2 wk old Serissa cuttings-how to 'abandon' for a week?

Happy Gilmore

2 or 3 weekends ago I trimmed back my one kyoto serissa and got ~ dozen cuttings from 1.5" to 4" lengths. I've had them in a glass jar and two shooter glasses (cutting size depending) with ~ 3/8" of water (lower 7/8" or more stripped of leaves). Just this past week they're now showing some small roots starting....

I'm heading away for a week and it's a busy time for my wife so I'd much rather setup some self maintaining system for them for the 6-7 days I'll be away. Any ideas? I'm leary of bagging them in fear of mold/rot starting with no air circulation (slight fuzzy mold on two small cuttings now just above the water line in a shooter glass.

I've been trying to think of how to rig an upside down loaded pop bottle to a shallow tray (ie. like a pet water dish) but then I'd have to prop up the cuttings so they wouldn't just fall over and I'd be leary any wiresupport to hold them up would promote rot/mold at that contact point with the high humidity.....is it a huge risk to plant them now in a perlite mix container with a tray I could load with water that would keep them wet through capillary??

Any and all ideas welcome....I'd like to keep these guys going (Carl's other threads previously inspired me!)

Thanks!

Happy Gilmore (killed one serissa nearly a year ago......hoping for a better future for the 'new' one and it's siblings!)

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lordy611

Idont have a ton of experience with serissa but I can tell you that I pruned some of mine and simply pushed the whips into the soil. They rooted fairly easily. If you got some light potting soil and watered thoroughly it should work.

clrosner

There are several methods you could try. One is to take a large soda bottle, cut it at the black bottom part and fill with wet coarse sand. Use a small dowel and push a hole into the wet sand at about a 45 degree angle. Place a cutting or a couple (in individual holes) so that they will not jut over the edge of the black portion of the bottle. Place the rest of the bottle on top and scotch tape the top to the bottom. Do not put in direct sun light. The bottle will work as a small green house, and the wet sand should be good for about a week.

The idea of placing the cuttings on an angle is that it is easier for the seedlings to draw water up than if the seedling is at a 90 degree angle. That's gravity!

The other method, if they are still in water, is to place a large bottle filled with water just a little higher, and run a cotton wick from the big bottle to the glass. You can use cotton shoe laces just as well. I even used this method for some of my potted plants years ago, by putting the shoe lace in through the drainage hole. In this case the pots have to be above the water supply, so that the water has to travel upwards into the trees.

Good luck,

Carl

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