Ultimate Cactus Rooting Method

[fractium]

It may seem a little silly, but definitely works

1. Dry cactus cutting for a day or two

2. Inset cut end into clean sock, wrapping the area to be below ground

3. Put somewhere warm, dry and wait

This process is ultimately simple and roots cuttings much faster than perlite seems to

Happy cactusing

[Ace]

I gotta ask - how did you come across this method??

[mu!]

Nice one there fractium!

I've used a similar method, but using newspaper instead of a sock. Works pretty well

[watertrade]

I knew I was keping that basket of holey socks for something- my wife was wrong! Ha - will give it a go.

[baphomet]

Man that's bullshit! This is how you root a cactus!! http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/1590a8fe41

[fractium]

The cactuses are keeping warm with the socks over winter. "Combine and enjoy"

I guess if you combine my method and baphomets video method, you get that scene from that tragic american pie movie.... with more prickles in your dick

[TheFriendlyPlanter]

Just wondering, do you leave it standing upright, or side on (would it be worth hanging the sock from a nail).

How much root growth should you allow before potting on?

Do the roots penetrate through the sock at all?

I'm keen to try this with my new cuts, I'm thinking this method may be quite advantageous in winter as the cut would be safer from cold and rot.

[fractium]

I just waited till roots had started to form, from then on the roots seem to grow faster in a medium other than sock.

For initial root development though, this is top notch.

I just had the cuttings lying down on top of my cupboard, the room is lit with two 8w compact fluorescents, not directly over the cuttings or anything.

Average temp of 21 - 22 degrees.

Nothing special about the conditions, the magic is all in the 'sock coir accelerated propagation sleeve'

I heard SAB is about to start selling them, 10 bucks a pop

[Micromegas]

Just out of interest, how long does it take for the cuttings to produce roots? I have a few laying about now might track down some old socks. Thanks for the tip.

[woof woof woof]

keeping the part that you want to see throw out some roots dark is the trick. forgot the hormone's name that induces rooting.... but believe it is an indole type structure.. maybe an auxin? correct me if wrong.

[George]

Hehehehe!!

When you get the hang of it you can do it without the sock.

I used a dirty sock at first. Bad move, lots of fungus.

I found a way to callous a cactus better too, especially pedro. It gives it that brown skin callous.

wet the callous every night and rub it gently and then leave it to dry QUICKLY again untill tomorrow night. After a few times the callous becomes really good and rot resistant.

[apothecary]

Hey fractium, over the winter rains we suffered a few cactus related setbacks, resulting in a far more cuttings than usually dealt with. A few became immediately symptomatic of various fungi/bacteria, so I recut and thought I would try this method as it was unknown to me.

Tops! Seems to be the perfect trick for wet/cold winter.

Thanks

[fractium]

It seems to take less than a month.

I set a foot ish bit up at the start of the thread, less than a month later its got 10ish little root buds.

Itd been cut, sitting around for months before that though with no hint of activity.

George, your idea about wetting and drying to callous the cut sounds genius. Definitely gonna try that one

[WoodDragon]

George.

wet the callous every night and rub it gently and then leave it to dry QUICKLY again untill tomorrow night. After a few times the callous becomes really good and rot resistant.

A couple of questions:

Do you let the fresh cut dry a little first, or do you start rubbing the day that you slice it?

Do you continue once the callus starts to form, or do you leave alone when you see the first signs?

Thanks in advance.

Must say that I'm enjoying this thread - I love little tricks like these, that push things along faster and more reliably than otherwise might happen in a climate like mine!

[WoodDragon]

(Adult content warning)

Of course, I have the actual callus-rubbing technique down pat, as I've been practising for years...

I'm so tempted to say that it works a treat on my monstrose!

[Teotzlcoatl]

So you should leave your cuttings in the DARK, if you want them to throw roots?

[whiterasta]

I live in one of the worst places for cacti, the PNW coast of the USA. we get cold wet rain heavy fogs and cool wet conditions which like to rot cactus flesh. For rooting I just stick a calloused end into the soil about 3-4" and I have roots in less than 2weeks. I have yet to lose a single tricho to rot. I have a Carnegia that is working tword 2' tall and some big fat tersheckiis and tacas. I use a hand built soil with plenty of microbial colonies to keep a healthy soil which pathogens are out-competed. Healthy slightly moist soil will see a plant rooted in less than a month With pups from most in less than 3months.My only detractor from growing here is the short season keeps me from getting flowers. But I am not set up for seedlings or a hybridization plan it is all good.

