Reminds me to relate to my work with potato cuttings.
Back in the mid 70's when I was a horticulturist/trouble-shooter with a 20 acre greenhouse operation...where I was in charge of fertility, pesticides, growth regulants, and experimental propagation.....I had a few moments to experiment with B-Nine growth regulant on potato cutting amongst the mums. I would cut up potato plants with one leaf left on the cuttings. I would dust the cut end with Rootone and stick in small cell trays to root. Once the cuttings rooted...I would spray them with B-Nine to keep the shoots short and stocky. Within 6 weeks the cuttings would tuberize and be harvested. The tubers would be like mini tubers and were great for increasing varieties that were rare.
I did this for tomato vines as well. If I had a special hybrid or F-2 vine that was a one of a kind tomato....I could make hundreds of cuttings and put them into the field later.
This year I am cutting up rare potatoes and placing them in a shallow layer of peat/lite to get pull sprouts like sweet potatoes. Unlike what Wendy is doing...pulling off the sprouts early and rooting...I can pull the same sprouts as they emerge and have roots on them. I can pull sprouts for many weeks getting hundreds of starter potato plants from one tuber.
I should take pictures.
Tom Wagner
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