At 02:39 PM 4/8/03 -0700, Allen wrote:
I just read in a post regarding taking cuttings to "Scrape the top
layer of bark with a razor to expose the green cadmium before applying
rooting hormone"
I'm new, and think the boxwoods i've put in pots are ok ... all i did
was cut them, dip into the hormone, put in a finger hole in the soil,
and pack the soil in. Are my boxwoods doomed ? Also, how much
rooting hormone is enough ? I'm being pretty liberal with it, and i
know that with plants, often too much is bad!

Allen

Scraping the bark or removing a thin strip of bark is a technique know as
'wounding'. It does seem to be beneficial for some species, notably Acer
palmatum, but I am not as fond of it as I used to be. Often is appears to
be unnecessary and when it does work you end up with one sided roots. It is
NOT necessary for Buxus, which are easy to root and only a low
concentration of hormone or none at all is required. I recommend that you
use something like Rootone or Hormex 1 or 3. Dip to about 1/2 inch with the
cutting wet, then tap the base of the cutting to knock off the excess. And
yes, too much can be bad, but with hormones it is usually the strength
rather than the quantity that is dangerous.

For much more information on cutting propagation in general, there is an
article at my website:

http://www.evergreengardenworks.com/cuttings.htm




Brent in Northern California
Evergreen Gardenworks USDA Zone 8 Sunset Zone 14

http://www.EvergreenGardenworks.com

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