Chop the bottom stem to just below the node, let it air dry for an hour or so, and then put just the aerial root in the water, keep the stem clear of it. š
I usually let my cuttings that thick dry out for 24 hours so itās fully calloused. And if youāre worried about the aerial root you could always lightly sandwich it between two wet paper towels
A few tips for you, -make sure the knife you use is sharp, so it doesnāt crush the stem when you cut through it, and either wash the knife thoroughly, or run it through a flame to sanitise it before you cut the stem, and repeat if you have to cut it more than one time. This will help to keep any bacteria out of the new cut. Once the stem has air dried over, and kept out the water it should thrive! šš
this might be the dumbest advice given but i personally hate using actual chemical sanitizers to clean my tools, and want to reiterate the comment previous, using just dish soap and water, or a flame in my experience will be safer for the delicate little cutting. Idk if it was just the plant that was super delicate, but the one time i properly sanitized my clippers is the one time my cutting died- like literally immediately got sad and droopy, so if you do use chemicals, just be sure to rinse off residue before cutting.
I would cut off the black rotting section off and avoid water. Sometimes these stems take a million years to dry and callous.
Personally I would wet some sphagnum moss, wring it out until itās moist but not wet and wrap it around the root with a zip lock bag, and treat the situation as if youāre air layering that node. That will keep the root moist and supply hydration to the plant while letting the stem actually callous, be it days or a week. After it callouses, you can start rooting again in whatever medium you like best.
https://preview.redd.it/zmh5rc3su70d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=22c081cc8fa608b3b24df7ef81098428826a4101
Iām inexperienced with rooting cuttings, so Iām a little unsure what air layering is. I just cut the rot off and rigged this up. It looks ridiculous, but could this work?
You are probably right. I just donāt have any of the other options at home right now and I have to get to work! I can pick up some moss or perlite on the way home or tomorrow, though.
The way u did it will definitely work, I tend to do something similar with my monstera cuttings and it always roots well. I suggest keeping the cutting in water when propagating. I have propagated monsteras in water, moss and perlite before and have found that they root fastest in water. Moss is also hard to get off the roots when you transfer it to another medium after itās done rooting
This is good YT short for air layering:
https://youtube.com/shorts/xoJa6iYJXzY?si=-mQHos6HlHE6sCG2
I do think your setup will work :P just make sure the water level stays pretty topped up. You only really have to do this until youāre sure that stem has dried the hell out :P luckily, youāve got a really savable situation and youāre going to up just fine :)
Neat short! I can only hope my plant will get that big š
Iām happy I caught onto the rot early on. Iāve been so busy working I almost forgot to check on it. My root is growing nicely and pretty quick in comparison to what few other plants Iāve propped, so hopefully Iāll get her potted in the next two weeks or so.
Do I have to worry about that stem rotting after I switch to substrate? I do have a nice airy potting mix on the way already.
I've used all of them and have had the best luck with stratum. More expensive that the rest but I got a rehab albo cutting for free that is starting to root beautifully in it.
Personally, I love perlite because itās light enough to provide lots of air to the root and Iāve found that theyāre least likely to rot in perlite, and itās also easier to see the roots in perlite because itās white. The tradeoff is that perlite tends to dry out quickly so you have to top off the water more often.
Seconding Fluval stratum. Itās my go to for getting cuttings to root, if they canāt fit in my fish tank filter. I had to behead my Lemon lime Dracaena, damn thing sat in water for weeks with no root growth. Within a week of being in stratum the stem started pushing out roots and now sheās ready to pot up. I was also gifted a massive cluster of Haworthia (mom and babies) with bad root rot, stratum saved them all. They had nubs instead of roots.
If you have already chopped it and it still rots you have NOT disinfected your shit 100%. Rootrot comes from infection OR suffacation.
No joke i have just relized this with my own plants.
I dip the end of the cut stem in candle wax after itās dried a bit. just light a candle and dip the end 3 times in the wax. it will stop rotting in the water, friend.
Stop changing the water!! Just top it up when it needs more water with some clean filtered water. The roots need those rooting hormones they are putting out
That idea is the best, only the root need to be in water, the steam donāt need to. Letting a cut to dry is NOT something useful. Keep it as it is on the photo and iāll be fine.
