You say the ball of roots has been there for 2 mos., well either it's roots or it's sphagnum... did you use sphagnum to do the layer? If so, and you see no roots, the layer may have healed over (did you prop it open with a sliver of wood?), and so nothing will happen. I've layered a very large old elastica, and it took (and that was before I knew what I was doing :-), so I know they work.

I used a mixture of peat and light soil and wrapped it around the tree where I cut......and then covered it with a baggie......i cant see roots yet, how long before yours had noticeable roots?

I have successfully air layered fig and pomegranates by following recommended procedures and massive roots have formed in about 60 days. It is important to remove the bark for an inch or more and scrape off the cambium completely to prevent it from bridging over rather than forming roots. Keeping the layer moist at all times is a must, but easy if you wrap it properly so it is well sealed. I use sphagnum moss or sphagnum peat or a mixture of the two. Any medium will work that has a high water holding capacity. Sphagnum moss is not prone to molding which could cause problems Squeeze out excess water.

....... he says almost 9 years after the last post.

Hi, Jay! Sounds like fun!

This happens all the time since Houzz took over. So often a person's first post is in a *really* old discussion.

The best use of a forum like this is to look up information, so adding more information to a post, regardless of its date of origin, is a good thing.

Sometimes information and misinformation are synonymous. So the idea that more information is unequivocally destined to be a good thing doesn't hold up to even casual scrutiny; unless you include as 'a good thing' the idea that misinformation opens the door to controversion, which highlights the error, even if only for lack of qualification re a particular manner of thinking.

Al

Uh, yeah... I found this thread by searching "how long does it take to air layer?" Some good information here, but I think if someone with more knowledge were to come and make the thread even more informative for people that came across it, that would be great. The timeframe thing isn't really that relevant here unless a big breakthrough occurred in air layering that rendered all the information moot.

You might try asking whatever question you had that didn't get answered by way of a perusal of the thread before you blame the knowledge level of those that responded.

Al

We seem to be talking past each other. My point has nothing to do with anyone's knowledge. My point is entirely in reference to the idea that you should never add to an old thread. The point is that people come upon old threads looking for information on certain topics, so adding additional pertinent information is a good thing, not a bad thing. The context in which people generally frown upon "necroing" a thread is when information is timely. Since the techniques of air layering probably haven't changed in a thousand years, that really isn't applicable here.

Anyway.... this little debate is completely irrelevant, so let's try to get back on track...

I'm assuming now is not an ideal time to do an air layer. I put one on a mountain cedar (ashe juniper) tree about a month ago. Here in central Texas, we are still getting temps in the 80s during the day and they are not falling below the 50s at night. Do you think this air layer is going to take a long time to develop roots? As I look ahead, I'm concerned about the timing. If it is not ready to be cut off until the summer, its chances of survival will be low in the Texas heat. I was hoping it would be ready to go in January or February. It seems from what I've read that there is danger in leaving the air layer on too long, so not sure if it's an option to just leave it until next fall.

hi i am in the tropics and I just did marcots of mussaenda pink Dona Luz last November 2017. it is now a full 60 days but i still do not see any roots from the plastic wrap. I opened the wrap when it was 30 days old and noticed that beside the girded area is a small mound. I closed it again and dared not open again as I read somewhere that marcots get irritated and stressed when it is rubbed or something. out of the 5 marcots I did on that one 15 feet tall shrub, 3 seems to be still in the running as the leaves towards end of the marcotted branches are still leafy and green. The other 2 looks dead. question is..

1.) how do i know if that mound I saw was the beginning of a root or did i do the girding beside a node of the branch?

Which I do not remember doing so. I scraped on "between nodes" with good allowance till the next node.

2.) some blogs say wait 3 months while others say 1 month there should be good roots already. I can't find any blog that says how long to wait for mussaenda marcots in a tropical country. I water them everyday or every other day depending on how hot the weather is. I also make sure that I do not leave it swimming in water. Can anyone here help me how long is the wait for mussaendas?

