Need help - when to water fig pop?

[BucksCountyFigs]

Millennial Gardener did a YouTube video last year that covered organic verse in organic for rooting cuttings. I thought it was well thought out

Thanks, I’ll keep looking for it.

 

[bushdoctor82]

#3 has been the million dollar question, I rooted a lot of green green and a couple dormant cuttings. Honestly, I expected some failures, so actually so far, I have way more rooted cuttings than I anticipated as this point.

It was suggested to treat these as houseplants the first first winter. I don’t know if the will maintain in sort of a suspended extremely slow growth phase, or if they will start getting leggy. I do have a grow light that I can use in my basement if need be to avoid this and


Yeah, I know it was such a bad time to start rooting cuttings, but I needed to learn before dormant cutting season started + it’s hard for me to wait when I’m excited to try something, lol.

The good thing is that those two cuttings were older dormant cuttings a friend had in his fridge for a long time, so he gave me them to try. I also got to try rooting some green cuttings from a branch I got from a person trimming her Chicago hardy.

The prop medium is this ProMix one. I know it’s not the HP that most folks use, but I got it on clearance for $18, and it works great so far. I also added some perlite and some peat moss.

I have them near a window in the living room, and I have a really strong led light that I just got but haven’t decided where to put it, but I also have a multi-armed grow light I got off Amazon that I will use now with the ones with leaves near the window; thanks for the suggestion!

I don’t have a propagation table, lol, I just tuck them around the living room on little tables near the windows. Right now I have about 20 fig pops going + 3 outdoor sand ones + 20 Chicago Hardy cuttings that I scored and did rooting hormone but just stuck in a planter (they are leading out and look great).

When you say maybe to get a greenhouse, you mean an outside one or an indoor grow tent?

My brother tried the houseplant approach a few years back and placed fig trees by a south facing window. By Spring, the trees had huge paper thin leaves and long internodal spacing. The leaves quickly burnt off in partial sun and the tender branches got sun scald so we pruned back to previous years growth. I think that approach would have worked he bothered to water the trees during the Summer.

I also wonder if there is any downside to this approach. Treat as houseplant and if it grows too leggy, just prune off most of Winter growth.

 

[PapaFig]

I suggest you get a low cost light meter and/or you can probably download one on you phone. That will give you a much better idea of the relative intensity, it's hard to judge by eye. I've found it to very helpful. Most LED grow lights work pretty well. With artificial light, generally the more the better.

You really shouldn't have to water fig pops before they have enough roots to up pot. If they are super light and you feel you need to, I would poke a few holes in the very bottom and let them soak up a little bit of water. You could weight them now and when they get much lighter, bring them back up to the current weight. Most cuttings dye/rot from too much water - it's the number 1 killer.

 

[BucksCountyFigs]

That is my one worry about it. But they are too little to go into the unheated garage. Plus, worst case scenario, I did get some led lights, so they could go in the basement under those more intense lights if need be.

How old were your brother’s trees when he put them inside in the fall?

I’m wondering if it this effect is more pronounced in larger/older trees versus young, newly rooted cuttings?

 

[bushdoctor82]

That is my one worry about it. But they are too little to go into the unheated garage. Plus, worst case scenario, I did get some led lights, so they could go in the basement under those more intense lights if need be.

How old were your brother’s trees when he put them inside in the fall?

I’m wondering if it this effect is more pronounced in larger/older trees versus young, newly rooted cuttings?

One was a large air-layer I gave him that Summer and the other was from a cutting I rooted the previous Winter. Both were in 7.5 gallon pots and fairly large.

Last year I had to place several rooted cuttings by windows throughout the house as I ran out of room in my grow area and they continued to grow well. However, this was only for a few weeks or so until warm weather arrived.

 

[BucksCountyFigs]

One was a large air-layer I gave him that Summer and the other was from a cutting I rooted the previous Winter. Both were in 7.5 gallon pots and fairly large.

Last year I had to place several rooted cuttings by windows throughout the house as I ran out of room in my grow area and they continued to grow well. However, this was only for a few weeks or so until warm weather arrived.

Thanks for the helpful info.
I’ll keep a more vigilant eye on them and move them to higher intensity lighting sooner than later.