Propogating tree cuttings

The coordinator, A..., had me split and up-pot some tree cuttings I had taken on March 23, 2022. There were about 10 different varieties of tree cuttings, about half of them had successfully rooted. The others were completely dead. Pots where multiple cuttings were successful were split into several pots, each pot with one successfully growing cutting. A had me use a mixture of soil: one part of the vermiculite mix and one part of the bark mix.

These are the cuttings that rooted:

Rhamnus alaternus (Mediterranean buckthorn)

Balsamocitris daweii (Uganda;deciduous citrus tree)

Macadamia integrifolia(Australian; macadamia nut tree)

Pterocarya hupehensis(China, wingnut tree)

Hibiscus splendens(Australia, pink hollyhock tree)

Grewia biloba(Africa; flowering shrub)

These cuttings did not root:

Schinus molle (Peru)

Grevillea robusta (Australia)

Combretum kraussii (Africa)

Juglans neotropica (Andes, walnut-like)

Sapindus marginatus (North America; Soapberry)

Coordinator A... had me re-pot into a tray cuttings of the common thistle plant that she had harvested from her garden. The new plants are to be used in a butterfly demonstration in an ecology class (painted lady butterfly, I think…). The cuttings were originally in potting soil, in separate pots. She asked me to transfer the cuttings to a tray containing the mixture of vermiculite and bark mix, for better drainage. I noted several of the rhizomes had new sprouting rootlets.

A asked me to remember to remove a handful of aquatic plants from the aquarium, everytime I came to the greenhouse (i.e. weekly). This will keep down the population of plants from overgrowth. The aquarium contains three distinctly different types of small plants: a small water fern called Salvinia minima, a carnivorous plant called bladder wort or Utricularia, and a small duckweed plant (Lemnaceae, in the aroid family).

A asked me to trim the fronds of one of the cycads: Zamia furfuracea. It had been overwatered when repotted, the lower branches had yellowed. I trimmed several large fronds from the lower part of the stem. The fronds on the upper part of the stem were growing well, they looked healthy and green.

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