if I should pinch them back? I'm assuming yes, but I'm also really curious to see them so I may have to leave a couple just to satisfy my own curioisity.

This is exactly the same issue as when a climber (or other rose) insists upon flowering at the expense of growing. Do what you want, but NOT letting them flower WILL push them to grow faster.

Thank you for always offering yourself for such great advice roseseek! I plan to keep 2 as my own plants. So I could let them flower I guess... or I could wait and let them flower once they create their own canes. That's probably best.

Ok. Decision made. They will all be sacrificed.

You're welcome, Cori Ann. If Fortuniana performs where you are as it does here, it should flower much of the summer. I'm glad you're retaining a plant or two for "stock" material. Why buy new when you can pump out tons of your own? Good luck!

ok, I'm in, I bought myself a budding knife and some of the tape. I also bought these cutting globes. You scrape off the bark on a cane, put some rooting hormone on it and then put this globe around it with some soil in it. It's supposed to root in a few weeks. It's worth a shot. I'll keep trying to root the old fashioned way. I have a very healthy fortuniana plant.

Post photos Buford! That sounds crazy! Is that like the airlayering technique? I don't really know anything about that at all... just read the term and that's pretty much it.

Well, a few days in the 80s fried some of these little guys. Fortuniana cuttings are still babies and I guess they can't handle the heat like they will be able to when they're older! Darn!

The plexiglass top has been off for a while, but even so, the intense sun we have been having (intense for March) was too much for them.

I chucked a little over 10 more of them and moved the rest to an open area where they get afternoon shade and more ventilation. So I'm down to 46 now. Looks like I will probably lose a few more, so maybe I will end up with 40?

That is still so many so I'm happy with that! :)

Thanks Buford for the info! I ordered some Cutting Globes tonight. Will give them a try this spring.

Wow, that would be a much easier way to propagate some of my hard-to-replace roses without having to try rooting the stems in pots. I must go look on Amazon...

Beth dear, you have to order through their US site not Amazon: US site Cutting Globes

Yeah I figured that out already. Thanks tho!

So... The bad news is that we had a huge windstorm a few weeks back with 65mph gusts. That's super rare here and I was quite unprepared. Most of the cuttings were thrown across the yard several times by the wind and they just didn't make it. I have only 9 left. :-(

The great news is that the ones that are left seem to have really strong root systems! I moved them all to a northern exposure part shade fence line since now we are back to our typical hot hot hot weather. I think it's time for some pulp pots for these guys! I probably won't have time to try budding until summer so I'm just going to let them grow for a while.

Ouch! I'm sorry! It is so disappointing when something like that happens. At least you have the nine. Be sure to retain one for a stock plant so you can root more for yourself when you want/need them. Good luck!

Cori Ann, I see that you haven't posted anything in quite a while and I'm just wondering how things turned out for you with your cuttings?

I found your post because I was looking for information about growing my own rootstock to use for grafting a few hybrid teas that I have. I recently did something close to what you did and ordered 50 cuttings of Dr. Huey from UC Davis and I'm still waiting to see if they are going to root. I did mine a bit differently in that I kept them indoors in small clear plastic cups and the cups in sealed clear plastic bags on the windowsill.

If they root, I'm hoping to give grafting a shot:)

Hi Streisand Fan! The 9 Fortuniana bands I was left with are all doing great.

I ended up getting really busy and not having enough time to graft onto them... so I put them all in the ground along a fence. I have enough room, so I can either continue to grow them as climbers and take cuttings from them to graft whenever I want.... or I could still graft into the ones I have if I decide to. Currently I'm planning to just let them grow as my own never ending supply of Fortuniana.

I hope yours do well! I was extremely surprised at the success rate I had with rooting them. I hope you have success too... and that you don't lose any like I did to a wind storm!

:-)