Rooting Hormones, Which one and why?

DCallahan

DCallahan

Well-known member
Which rooting aid is your favorite to use for rooting fig cuttings? 
Last couple years I used Hormex powder and had good success with it.  This year I came across a free bottle of Dip and Gro, no results to report yet but I see people like the Dip & Gro. I like the no mess application, just dip in liquid and go with it. 
Curious what everyone's favorite is to use and why you like that kind.
 
I had the best results with Hormodin-3 and it was less expensive than most of the others. I started using it for air-layers and stopped using it for cuttings because they did decently without any.
 
@"DCallahan"#71 @"Figology"#21.... Figology is certainly one of our most knowledgeable members so if he likes a rooting hormone it's going to be a very good one. I like dip and grow. It also contains IBA or indole-3 butyric acid. It also contains another rooting hormone 1-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA):
It has an application cup so that every cutting is given the same strength, and amount as every other one. It's foolproof, and very even in application. Which is why I like it very much.

I have been using it for 30 years, to good effect. I do have a problem with scraping the cambium layer which can cause rot no matter what rooting hormone you're using.
 
I don't want to sounds like a negative ninny...lol

I quit using them when I realized figs rooted well without.
Started using the powder but found that it aided in rot at the covered area.
I do have some liquid hormone and I did try some the year before last, just to see if there was actually a big difference.
To be honest I didn't see a huge difference.
But I certainly don't knock anyone for using it. :D 
I used Dip and Grow btw.
 
I always used a thin layer of Clonex in the past and worked fine. Times where I dipped the cutting directly into bottle, the cutting rotted, which may or may not be contributed to thick layer of Clonex. I don’t think more is better pertains to rooting hormone.
 
I like to use Dip ‘N Grow when rooting cuttings during the winter months.  I also just cut two slits in the cutting. 

For air layers and when rooting cuttings outdoors in the spring, I use a watered down solution (50% Clonex, 50% water) of Clonex.   For these efforts, I scratch off bark down to the cambium on two sides of the cuttings.
 
I like Clonex - I paint a very thin layer and apply it to a cutting that has been scraped to the cambium layer on both sides of a node and the bottom. I have had good success while using it, and a little bit goes a long way (DON’T over-apply it or you will get root madness and no, or significantly delayed, leaves). I tried various methods when starting to root 6 years ago, and my attempts with Clonex worked the best. I’ve stuck with it and haven’t had the time nor desire to test it further. JSacadura (YouTube) and others have tested it, and it isn’t necessary - but I’ll take any advantage I can get - with top dollar cuttings - and it takes very little time to do it.
 
I like Clonex too. I started using it in Winter '21/'22, and it made the world of difference for me. I also started using Pro-Mix HP along with scoring and then Clonex. I feel like my success rate is now 90-95+ % range, but it also could be that I've just learned more from when I started in April '20. All around, I feel like it can't hurt.
 
I agree that figs don't *need* rooting hormone, but if it's available and costs the equivalent of 1 maybe 2 cuttings, I'm going to have some around.  I think it's most useful for pushing airlayers, but it certainly helps getting cuttings going if used per directions. 

I don't like the powder since it can cake on and cause rot, but it has worked just fine for me if applied carefully.  I had some clonex that worked fine and now I have dip n gro which came with a graduated cylinder, which is nice.  All work the same as far as I can tell.
 
I once had someone tell me about finding a fig growing at the edge of the road where a pruned-off branch fell off a landscape truck and rooted into the ground. So, they want to grow roots whether there is a rooting hormone or not.  But, I typically use whatever hormone I have handy. If I have a lot of other cuttings to stick, I mix Dip N Grow. If only a few, I use powder. 
I was at a large wholesale landscape nursery the other day. They root about 95% of what they grow out. I saw a large tub of Hormodin and commented that I like to use Dip N Grow. His response was that they mainly use Dip N Grow, but some items do better with powder.  I suspect that the Dip N Grow, especially if they are using an alcohol base, can burn perennials and non-hardened cuttings, like hydrangea (though I get good results with hydrangea using a water preparation).
 
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