Air layering

[Lazy Gardener]

I've been reading up on Elderberry propagation. Am seeing that some folks are having success with softwood cuttings. My 2 plants are barely surviving. A lot of winter kill every year, and they just have not gotten established. One is only 15" tall, and the other is about 4' tall. the larger one only puts out 1 - 2 "canes" and the older ones die all the way back. This year's growth has some new sprouts coming out on the surviving cane, and I'm tempted to take some of them off where they join the cane, and see if they will take root. That one plant has put out an offset from the base that is about 3' away. I have hope that one will survive, if hubby doesn't kill it with the mower!

 

[CrealCritter]

I've been reading up on Elderberry propagation. Am seeing that some folks are having success with softwood cuttings. My 2 plants are barely surviving. A lot of winter kill every year, and they just have not gotten established. One is only 15" tall, and the other is about 4' tall. the larger one only puts out 1 - 2 "canes" and the older ones die all the way back. This year's growth has some new sprouts coming out on the surviving cane, and I'm tempted to take some of them off where they join the cane, and see if they will take root. That one plant has put out an offset from the base that is about 3' away. I have hope that one will survive, if hubby doesn't kill it with the mower!

We have the opposite issue. We have elder growing like weeds some 10' plus tall and another variety called dwarf elder that only gets about 18" tall and never really puts out much berries, so I bush hogged the dwarf but left some nice tall ones to grow. Are you expecting tall elder bountiful elder but maybe you have dwarf elder?

Here's a picture of the elderberry I took last year in mid to late summer before the flowers turned to berries. I didn't get to pick any from this patch. But I did from a few others around the property. Still had to stand on a ladder though.

Here is a internet picture of dwarf elderberry. You can see it's not really much good for berries. Since everything about the plant is dwarf.

Jesus is Lord and Christ 🙏❤️🇺🇸

 

[Larsen Poultry Ranch]

Looks like you did a good job. How are the going along so far? New growth on the branch tips yet?

I will have to go look. I think there might be additional growth on the avocados, but also a few half brown leaves. I like that the avocado new leaves come in reddish, it's easier to see new vs old.

 

[Lazy Gardener]

One of my apple trees is suckering. So... I'm thinking I should air layer that sucker. The sucker will provide good root stock for some more apple trees. What diameter of growth works best? The sucker is about 1" diameter at it's base. If I air layer, which will produce a good top for a new tree, I'll still have the original sucker, which can possibly be grafted to produce yet an other variety. There is a method of small back yard orchard management where they plant several trees in the same hole, and manage them as a single tree. I'll have to study the tree, and study the method to see if that would be practical in my situation.

 

[CrealCritter]

D

One of my apple trees is suckering. So... I'm thinking I should air layer that sucker. The sucker will provide good root stock for some more apple trees. What diameter of growth works best? The sucker is about 1" diameter at it's base. If I air layer, which will produce a good top for a new tree, I'll still have the original sucker, which can possibly be grafted to produce yet an other variety. There is a method of small back yard orchard management where they plant several trees in the same hole, and manage them as a single tree. I'll have to study the tree, and study the method to see if that would be practical in my situation.

Diameter doesn't seem to matter as long as it's not huge. If it's new growth or sucker as you say, I would give it a try. My limited experience tells me, new tender growth seems to work best when air layering. It may be a little late in the season to try and air layer though. it's best when the tree just came out of dormancy and the sap is flowing. It may still work but I would expect the failure rate to be higher in the heat of summer, than in the cool of spring.

I'm no expert here by any means. Just self taught, through trial and error. So I have to defer to those who have more experience than I do. I pointed to a couple of internet articles a few posts back, that I thought were informative and obviously demonstrated more experience, than I currently have.

Jesus is Lord and Christ 🙏❤️🇺🇸

 

[CrealCritter]

Just another addition (hopefully helpful) on willow water rooting hormone.

I have numerous white willows growing around the pond. After reading this article, my whole pond might just be rooting hormone. Wouldn't that be something else 😂 I already know the pond water is great for fermentating chicken feed. I may need to try some on plants and see what happens.


I did use water out of the pond to soak peat moss in. Because I already know it doesn't have chlorine or clorimine in it, that might prohibit the nature of things in the green world. So I may have unknowingly double whammy'ed my air layer attempts with willow water rooting hormone.

Make Your Own Rooting Hormone From Willow Twigs

Make your own natural plant-rooting hormone from willow twigs for watering seedlings, transplanting and plant propagation.

mrbrownthumb.blogspot.com

Jesus is Lord and Christ 🙏❤️🇺🇸

 

[Lazy Gardener]

D

Diameter doesn't seem to matter as long as it's not huge. If it's new growth or sucker as you say, I would give it a try. My limited experience tells me, new tender growth seems to work best when air layering. It may be a little late in the season to try and air layer though. it's best when the tree just came out of dormancy and the sap is flowing. It may still work but I would expect the failure rate to be higher in the heat of summer, than in the cool of spring.

I'm no expert here by any means. Just self taught, through trial and error. So I have to defer to those who have more experience than I do. I pointed to a couple of internet articles a few posts back, that I thought were informative and obviously demonstrated more experience, than I currently have.

Jesus is Lord and Christ 🙏❤️🇺🇸

Thanks. Given that information, I'll just wait it out, and have a go at it next spring. More than enough to keep me busy w/o adding a new project.

 

[Lazy Gardener]

I thought you needed fresh new growth twigs to make rooting hormone. I have lots of swamp willow I've used before. I used tips of new spring growth and the blender before soaking it. Same blender I use when I play at papermaking so it's fairly strong.

Do you use this for air layering? Would you try it in the heat of summer? I can get some willow.

 

[Lazy Gardener]

What about the leaves?

 

[CrealCritter]

One possible reason the three pods failed and the others didn't (besides lack of rooting hormone) is that those pods were either in direct sunlight or only partial shade. The other pods are almost all fully shaded. I bet they got cooked/dried out.

Thanks for posting the updates... I suspect you're correct...sun & 100 degrees are probobly not the ideal conditions for air layering sucess. I was just thinking yesterday, I should take a turkey baster and a bucket of pond water and water all mine. See if I can't get some water into the balls trough the opening on the top. I do have some horizontal air layers also but I'll see what I can do to water them. Where there is a will, there is a way, I reckon.

Jesus is Lord and Christ 🙏❤️🇺🇸