Propagation of Trident Maple Cutings

I took cuttings today from an old Trident Maple grove that I am repotting. Would it help the cuttings if I put them on a warming mat under lights? The weather here in Chicago has been very variable this month - record heat, followed by record (frost) cold nights. So I'm reluctant to put these cuttings outside just yet. I have given the cutings a dunk in rooting hormone gel, then rooting them in turfus covered with wet s. moss. Any other ideas? Thanks.

Bob K
C

I wouldnt change a thing, thats very close to how I root just about everything No bottom heat should be needed as Tridents root easily.

I usually save all the fines I get when I sift out my Turface and use them for rooting, they hold onto moisture well and as such I don't need to top dress with Sphagnum. the fines are AWESOME for rooting even tough to root species.
-Jay

Thanks Jay.

jay my experience with sifting turface (and i do use the MVP i believe which is supposed to be the larger particle size) is that probably 90% goes through the screen (i use a 1/8" screen) do you use a window screen size?

bucknbonsai wrote:jay my experience with sifting turface (and i do use the MVP i believe which is supposed to be the larger particle size) is that probably 90% goes through the screen (i use a 1/8" screen) do you use a window screen size?

I use Profield conditioner, (another Turface product) which is a smaller particle size (say 3/16-1/4 inch) and I sift through a 3/32 screen. Basically window screen.

Buck how big are the particles in the MVP?
-Jay

About 1/8" I think. I know if i try sifting it through the smallest size commercially available sifters for bonsai (which i think is 1/8") about 90% falls through, but if I use a window screen only about 5% falls through. I would like to find what you have but when I talk to the local place that carries turface, they look at me like I have 2 heads when I ask them about there being different kinds of turface, and when I try to explain that I want it for bonsai they look at me like I have 3 heads. (and actually Im not 100% sure that my bags even say MVP - I keep mentioning MVP because I think thats what someone here recommended)

drgonzo wrote:I wouldnt change a thing, thats very close to how I root just about everything No bottom heat should be needed as Tridents root easily.

I usually save all the fines I get when I sift out my Turface and use them for rooting, they hold onto moisture well and as such I don't need to top dress with Sphagnum. the fines are AWESOME for rooting even tough to root species.
-Jay

Hi Jay, I took your advice from that other thread about taking cuttings. I have a gorgeous Coral Bark Maple in our yard that has leafed out with tender leaves, ( a little later than you recommended of doing it at bud break), but I wanted to give it a try anyway.) So I cut one 3/16" cutting, cut the leaves in half, scraped the bark off the lower part, put some rooting hormone on it, and planted in a Turface fines and in shade. Hopefully it'll take. If not, than I'll try an air layer next year.

Buck

"Turface" is a product name made by a company called Profile LLC. If you google that company name, you'll get all sorts of info about them but I found I couldn't find any info about the "Turface" coming in different particle sizes on their website. Just different colors. It sounds like what you're working with is basically the same stuff I have. Its all made by the same company at any rate no matter what they want to call it.

Agsorb made by oil-dri seems to be available in different sizes and use different base clays for its products, thus offering a different PH range. I'm doing research into it this spring as I think it might be a cool product to try out. Don't expect (unless you're at a specialty turf management store) for the folks you order it from to know there are different Turface products. I have found its best to do the research myself then go in armed with a product number of what I want.

-Jay

Fore wrote:

Hi Jay, I took your advice from that other thread about taking cuttings. I have a gorgeous Coral Bark Maple in our yard that has leafed out with tender leaves, ( a little later than you recommended of doing it at bud break), but I wanted to give it a try anyway.) So I cut one 3/16" cutting, cut the leaves in half, scraped the bark off the lower part, put some rooting hormone on it, and planted in a Turface fines and in shade. Hopefully it'll take. If not, than I'll try an air layer next year.