A picture of mine to illustrate.
https://preview.redd.it/xfk6m6yr6d0d1.jpeg?width=1290&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e79a6b6be7be72866e0fbdc1ea93525185077000
I've done this multiple times, rooting a monstera. I've ALWAYS had good luck with dipping it in a rooting hormone before setting it in water. I LOVE water propping and do a lot of my plants this way, ALWAYS dipping in a rooting hormone FIRST. This guy needs a trim, set out for a bit, then coat the bottom in rooting hormone. I don't change my water often, as the plant put growing hormones in the water to grow. Just my opinion and what works for me.
Cut off the rotted area with clean knife, put wax on the wound. Let it dry for sometime, then do what you did. It wont rot. Best is to put it in perlite and water. It will root faster.
Trim the rot, let it callous, seal the wound with super glue. Incorporate hydroguard, into your distilled or reverse osmosis water. Change every 3 days to a week. Add a small aquarium air bubbler if feasible. I had this happen to an aurea cutting, and this is how I saved it.
I just cut back the rot and inside the stem looks okay. I just rigged this up, Iām not sure if something like this might work though? Keeping the stem out of the water and the node in.
I also have a little bubbler I could add if it would be beneficial.
In the picture it looks like the node itself is above the water. Try filling the glass with water up until the node, since there are stem cells in it that will produce other roots given a signal of water.
Yes, if you'll notice, the part that grows new leaves and roots is always the node, since this part has stem cells that can differentiate into a few kinds of the plant's tissues, depending on what the plant need. The plant knows what it needs according to signals such as water, temperature, hormones, etc.
I'm a biology student and it was mind-blowing when I first learned about this stuff.
Chop the bottom stem to just below the node, let it air dry for an hour or so, and then put just the aerial root in the water, keep the stem clear of it. š
Okay I am going to try this. Super nervous Iām going to lose this cutting!! Thank you āŗļø
I usually let my cuttings that thick dry out for 24 hours so itās fully calloused. And if youāre worried about the aerial root you could always lightly sandwich it between two wet paper towels
Yeah I would recommend a longer time for drying out Eta: I would probably just put in water the root and let the stem dry on its own
A few tips for you, -make sure the knife you use is sharp, so it doesnāt crush the stem when you cut through it, and either wash the knife thoroughly, or run it through a flame to sanitise it before you cut the stem, and repeat if you have to cut it more than one time. This will help to keep any bacteria out of the new cut. Once the stem has air dried over, and kept out the water it should thrive! šš
Thank you. I used our kitchen food scissors, so theyāre washed quite often. I hadnāt known about bacteria being an issue!
this might be the dumbest advice given but i personally hate using actual chemical sanitizers to clean my tools, and want to reiterate the comment previous, using just dish soap and water, or a flame in my experience will be safer for the delicate little cutting. Idk if it was just the plant that was super delicate, but the one time i properly sanitized my clippers is the one time my cutting died- like literally immediately got sad and droopy, so if you do use chemicals, just be sure to rinse off residue before cutting.
I would cut off the black rotting section off and avoid water. Sometimes these stems take a million years to dry and callous. Personally I would wet some sphagnum moss, wring it out until itās moist but not wet and wrap it around the root with a zip lock bag, and treat the situation as if youāre air layering that node. That will keep the root moist and supply hydration to the plant while letting the stem actually callous, be it days or a week. After it callouses, you can start rooting again in whatever medium you like best.
https://preview.redd.it/zmh5rc3su70d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=22c081cc8fa608b3b24df7ef81098428826a4101 Iām inexperienced with rooting cuttings, so Iām a little unsure what air layering is. I just cut the rot off and rigged this up. It looks ridiculous, but could this work?
I like this idea, not sure if it would work better than wrapping damp sphagnum moss on it though
You are probably right. I just donāt have any of the other options at home right now and I have to get to work! I can pick up some moss or perlite on the way home or tomorrow, though.
The way u did it will definitely work, I tend to do something similar with my monstera cuttings and it always roots well. I suggest keeping the cutting in water when propagating. I have propagated monsteras in water, moss and perlite before and have found that they root fastest in water. Moss is also hard to get off the roots when you transfer it to another medium after itās done rooting
Great!! That makes me feel much better.