[George]

George.

Do you let the fresh cut dry a little first, or do you start rubbing the day that you slice it?

Do you continue once the callus starts to form, or do you leave alone when you see the first signs?

Let callus for a few days first, the callus must be dry to the touch first, but make sure when you wet them it can dry quickly again. Like licking your lips allot making it chapped. When it has a nice tan almost shiny like callus then you should be ok.

I have learnt now to first let the cactus metabolize on it's own without being in contact with any soil or pot for about a month. This makes root causing hormones to build up in the cactus. Auxins haven’t sped up this process for me.

After that you fill the planting pot to the desired level for the base to stand on. Without filling the pot to the desired level let the cactus first stand like that until you see roots sprouting. This should take 1-5 days after it gets that little moisture from the pot. As soon as you see the roots going crazy fill the pot to the desired level.

I think the sock is a good way to resist the temptation to plant a cutting prematurely and it would serve as a fungus spore filter. Use a clean sock though. Used socks are fungus heaven.

Edited June 22, 2008 by George

[whiterasta]

I forgot to add that fresh cuttings rubbed with honey water right after cutting then quickly dried off seem to callous and root quicker than just leaving the cut to harden on it's own. Never thought of using a sock but I suppose it would wick moisture around the cutting and keep a stable moisture while the roots form. Wonder if ya bought some of those athletic socks with fungal inhibitors if they wouldn't really kick ass at rooting without rotting

[mutant]

Perfect thread..... LOL, socks

[misteek]

shhhveeet! going to give this one a go!!

[userofthename]

Lately I use plain sand. It works wonders in my climate.

I water it and wait till it dries out completely, when it is bone dry it is easy to pull out plants without damaging the roots.

[jeane]

im really fresh in the world of cactus growing so i am needing help! i have a few questions...

1) is a cutting basically the head part of the cactus?

2) i have a 20cm length of cactus with the head part, would this 'sock method' be all good?

3) is it better to graft in this case?

[WoodDragon]

1) is a cutting basically the head part of the cactus?

A cutting can be the 'head part', or a piece from lower down, where both top and bottom are sliced. Both are capable of growing, although mid-sections grow new shoots from the aureolae only, whereas tip cuttings have the capacity to grow from the tip as well - obviously!

2) I have a 20cm length of cactus with the head part, would this 'sock method' be all good?

It should be fine. I have three trichs in socks at the moment: a fulvilanus, a knuthianus, and one that I haven't ID'd, and they're all tip cuttings between 8 and 25 cm long. The bottom 3-5 cm worth of spines are cut short, and the sock is rolled on and held in place by impaling on the remaining spines.

Thinking about it though, I reckon one would have the same response by planting the cuttings in completely dry cactus mix for a few weeks/months, and watering carefully, when spring comes along, to kick off root growth. This would be after the cut(s) callus, of course.

I'm becoming more attracted to the practice of putting a layer of terracotta crocks in the bottom of the pot, and charcoal in the potting mix, but that's probably not immediately relevant to the striking phase of the cuttings.

3) is it better to graft in this case?

Depends on what species it is, but if it's 20cm long, it's more likely than not to be of a sort that will happily strike using the techniques described in this thread.

You'd really only graft if it's of a genus that doesn't strike easily.

One thing you can rest assured about - if your cutting is only weeks (or, depending on species, even months) old, and it has been kept relatively cool, dry, and out of strong light, you'll have quite a bit of time left to determine the best way to grow it. Cacti are wonderful plants in this (and many other) regard(s)!

Bung a photo on this thread and you'll get a mass of advice!

Oo - and welcome to the Corroboree!

Edited July 21, 2008 by WoodDragon

[misteek]

ahaha another method i have come across for the people that don't have any socks

wrap you cutting in newspaper leaving just the top part hanging out and put it in some indirect light (mine was sitting on a shelf in my room where it didn't really get any natural light). 3-4 weeks later you will have some roots deloping . i only left it on my shelf because i didnt have anything to plant it into at the time and what do you know - it sprouted roots. damn cacti are amazing.

Edited July 21, 2008 by misteek