I have cuttings from an Oleander that I put in water, and now they have
rooted. The cuttings are about 12" long, and the roots are about 6" in
clear water. I live in the desert, so, can I just plant them now? Do I
have to put them in potting soil, or just keep them watered well until
established?


TIA

I'd put'm in potting soil and move them slowly out to the sun, and then once
they are doing good transfer them ( in cooler fall ) to normal soil. Or you
could use a paper pot to put them in and when they've adjusted, put pot and
all into the garden.

High Mojave Desert.


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"Simpledog" wrote in message
...
I have cuttings from an Oleander that I put in water, and now they have
rooted. The cuttings are about 12" long, and the roots are about 6" in
clear water. I live in the desert, so, can I just plant them now? Do I
have to put them in potting soil, or just keep them watered well until
established?


TIA




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I have found that when you root a cutting in water that the hardest thing is
moving it into compost/soil/dirt.

I have found the best thing is to have a little dry peat, and dust the roots
with this first, so that each root is coated and they are not hanging as one
thick strand, it is then easier to get the roots to go into the pot
separately, this makes the move from water easier and less stressful for
the young plant.
When the roots have filled the pot then either pot on or plant out, and at
all stages water well, but don't over water.

--
David Hill
Abacus nurseries
www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk

David Hill wrote:

I have found that when you root a cutting in water that the hardest thing is
moving it into compost/soil/dirt.

I have found the best thing is to have a little dry peat, and dust the roots
with this first, so that each root is coated and they are not hanging as one
thick strand, it is then easier to get the roots to go into the pot
separately, this makes the move from water easier and less stressful for
the young plant.
When the roots have filled the pot then either pot on or plant out, and at
all stages water well, but don't over water.

I have to agree. When plants are rooted in water, the mere act of
potting them damages the roots.

Now that the cuttings are rooted, I would pot them first and keep
them sheltered. Use 1/2 peat moss and 1/2 clean, coarse sand.
This mix drains well, readily admits air, wets easily, and makes
moisture available to roots until it is almost bone dry. (See my
http://www.rossde.com/garden/garden_potting_mix.html.)

DO NOT FEED until you see that the potted cuttings are indeed
surviving. Fertilizer will only further traumatize the bruised
roots. Wait at least 2-3 weeks after potting before feeding.
Cuttings that survive but are not vigorous should not be fed until
they start to thrive.

After about 6 weeks, tip a cutting out of its pot. If the soil is
filled with roots, you may plant it in your garden. If not,
carefully return the plant to the pot and wait another 6 weeks.

--
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/

David Hill wrote:

I have found that when you root a cutting in water that the hardest thing is
moving it into compost/soil/dirt.

I have found the best thing is to have a little dry peat, and dust the roots
with this first, so that each root is coated and they are not hanging as one
thick strand, it is then easier to get the roots to go into the pot
separately, this makes the move from water easier and less stressful for
the young plant.
When the roots have filled the pot then either pot on or plant out, and at
all stages water well, but don't over water.

I have to agree. When plants are rooted in water, the mere act of
potting them damages the roots.

Now that the cuttings are rooted, I would pot them first and keep
them sheltered. Use 1/2 peat moss and 1/2 clean, coarse sand.
This mix drains well, readily admits air, wets easily, and makes
moisture available to roots until it is almost bone dry. (See my
http://www.rossde.com/garden/garden_potting_mix.html.)

DO NOT FEED until you see that the potted cuttings are indeed
surviving. Fertilizer will only further traumatize the bruised
roots. Wait at least 2-3 weeks after potting before feeding.
Cuttings that survive but are not vigorous should not be fed until
they start to thrive.

After about 6 weeks, tip a cutting out of its pot. If the soil is
filled with roots, you may plant it in your garden. If not,
carefully return the plant to the pot and wait another 6 weeks.

--
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/

David Ross wrote:
David Hill wrote:

I have found that when you root a cutting in water that the hardest thing is
moving it into compost/soil/dirt.

I have found the best thing is to have a little dry peat, and dust the roots
with this first, so that each root is coated and they are not hanging as one
thick strand, it is then easier to get the roots to go into the pot
separately, this makes the move from water easier and less stressful for
the young plant.
When the roots have filled the pot then either pot on or plant out, and at
all stages water well, but don't over water.


I have to agree. When plants are rooted in water, the mere act of
potting them damages the roots.

Now that the cuttings are rooted, I would pot them first and keep
them sheltered. Use 1/2 peat moss and 1/2 clean, coarse sand.
This mix drains well, readily admits air, wets easily, and makes
moisture available to roots until it is almost bone dry. (See my
http://www.rossde.com/garden/garden_potting_mix.html.)

DO NOT FEED until you see that the potted cuttings are indeed
surviving. Fertilizer will only further traumatize the bruised
roots. Wait at least 2-3 weeks after potting before feeding.
Cuttings that survive but are not vigorous should not be fed until
they start to thrive.

