Rooting Hormone from Willow Trees
 

As some of you may know about me - I LOVE blueberries almost as much as I love tomatoes.

I have several different kinds of blueberry bushes growing on my property, I know at least two of the different cultivars are Jersey and Elliott... there is one that is my favorite because it is early prolific and big, and I never remember which cultivar it is, it might be Duke or blueray or bluecrop but I just can't recall... anyway I should have drawn a map when I planted them but oh well...

So I have been very interested in propagating the different varieties. I have started propagating the cuttings and then planting the seedlings around the schools where I work on the school gardens.

I found this video on Youtube about making a natural rooting hormone from willow cuttings. I'm going to try it next year:

[url]http://youtu.be/yH5pbdpWLBc[/url]


I also really like the videos on the channel for this particular video - the channel is called "mayeuxministries" and I found another one in there for okra gumbo that I will definitely be making this summer!

I watched the video the other day and ty for posting it. The information has me thinking about trying it out as well. Willow trees are used to make aspirin. Aspirin has been used in gardening to invoke a defensive response from plants.

Here is a link to aspirin and willow water use.
[URL="http://www.finegardening.com/how-to/qa/aspirin-cures-plant-headaches.aspx"]http://www.finegardening.com/how-to/qa/aspirin-cures-plant-headaches.aspx[/URL]

Here's something I came across concerning Salicylic Acid that may be of interest. Ami

[url]http://jxb.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2011/02/28/jxb.err031.short[/url]

Thanks for the info Ami. Willow water is looking promising. I am definitely going to test out a few plants to this technique.

It really is a great video - what a beautiful place, and what a stand of willows! The snowshoe hares around here seem to prefer willow to anything. I went looking for willow and, you'd be shamed to pick the few twigs that were coming back after such a chowdown. They don't like Spirea though, and there's lots so I use that instead.

I just put the cut up branches into a big stock pot, bring it to a boil, then steep and strain into bottles - it keeps well. Salicylate is not destroyed by boiling, so it's okay to make it that way.

Rooting hormone is cheap if you just want to buy some. The rooting is not so hard, either. I can even buy rooted blueberry cuttings for $1, but they need to live in a pot for at least a year before they go into the ground, at least where I live. I was hoping otherwise, but I talked to a berry farmer and university crop scientist who told me that the cuttings probably won't make it over a winter if they get put straight into the ground.

So where do you keep the pot in it's first winter. I have a friend that has great blue berry bushes and I'd like to take some cuttings. When do you take the cuttings. I would assume in the spring right after they get growing well.

He told me that I only had to keep the pot above about zero Fahrenheit. I could keep them in a greenhouse and probably only have to heat it just a little on the coldest nights of the year.

Thanks Cole Robbie. It sounds like I could get away with heavy mulch here. Even though it got to minus 10ºF the ground never freezes very hard or deep.

In my experience, learning from growers that cultivate berry plants, one should never let newly rooted cuttings (less than ~1 year old) completely freeze. During their overwintering period they may be kept in the upper 30s/low 40sF ideally in a greenhouse. If you are in a climate where the ground never truly freezes (6/7 and up) then it should be ok to plant them after they have had a full season to root in. If your ground freezes below the first inch or two of soil then I would not suggest planting them out the same season as starting (~zone 5 or colder). Much of this depends on your specific microclimate so I would suggest investing in a soil thermometer or asking local authorities on their practices. ;)

Colin

willow water
 

Yes this good info. Have been employing willow water for years.use pencil size twigs new wood is best. I store batches in old pop bottles in the frig...use for planting suckers from tomatoes... Works like gang busters..mr bill milford ct:d