Heating Mat

I've had some issues with heat mat's. The temp controller is definitely a good idea but I've found them to be uneven with hot and cool spots. Even with the controller, it needs to be in the right place.

I once used rigid insulation as a buffer from a cold concrete floor and this happened. They shouldn't even get this hot.

insulation.jpg

I still use them for stuff but now I use several layers of corrugated cardboard with no plastic on both sides.
 
A lot of good advice here, thank you. I have moved the cuttings into the living room where we keep it 65-70 F. I would like to keep the cuttings above 70 F at all times. I have them in the plastic tote with one layer of ceramic tile and a towel between the mat and the solo cups. I am going to see if I have a thermometer somewhere and I will adjust the layers of material between the mat and the cuttings to keep them at the desired temperature.
 
I cooked three baby cuttings this weekend with a new heat mat with no thermostat and in a new shelf with grow light on for 12 hours....It killed my tender ones quick. I only have the grow lights on 3-4 hours now. And I have turned off my mats till I get a thermostat. My other heat mat had a thermostat and it's set at 73. I should have known better when I felt how warm my new one was.... Luckily they were cuttings from my tree I was just practicing on. I hope you didn't lose really good ones.☹️
 
TorontoJoe said:
I've had some issues with heat mat's. The temp controller is definitely a good idea but I've found them to be uneven with hot and cool spots. Even with the controller, it needs to be in the right place.

I once used rigid insulation as a buffer from a cold concrete floor and this happened. They shouldn't even get this hot.

View attachment 15107

I still use them for stuff but now I use several layers of corrugated cardboard with no plastic on both sides.
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Wow that picture sure tells the story!
 
betdempster said:
I cooked three baby cuttings this weekend with a new heat mat with no thermostat and in a new shelf with grow light on for 12 hours....It killed my tender ones quick. I only have the grow lights on 3-4 hours now. And I have turned off my mats till I get a thermostat. My other heat mat had a thermostat and it's set at 73. I should have known better when I felt how warm my new one was.... Luckily they were cuttings from my tree I was just practicing on. I hope you didn't lose really good ones.☹️
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How do you know they're cooked? They can get up to the 90's briefly without dying, you'll just set back rooting a bit.

Edit: That is, lignified. If green, yeah it would be obvious.
 
DavidNC said:
How do you know they're cooked? They can get up to the 90's briefly without dying, you'll just set back rooting a bit.

Edit: That is, lignified. If green, yeah it would be obvious.
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That's a point. I thought they were cooked because the leaves are all shriveled up. I didn't throw them out. Here's the two closest to me right now. I could just leave them and see what happens.PXL_20251104_145018522.jpg
 
betdempster said:
I cooked three baby cuttings this weekend with a new heat mat with no thermostat and in a new shelf with grow light on for 12 hours....It killed my tender ones quick. I only have the grow lights on 3-4 hours now. And I have turned off my mats till I get a thermostat. My other heat mat had a thermostat and it's set at 73. I should have known better when I felt how warm my new one was.... Luckily they were cuttings from my tree I was just practicing on. I hope you didn't lose
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These are also before I had a better knowledge base for rooting so I'm a little ashamed of how the look... Since. Being here in the forum I'm doing better. These are my new ones and they in the dark (ePXL_20251104_145405362.jpgxcept for this peek) for two more weeks
 
betdempster said:
I hope you didn't lose really good ones.☹️
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They are really good ones but I don't think that I ruined them. I think they will be fine, but it's to early to tell. They have only been in the medium for a week or less. When I did cuttings earlier this year it was warmer and I just put them in the garage and didn't worry about temperature. I am glad that I'm learning this now, before or early in the rooting season.
 
One of the benefits of using a heat mat in winter is to keep the root zone warm while the top cold. The difference allows the roots to develop first before the top, which is usually desirable for rooting cuttings.

Ideally, you do this in the coldest part of the house.

I think I have mentioned this somewhere else. If you start rooting now, make sure you have enough space & light to support the cuttings till next spring.
 
grasshopper said:
One of the benefits of using a heat mat in winter is to keep the root zone warm while the top cold. The difference allows the roots to develop first before the top, which is usually desirable for rooting cuttings.

Ideally, you do this in the coldest part of the house.

I think I have mentioned this somewhere else. If you start rooting now, make sure you have enough space & light to support the cuttings till next spring.
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Yes, thankfully I learned this in time before too much irreparable damage was done! My I258's in particular wanted to bolt before any roots had formed, as the ambient temp was the same as the medium, 75-77F. I was able to slow them down by turning the ambient to 66-68, enough to cool the headspace in te semi-sealed sandboxes. I'm providing some ambient light to that box, hoping the new shoots stabilize without damping off. So far, they seem to be holding.
 
DavidNC said:
Yes, thankfully I learned this in time before too much irreparable damage was done! My I258's in particular wanted to bolt before any roots had formed, as the ambient temp was the same as the medium, 75-77F. I was able to slow them down by turning the ambient to 66-68, enough to cool the headspace in te semi-sealed sandboxes. I'm providing some ambient light to that box, hoping the new shoots stabilize without damping off. So far, they seem to be holding.
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Have you rooted I-258 before? I have heard that it is difficult to root I-258 cuttings?
 
ETXfigs said:
Have you rooted I-258 before? I have heard that it is difficult to root I-258 cuttings?
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Yes, I258 is more difficult to root. Hardy Chicago is happy just to touch any rooting medium and makes roots like crazy in 9 days, while others like I258 are like waiting…waiting…waiting.
 
ETXfigs said:
Have you rooted I-258 before? I have heard that it is difficult to root I-258 cuttings?
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Nope, first time. I'm rooting BMKK in the same conditions, started at the same time 2 weeks ago, and those have already popped roots. The bmkk's were a bit green though, and the 258's were fully lig.
 
I think rooting success depends on the environment, my care and quality of the cuttings. I am pretty certain variety is not one of the factors. If I have problem with a particular variety, I'll try to get it from a different source or try to review my rooting method.

I remember I was having difficulty with a fairly common variety. The variety is common but the cuttings I received were big and thick (1-3/4 to 2" ) I lost the first 3 but managed to adjust and root the fourth one. Later in the same season, I received 2 more big and thick cuttings and I was able to root them as well.

Also, when I am less certain of my skills, I try the cuttings one at a time so that I have enough time to learn and adjust in each round. There is no need to root all the cuttings at the same time.
 
There it is, I258! Little rootlet, and significant callus swelling. Medium 77F, ambient 68F, 16 days. Poking into the air like that indicates there are probably many more underneath. Edit: It's a bit blurry because I took the photo through the container wall.


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