How to Propagate Cordylines (Ti plants)

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Day #5 - Cuttings in the seaweed water are showing the first signs of roots.
 

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IMG_4840.JPG Experiment #2 - Fresh Ti seed soaked for 48 hours in seaweed water VS the fresh Ti seed soaked in water. Seed now in soil and the seaweed soaked seed will stay on the liquid seaweed diet. Water soaked seed will stay with water. Lets see what happens here.
 
IMG_4841.JPG Experiment #3- Today placed fresh Ti logs in a liquid seaweed soak. These logs will soak in the brew for 24 hrs and then placed in seaweed soaked moss and into baggies.
 
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Here is another seaweed project I did for kicks. Ti logs mailed to me from a CA Cordyline Society member. The four logs mailed from CA 4/09/14 and arrived at my door here in Tampa 4/12/14. These logs were already started in the moss baggie method, but on arrival here they received a 24 hr seaweed soak and placed back into the baggie. Today 2 of the now rooted and budding logs were placed in soil. IMG_4848.JPG
 
Scott Mcintosh said:
View attachment 25627 Experiment #2 - Fresh Ti seed soaked for 48 hours in seaweed water VS the fresh Ti seed soaked in water. Seed now in soil and the seaweed soaked seed will stay on the liquid seaweed diet. Water soaked seed will stay with water. Lets see what happens here.
Click to expand...
Another great experiment! I'll be looking forward to the results. I have also heard that a seed soak in a dilute hydrogen peroxide solution before planting will significantly reduce the germination time. That might be a good experiment to try on another batch of seeds. I wonder if a seaweed/hydrogen peroxide soak would enhance the germination time even more.
 
tropicalken said:
This was a great experiment Scott. Did you use the regular seaweed solution sold at nurseries or the type I mentioned to you that is sold in hydroponic stores?
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Ken, I have only used the "Ohrstrom's Maxicrop Liquid Seaweed" found in the local garden center. I have ordered the one you mentioned and await it's arrival.
 
tropicalken said:
Another great experiment! I'll be looking forward to the results. I have also heard that a seed soak in a dilute hydrogen peroxide solution before planting will significantly reduce the germination time. That might be a good experiment to try on another batch of seeds. I wonder if a seaweed/hydrogen peroxide soak would enhance the germination time even more.
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The hydrogen peroxide soak is new to my ears and I will give it a try. I will also try the seaweed/ hydrogen peroxide mix. Thank you Ken!
 
Here is some more info on using hydrogen peroxide in the germination of seeds.

It's easy to improve your at-home germination rates by using hydrogen peroxide in your pre-planting routine. Simply add 1 ounce of 3-percent hydrogen peroxide to 1 pint of water; choose one of the following three methods. One, soak your seeds for 18 to 24 hours, rinse and plant. Two, place your seeds on a length of paper towels, use a mister filled with the hydrogen peroxide-water solution to thoroughly dampen (but not soak) the towels and the seeds, then roll up the towels loosely or simply fold them over so that all sides of the seeds are in contact with moist paper towel. Mist them lightly each day (or when the towel dries out) and plant them when sprouts emerge. Three, just rinse your seeds with the solution, then plant.
Read more: http://www.ehow.com/info_12316831_hydrogen-peroxide-affect-seed-germination.html#ixzz30CzNJi6D
http://abstracts.aspb.org/pb2004/public/...
http://pcp.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/conten...
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20102...
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles...
 
Scott Mcintosh said:
View attachment 25628 Experiment #3- Today placed fresh Ti logs in a liquid seaweed soak. These logs will soak in the brew for 24 hrs and then placed in seaweed soaked moss and into baggies.
Click to expand...
Update on Experiment #3- They ended up in the seaweed soak for a little over 48 hours, and then placed (bottom of log) in the seaweed soak moss and into baggies. The logs have lots of buds along the log and I took a peek into one of the moss balls and it also has small roots showing in 5 days. Sorry but I still can not get a photo to load here.
 
tropicalken said:
Here is some more info on using hydrogen peroxide in the germination of seeds.

It's easy to improve your at-home germination rates by using hydrogen peroxide in your pre-planting routine. Simply add 1 ounce of 3-percent hydrogen peroxide to 1 pint of water; choose one of the following three methods. One, soak your seeds for 18 to 24 hours, rinse and plant. Two, place your seeds on a length of paper towels, use a mister filled with the hydrogen peroxide-water solution to thoroughly dampen (but not soak) the towels and the seeds, then roll up the towels loosely or simply fold them over so that all sides of the seeds are in contact with moist paper towel. Mist them lightly each day (or when the towel dries out) and plant them when sprouts emerge. Three, just rinse your seeds with the solution, then plant.
Read more: http://www.ehow.com/info_12316831_hydrogen-peroxide-affect-seed-germination.html#ixzz30CzNJi6D
http://abstracts.aspb.org/pb2004/public/...
http://pcp.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/conten...
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20102...
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles...
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Thank Ken! I have lots of seed left from last year to play around with.
 