After about 6 weeks, tip a cutting out of its pot. If the soil is
filled with roots, you may plant it in your garden. If not,
carefully return the plant to the pot and wait another 6 weeks.




Is that a coffee can of dry compressed peat moss (spaghnum peat?) or
damp and broken-up peat moss, or bagged composted peat?

Thanks, regards,
Bob

zxcvbob wrote:

I previously wrote:
David Hill wrote:

I have found that when you root a cutting in water that the hardest thing is
moving it into compost/soil/dirt.

I have found the best thing is to have a little dry peat, and dust the roots
with this first, so that each root is coated and they are not hanging as one
thick strand, it is then easier to get the roots to go into the pot
separately, this makes the move from water easier and less stressful for
the young plant.
When the roots have filled the pot then either pot on or plant out, and at
all stages water well, but don't over water.


I have to agree. When plants are rooted in water, the mere act of
potting them damages the roots.

Now that the cuttings are rooted, I would pot them first and keep
them sheltered. Use 1/2 peat moss and 1/2 clean, coarse sand.
This mix drains well, readily admits air, wets easily, and makes
moisture available to roots until it is almost bone dry. (See my
http://www.rossde.com/garden/garden_potting_mix.html.)

DO NOT FEED until you see that the potted cuttings are indeed
surviving. Fertilizer will only further traumatize the bruised
roots. Wait at least 2-3 weeks after potting before feeding.
Cuttings that survive but are not vigorous should not be fed until
they start to thrive.

After about 6 weeks, tip a cutting out of its pot. If the soil is
filled with roots, you may plant it in your garden. If not,
carefully return the plant to the pot and wait another 6 weeks.


Is that a coffee can of dry compressed peat moss (spaghnum peat?) or
damp and broken-up peat moss, or bagged composted peat?

[zxcvbob is referring to my recipe for potting mix, in which I use
a coffee can as a measure.]

I buy the peat moss in compressed bales. But I break it up as fine
as I can before measuring. Then, I press it down in the can to
eliminate air from the measurement. I measure it dry (although
there might be some moisture from the bale). While blending the
mix (I do it on a patio table), I try to break up any remaining
lumps of peat moss.

I only add water after blending in the sand and (when not dealing
with new cuttings) nutrients. Plain dry peat moss tends to repell
water. But the blended mix absorbs water quite readily.

--

David E. Ross
http://www.rossde.com/

I use Mozilla as my Web browser because I want a browser that
complies with Web standards. See http://www.mozilla.org/.

David Ross wrote:
zxcvbob wrote:

Is that a coffee can of dry compressed peat moss (spaghnum peat?) or
damp and broken-up peat moss, or bagged composted peat?


[zxcvbob is referring to my recipe for potting mix, in which I use
a coffee can as a measure.]

I buy the peat moss in compressed bales. But I break it up as fine
as I can before measuring. Then, I press it down in the can to
eliminate air from the measurement. I measure it dry (although
there might be some moisture from the bale). While blending the
mix (I do it on a patio table), I try to break up any remaining
lumps of peat moss.

I only add water after blending in the sand and (when not dealing
with new cuttings) nutrients. Plain dry peat moss tends to repell
water. But the blended mix absorbs water quite readily.


Thanks, David. That's exactly what I thought, but I wanted to make
sure. I need to take some rose and cestrum cuttings, and I've had
terrible luck trying to root anything in compost or commercial potting soil.

Best regards,
Bob

zxcvbob wrote:

David Ross wrote:
zxcvbob wrote:

Is that a coffee can of dry compressed peat moss (spaghnum peat?) or
damp and broken-up peat moss, or bagged composted peat?


[zxcvbob is referring to my recipe for potting mix, in which I use
a coffee can as a measure.]

I buy the peat moss in compressed bales. But I break it up as fine
as I can before measuring. Then, I press it down in the can to
eliminate air from the measurement. I measure it dry (although
there might be some moisture from the bale). While blending the
mix (I do it on a patio table), I try to break up any remaining
lumps of peat moss.

I only add water after blending in the sand and (when not dealing
with new cuttings) nutrients. Plain dry peat moss tends to repell
water. But the blended mix absorbs water quite readily.


Thanks, David. That's exactly what I thought, but I wanted to make
sure. I need to take some rose and cestrum cuttings, and I've had
terrible luck trying to root anything in compost or commercial potting soil.

Even the most mature compost is still filled with the soil
micro-organisms that promote rot; that's how compost become
compost. Commercial potting soil may contain some compost and also
some nutrients, which are harmful to newly sprouted, tender roots.

--

David E. Ross
http://www.rossde.com/

I use Mozilla as my Web browser because I want a browser that
complies with Web standards. See http://www.mozilla.org/.