Rose Propagation

a)This document outlines the normal procedures oflabelling the plants or recording the eventso a more
Rose Propagation by using Cuttings as well as someconvenient irrigation and fertilizationo a better
useful and practical hints for Rose producers.b)condition to prevent or strike possible pests or
Backgrounddiseases
In general, Cutting Propagation is the easiest way toBy the end of November all the cuttings were laid in
propagate Roses comparing to other methods suchtheir position inside the greenhouse where the
as Budding or Seeding which need skills and take uptemperature differed from 5 C at night to 25 C in
special possibilities. Rooting cuttings is simple and for athe mid day. I tried to pay attention to the
commercial purpose it requires the least amount oftemperature and humidity at all times; not too cold to
money and workers, so for the beginners it is thelet the units frost, and not too hot and humid to
most suitable way to propagate different cultivars ofallow the occurrence of disease especially Fungus,
Rose with an average 75% of success depending onhowever to obviate the outburst of any potential
the way of treatment and supervision, also thepest or disease I sprayed the units with a solution of
variables of disease, pest and environment.c) PersonalMancozeb (ratio 2/1000) inside the greenhouse and
Workplace Activityfrequently disinfected the tools and gloves.
The area I worked in had a continental climate withI irrigated the cuttings 2-3 times a week in average,
harsh winters - a minimum temperature of -12 Celsiusor as soon as the surface of the soil dried out,
- so in early November I built a simple wooden framehowever there is no regular timing for irrigation as it
and plastic covered greenhouse (12m x 5m, and 2mtotally depends on different variables such as
high) in order to place and protect 3000 rose cuttings.temperature, humidity and the phase of growth. Also
Because the roses were meant to be planted in civilI did not feel the requirement of using fertilizers.
landscapes such as parks and recreational centres, IIn 3-5 weeks I noticed that the cuttings are starting
decided to choose the mother-plants from thoseto root and after 3 months by the end of February
areas where the most popular varieties are differentthey started to sprout and create new stems. At
hybrids of Tea Rose, White Rose and Red Rose. Sothat time I removed the plastic cover of greenhouse
in the mid November that is a good time to takewhenever there was a medium daylight and
cuttings, I went to several parks nearby to obtainmoderate temperature. It was a crucial moment as
the cuttings by pruning the roses from their gardens.they need more water and a better care like cutting
I tried to take cuttings in the morning and chooseoff old yellow leaves and dispose of all the non
healthy plants with no trace of pest or disease onrooted units to prevent the growth of Fungus.
them.By the early spring I removed the plastic cover of
After transporting the stems to workplace I startedgreenhouse from the sides but the top was left to
to make the cuttings with precision. I used a pruningmake a shadow environment for the cuttings as the
shear to make a nice 45 dergree cut, 1cm just aboverose cuttings are sensitive to strong sunlight until
the top bud (the higher point is above the bud) and athey are cultivated in their permanent location.
flat cut for the base of cutting right below the nodeAs for a case of experiment I decided to plant 200
(the node has a better rooting). Each cutting wasof softwoods and 200 of hardwoods in the medium
12-17cm long with at least 3 buds and one set ofwithout dipping them into the rooting hormone. The
leaflets (preferably five leaflets) on it to produceinteresting result is that it did not have any significant
food through "Photosynthesis" during the process ofinfluence on softwoods, but for the hardwoods they
rooting. I made two types of cuttings; the Softwoodhad half the rooting percentage than the dipped ones.
cuttings from the stems grown in the early springIn the end of March the cuttings had passed their
the same year with soft and green Periderm,vulnerable stage and were ready to be delivered to
comparing to Hardwood cuttings from the olderthe gardeners as they were to sit in their nurseries til
stems with hard and woody bark. I tried to make athe end of summer to produce a stronger rooting
narrow vertical slit at the base of Hardwoods assystem and finally be cultivated in the landscape in
wounding the cuttings helps increase the rootingthe autumn.
success.Totally 80% of cuttings had successfully rooted and
After trimming the cuttings I dipped about 2 inchesgrown to the ideal stage, but basically comparing the
of the bases into rooting hormone (Synthetic Auxin)90% of softwoods to the 70% of hardwoods
for 5 seconds, then stuck them in a well-drainedcompleting the rooting period and sprout, shows no
rooting medium - a mixture of 80% river sand andmatter how well you treat the rose cuttings, the
20% area's soil which has a loam-clay texture - insidesoftwoods always bring about a better outcome.
the planting bags (10cm in diameter, 15cm deep),I used some tags and labels in order to record the
made of dark polyethylene with drainage holerooting progress and growth rate and to keep the
underneath, as I had prepared them before.track of any unwanted incident.
Each cutting was then removed to the greenhouseApart from the quality of cuttings, good treatment
and placed on top of wooden pallets in order toand irrigation, one of the other factors that really
create better airing and drainage. The cuttings werehelped the cuttings to generate this positive result is;
divided into 10 groups of 300 (30 x 10) as dividingthe total absence of pests and disease during the
them into groups had many advantages such as;o anrooting period which I believe it was secured by the
easy way to control and monitor the rooting processact of prevention.
or growtho a more organized environment to allow