Ninja said:
first sign of roots here? I also had them in seaweed-solution after reading this but moved to normal water and daily washing them off after they showed signs of fungus.
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Yes those little round bumps will look like a little white star type thing ( the roots) along the stem shortly.
 
Scott Mcintosh said:
Update on Experiment #3- They ended up in the seaweed soak for a little over 48 hours, and then placed (bottom of log) in the seaweed soak moss and into baggies. The logs have lots of buds along the log and I took a peek into one of the moss balls and it also has small roots showing in 5 days. Sorry but I still can not get a photo to load here.
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Here is the resized photo.
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Scott Mcintosh said:
Thank Ken! I have lots of seed left from last year to play around with.
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Have you tried old seed before? Our club found that seed taken from the berry has a limited shelf life, so it may not germinate. On the other hand I had some ti berries that were three years old that I had stored in the refrigerator and when I removed the pulp and planted them they germinated. I guess the pulp protects them in some way and prevents them from drying out.
 
tropicalken said:
Have you tried old seed before? Our club found that seed taken from the berry has a limited shelf life, so it may not germinate. On the other hand I had some ti berries that were three years old that I had stored in the refrigerator and when I removed the pulp and planted them they germinated. I guess the pulp protects them in some way and prevents them from drying out.
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Ken, I have not tried old seed. The seed has long been cleaned now. I just going to toss them in the garden now. If they germinate so be it, I am not going to spend time on the old seed. Thanks for the info.
 
Scott Mcintosh said:
Ken, I have not tried old seed. The seed has long been cleaned now. I just going to toss them in the garden now. If they germinate so be it, I am not going to spend time on the old seed. Thanks for the info.
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Do you know of any seed sources? Our last supplier sustained a spinal injury and does not supply them now. Unfortunately seed does not usually set in Southern California. The same goes for crotons and hibiscus. It's due to our very low humidity. People who have greenhouses and can supply the high humidity have no problem with seed set with all these plants.
 
I know of no supplier for the seed, if I have extra from the four that I let set seed I will be happy to share with you.
 
Scott Mcintosh said:
I know of no supplier for the seed, if I have extra from the four that I let set seed I will be happy to share with you.
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Thanks Scott. A few of our members are quite good at growing them.

Yesterday at our meeting there was a discussion on seeds and one gal said that she had tried old seed. She had two different seed vials and planted them both the same way. One sprouted fine and the other yielded nothing. So perhaps your seed from last year may be viable.
 
Another girl reported yesterday at our ti meeting that she had used the moss with seaweed mixture when rooting our last shipment of canes. She had similar results in that the canes showed roots in five days. She had used the seaweed that you recently ordered. Her results were roots and lots of cane growth breaks intermingled up and down the cane. She may end up with a nice clump of ti after she plants it horizontally. This may be an advantage to the upright cane rooting. I found in the past that the horizontal method was much slower than rooting upright. Now since the seaweed mixtures work so well in promoting rapid rooting, it may be better to do all the rooting horizontally to produce a lot more cane growth in a short period of time.
 
tropicalken said:
Have you tried old seed before? Our club found that seed taken from the berry has a limited shelf life, so it may not germinate. On the other hand I had some ti berries that were three years old that I had stored in the refrigerator and when I removed the pulp and planted them they germinated. I guess the pulp protects them in some way and prevents them from drying out.
Click to expand...

tropicalken said:
Thanks Scott. A few of our members are quite good at growing them.

Yesterday at our meeting there was a discussion on seeds and one gal said that she had tried old seed. She had two different seed vials and planted them both the same way. One sprouted fine and the other yielded nothing. So perhaps your seed from last year may be viable.
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Ken, Today I checked the pot that I planted the seed from last year in and I see a few sprouts. I have more seed from last year if you want to give it a go.
 
tropicalken said:
Another girl reported yesterday at our ti meeting that she had used the moss with seaweed mixture when rooting our last shipment of canes. She had similar results in that the canes showed roots in five days. She had used the seaweed that you recently ordered. Her results were roots and lots of cane growth breaks intermingled up and down the cane. She may end up with a nice clump of ti after she plants it horizontally. This may be an advantage to the upright cane rooting. I found in the past that the horizontal method was much slower than rooting upright. Now since the seaweed mixtures work so well in promoting rapid rooting, it may be better to do all the rooting horizontally to produce a lot more cane growth in a short period of time.
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I will give it a try horizontally. This log now has 8 growth breaks, and looking good.
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Scott Mcintosh said:
Ken, Today I checked the pot that I planted the seed from last year in and I see a few sprouts. I have more seed from last year if you want to give it a go.
Click to expand...
Yes, I would like to try again, so thank you. One thing I need to know is how to keep the seedlings going after they have sprouted. When I did this a couple of years ago, they eventually became stunted and a lot got a fungal disease that killed them. Do you use a fungicide or dilute hydrogen peroxide on them to prevent this? Also do you use a dilute fertilizer to keep them growing? Perhaps using a seaweed solution will solve those problems I had back then.
 
tropicalken said:
Here is some more info on using hydrogen peroxide in the germination of seeds.

