On 2/8/2008 5:23 PM, WeReo_ScoTTy wrote:
I took the plant out of the pot in order to clean away the white slime
accumuating near the rim.

The plant is about 30 years old and hearty. I cut the stems in about half,
and placed the new stems in a glass of water.

Does anyone know how long it's gonna take new roots to arrive? And I left a
diagonal cut on the raw stems intead of square. Is this the right thing to
do? Many thanks.



Generally, rooting in water results in roots that are too easily bruised
when potting. I suggest you use a half-and-half mix of peat moss and
coarse sand as a rooting medium instead of water. This mix will stay
moist without becoming soggy. Also, the peat inhibits fungus and rot.
Do not add any nutrients to the mix until after you are sure that there
are roots.

While rooting in water is not good if you plant to pot the new plants,
it's quite good if you intend to grow the new plants in water. I have a
Philodendron growing in water in a large blue glass flask. I just add
more water as the water level drops. Once in a great while, I add a
teaspoon of extra-diluted runoff from feeding my orchids; this seems to
supply all the nutrients needed.

The old plant should get new sprouts, even from leafless stems. The
sprouts should grow where there are leaves or used to be leaves.
--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean
Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean
influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19)
Gardening pages at http://www.rossde.com/garden/