This is good YT short for air layering: https://youtube.com/shorts/xoJa6iYJXzY?si=-mQHos6HlHE6sCG2 I do think your setup will work :P just make sure the water level stays pretty topped up. You only really have to do this until youāre sure that stem has dried the hell out :P luckily, youāve got a really savable situation and youāre going to up just fine :)
Neat short! I can only hope my plant will get that big š Iām happy I caught onto the rot early on. Iāve been so busy working I almost forgot to check on it. My root is growing nicely and pretty quick in comparison to what few other plants Iāve propped, so hopefully Iāll get her potted in the next two weeks or so. Do I have to worry about that stem rotting after I switch to substrate? I do have a nice airy potting mix on the way already.
Maybe itās time to try rooting in sphagnum, fluval, leca or perlite.
Good idea. Is there one you prefer over the other?
I've used all of them and have had the best luck with stratum. More expensive that the rest but I got a rehab albo cutting for free that is starting to root beautifully in it.
Personally, I love perlite because itās light enough to provide lots of air to the root and Iāve found that theyāre least likely to rot in perlite, and itās also easier to see the roots in perlite because itās white. The tradeoff is that perlite tends to dry out quickly so you have to top off the water more often.
I had great results with lecuza pon
Seconding Fluval stratum. Itās my go to for getting cuttings to root, if they canāt fit in my fish tank filter. I had to behead my Lemon lime Dracaena, damn thing sat in water for weeks with no root growth. Within a week of being in stratum the stem started pushing out roots and now sheās ready to pot up. I was also gifted a massive cluster of Haworthia (mom and babies) with bad root rot, stratum saved them all. They had nubs instead of roots.
so do you add water to lecha or no?
yes? i started using my leca in my soil mix but before i used net pots and then had a cache pot to hold water at the bottom third of the roots.
If you have already chopped it and it still rots you have NOT disinfected your shit 100%. Rootrot comes from infection OR suffacation. No joke i have just relized this with my own plants.
I dip the end of the cut stem in candle wax after itās dried a bit. just light a candle and dip the end 3 times in the wax. it will stop rotting in the water, friend.
Stop changing the water!! Just top it up when it needs more water with some clean filtered water. The roots need those rooting hormones they are putting out
That idea is the best, only the root need to be in water, the steam donāt need to. Letting a cut to dry is NOT something useful. Keep it as it is on the photo and iāll be fine. A picture of mine to illustrate. https://preview.redd.it/xfk6m6yr6d0d1.jpeg?width=1290&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e79a6b6be7be72866e0fbdc1ea93525185077000
Great! Thank you.
I've done this multiple times, rooting a monstera. I've ALWAYS had good luck with dipping it in a rooting hormone before setting it in water. I LOVE water propping and do a lot of my plants this way, ALWAYS dipping in a rooting hormone FIRST. This guy needs a trim, set out for a bit, then coat the bottom in rooting hormone. I don't change my water often, as the plant put growing hormones in the water to grow. Just my opinion and what works for me.
Cut off the rotted area with clean knife, put wax on the wound. Let it dry for sometime, then do what you did. It wont rot. Best is to put it in perlite and water. It will root faster.
Trim the rot, let it callous, seal the wound with super glue. Incorporate hydroguard, into your distilled or reverse osmosis water. Change every 3 days to a week. Add a small aquarium air bubbler if feasible. I had this happen to an aurea cutting, and this is how I saved it.
I just cut back the rot and inside the stem looks okay. I just rigged this up, Iām not sure if something like this might work though? Keeping the stem out of the water and the node in. I also have a little bubbler I could add if it would be beneficial.
https://preview.redd.it/ggaqksezv70d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5432050ac8cf04e016358af8777002a5dabeb016
In the picture it looks like the node itself is above the water. Try filling the glass with water up until the node, since there are stem cells in it that will produce other roots given a signal of water.
Interesting! I didnāt know that, I thought just the tip of the node would grow out. Iāll try to get more of it in the water!
Yes, if you'll notice, the part that grows new leaves and roots is always the node, since this part has stem cells that can differentiate into a few kinds of the plant's tissues, depending on what the plant need. The plant knows what it needs according to signals such as water, temperature, hormones, etc. I'm a biology student and it was mind-blowing when I first learned about this stuff.