It's easy to improve your at-home germination rates by using hydrogen peroxide in your pre-planting routine. Simply add 1 ounce of 3-percent hydrogen peroxide to 1 pint of water; choose one of the following three methods. One, soak your seeds for 18 to 24 hours, rinse and plant. Two, place your seeds on a length of paper towels, use a mister filled with the hydrogen peroxide-water solution to thoroughly dampen (but not soak) the towels and the seeds, then roll up the towels loosely or simply fold them over so that all sides of the seeds are in contact with moist paper towel. Mist them lightly each day (or when the towel dries out) and plant them when sprouts emerge. Three, just rinse your seeds with the solution, then plant.
Read more: http://www.ehow.com/info_12316831_hydrogen-peroxide-affect-seed-germination.html#ixzz30CzNJi6D
http://abstracts.aspb.org/pb2004/public/...
http://pcp.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/conten...
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20102...
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles...
Click to expand...
Ken, I am trying my older John Cummin's seed using the hydrogen peroxide/ seaweed soak . I soaked the seed 24 hrs and rinsed. The seeds went into the planting media this evening. 1/3 of the seed in potting mix, 1/3 into a 50% potting mix / 50% added horticultural vermiculite and the last 1/3 were planted in 100% horticultural vermiculite. All were watered with seaweed water.
 
tropicalken said:
Yes, I would like to try again, so thank you. One thing I need to know is how to keep the seedlings going after they have sprouted. When I did this a couple of years ago, they eventually became stunted and a lot got a fungal disease that killed them. Do you use a fungicide or dilute hydrogen peroxide on them to prevent this? Also do you use a dilute fertilizer to keep them growing? Perhaps using a seaweed solution will solve those problems I had back then.
Click to expand...
Ken, I have not had a problem with fungal disease (knocking on wood) so far. I do let the potting media become sorta dry between watering.
 
Trying to keep the new logs, potted rooted logs and newly planted seed happy.
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Scott Mcintosh said:
Ken, I am trying my older John Cummin's seed using the hydrogen peroxide/ seaweed soak . I soaked the seed 24 hrs and rinsed. The seeds went into the planting media this evening. 1/3 of the seed in potting mix, 1/3 into a 50% potting mix / 50% added horticultural vermiculite and the last 1/3 were planted in 100% horticultural vermiculite. All were watered with seaweed water.
Click to expand...
I'm looking forward to the results of this experiment.
 
tropicalken said:
What a great idea for a greenhouse.
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Ken, Makes it nice and humid for the cuttings and seed. I have forgone the baggies now and use the container for rooting the logs in the damp moss. The really great thing is these containers are stackable. Ken Email me your address and I will get the Ti seed mailed to you.
 
Thanks Scott. I sent you my address and phone #. Let me know if you did not get it.

Some more canes arrived a couple days ago and I am on the second day of the seaweed soak with them. I also threw some hibiscus cuttings in to see if it would have any effect in hastening rooting. I would like to try it with crotons also in the near future.
 
tropicalken said:
Thanks Scott. I sent you my address and phone #. Let me know if you did not get it.

Some more canes arrived a couple days ago and I am on the second day of the seaweed soak with them. I also threw some hibiscus cuttings in to see if it would have any effect in hastening rooting. I would like to try it with crotons also in the near future.
Click to expand...
I just heard from an old time grower that he discovered that if he placed coleus cuttings in water with other cuttings he was trying to root it helped a lot with getting the roots going. I have heard of this with willow as well. But this guy said he got otherwise hard to root roses going with this coleus trick. We haven't tried it yet, but we have plenty of coleus and get hybrid hibiscus cuttings from time to time that can be difficult to root. I think Angela will be giving it a try soon.
 
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Dypsisdean said:
I just heard from an old time grower that he discovered that if he placed coleus cuttings in water with other cuttings he was trying to root it helped a with getting the roots going. I have heard of this with willow as well. But this guy said he got otherwise hard to root roses going with this coleus trick. We haven't tried it yet, but we have plenty of coleus and get hybrid hibiscus cuttings from time to time that can be difficult to root. I think Angela will be giving it a try soon.
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This all makes sense. The rooting powders we have today started from the hormones found in willow wood. Coleus, that have the same very fast rooting response would probably have the same effect on other types of cuttings placed in water with them. Let us know if this method works with hibiscus rooting. I have a substantial hibiscus collection and would attempt to root them if this worked well.
 
The April seaweed soaked logs are taking off now.

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