Palmatum is trickier, often they will strike but then peter out and die. It will also take a good couple years of careful growing to strengthen them up. Good luck!
-Jay

I figured as much Jay. I heard they aren't the best bonsai material but I'm so enamored with the bark and leaves I thought I'd just do it for the fun of it. I don't expect this to be a specimen tree at all. Not in my lifetime at least if it lives lol

To add another turface-sifting data point - I've been using the "all sport" turface that I get from John Deere. I find that if I sift through a window screen, I lose very little, less than 10% probably. However...if I go to the next size larger screen (not sure what the size of that is, but it's not much larger), I lose a LOT more. Many of the turface particles in the all sport fall right in that range, just larger than window screen size.

Fore wrote:I figured as much Jay. I heard they aren't the best bonsai material but I'm so enamored with the bark and leaves I thought I'd just do it for the fun of it. I don't expect this to be a specimen tree at all. Not in my lifetime at least if it lives lol

It's OK, sometimes we sacrifice workability in Bonsai culture for sheer beauty of the specimen itself, My "orange dream" Japanese Maple is an example.
-Jay

I have never sifted my MVP turface and haven't had any issues at all, and everything grows like a well fertilized weed. I love this stuff. I've thought about adding a more water retention component to my mix as it consists of turface and lava rock but aren't quite sure what. Anyone have any suggestions?

Happy Easter!!!
Sam

You know Sam one of the main reasons I sift the Turface is to get those fines. I find them incredibly useful not just for rooting cuttings but as a nice substrate for my mame trees and for doing forrest plantings that I want to stay fairly moist (beech and hornbeam). I also plant some regular seeds in it as the inorganic basically eliminates any damping off.

Turface is just about the most versatile horticultural substrate I have ever found.
-Jay

drgonzo wrote:

Fore wrote:I figured as much Jay. I heard they aren't the best bonsai material but I'm so enamored with the bark and leaves I thought I'd just do it for the fun of it. I don't expect this to be a specimen tree at all. Not in my lifetime at least if it lives lol

It's OK, sometimes we sacrifice workability in Bonsai culture for sheer beauty of the specimen itself, My "orange dream" Japanese Maple is an example.
-Jay

That's great to know others will work with material that's, so we say, are a 'challenge'

I also find the fines of Turface useful, Jay listed many, but there's also a use for your landscaping. If you have 'low' area in your yard that gathers water, or is always damp, I've used fines and it worked perfectly. The area is the same as the rest of the yard. Definitely worth it to 1. You get those fines out so the remaining Turface has more area for roots, and better drainage. And 2. You get the fines lol

I was final-sifting my Turface MVP with the plastic mesh for pot holes, but it got to be too labor intensive due to not having sides, just using a flat sheet. I went to Walmart and got a sieve made of stainless mesh, a bit larger holes that window screen. It is perfect for taking out the very small granules and dust. I dont do much rooting now so I scattered it across my lawn. The sieve it a great tool for me.

chris. I get mine from john deer also and it is allsport now that i think about it, and yet it almost all falls through a 1/8" mesh and almost all is kept with a window screen. wish I could find the MVP

bucknbonsai wrote:chris. I get mine from john deer also and it is allsport now that i think about it, and yet it almost all falls through a 1/8" mesh and almost all is kept with a window screen. wish I could find the MVP

Do you guys have a Conserve FS? that's where I get mine.

Sam Ogranaja wrote:I have never sifted my MVP turface and haven't had any issues at all, and everything grows like a well fertilized weed. I love this stuff. I've thought about adding a more water retention component to my mix as it consists of turface and lava rock but aren't quite sure what. Anyone have any suggestions?

Happy Easter!!!
Sam

I am with you. I actually tried to sift the MVP with the window screen and found only very few fines so I thought why wasting the time. Now I use 5 parts of MVP, 1 part of black lava rock( I do sift this one cause there are a lot fine dust in it), and 1-1.5 part of compost pine bark. I basically use this on everything except gardenia and azalea which I use pure Kanuma.