THANK YOU VERY MUCH TO ANYONE WHO WILL REPLY HERE. anyone? :)

Describe the "small mound next to the girdled area, please. Are you describing callus tissue? Air layers don't get "irritated or distressed" when rubbed, but 'checking' them can result in unnecessary breakage of roots. If you use clear wrap to hold your rooting medium in place, then wrap that with aluminum foil to keep the sun from over-heating the medium or impacting root development, there should be no reason to peek. The roots will be conspicuous enough once they start growing. Also, some plants are genetically predisposed, even in the tropics, to stronger growth at certain times of the year - often it's in the rainy period. If the plant you're layering does exhibit cyclical growth patterns - try starting your layers about 1 month before you expect the strongest growth.

It's difficult to suggest where you might be able to improve things if we don't know what you're doing. Watering an enclosed air layer daily sounds like a LOT of water, so you might be failing because you're asking the roots to transition back and forth between appropriate moisture levels to too wet; or, the medium might be consistently too wet. But that doesn't explain the dead branches. When you layer, you cut completely through the cambium down to the xylem. The plant can then still transport water and nutrients upward through the xylem to parts distal to the layer. Downward nutrient flow and polar flow of auxin terminates and collects in tissues immediately distal to the top ring of the layer, which is where roots should form.

Tips: A) If you establish a layer on a branch or stem that isn't vertical, make your top and bottom cuts so they ARE horizontal. This means the cuts on a round branch that is say 10* to a vertical axis would be slightly elliptical, while a branch that's 60* to a vertical axis (30* to the horizon) would be would be much more elliptical. The reason for this is, the flow of auxin (stimulates rooting) is polar. Auxin will always find its way to the lowest part of a cut, which is where rooting will occur; and often, it might be the only root that grows from the layer site. You'd be better served if a multitude of roots emanated directly from the upper ring of your layer cut. B) You can help ensure success by applying a tourniquet immediately below wherever you want roots to grow on a branch. As soon as you see a bulge forming above the tourniquet, sprinkle an appropriate powdered rooting aid on the end of a piece of electrical tape. The rooting aid should cover enough tape to wrap one revolution around the layer site. The tape should be 2-3 times as long o/a as the part that's covered. Use a piece of string, a zip tie, or other method to secure the tape so it remains in place. Blanching (excluding light) the future layer site stimulates root initials to 'preform' and the rooting hormone and added moisture levels under the tape contribute significantly to the collective boost.

You'll find a lot more info here.

Al

Raenell - As I answered your question, the thought came to mind that a thread specifically devoted to air layering/marcotting might be useful, so I wrote one. If you have interest, you can see it here.

Al

hi thank you so much for replying. i wonder why i was not notified? here are some learnings since then:

1. the mound last january 3 was around a centimeter in diameter. that branch was budding well. meaning..that branch is alive and well. but because I was impatient, I reopened the wrap and didnt see the hair thin roots in it until it was too late. I already tore them apart. ha! that 1 cm mound has grown bigger to 2 cm diameter. and there were hair thin roots. I rewrapped them with just the mound and a strand of hair root that was still attached to the branch. the leaves all drooped and looked like they're all going to die. But I am hoping that it will be revived and grow new roots. I wonder what will happen.

2. I learned from someone that I wrapped too many marcots on the tree. i was told that you can only marcot maximum of 3. and the marcots that were nearer the main trunk developed roots faster. yes! after 73 days, i saw hair thin roots in two marcots. it seems the tree is distributing its energy to the marcots. Thus, some marcots growing leaves while others seem dormant. Then the following month, vice versa. the same person told me that mussaendas in my part of the globe takes only 60 days and marcot ready to be transplanted.

3. The marcots with roots are now 95 days Old. past 3 months already. I am thinking maybe i should leave them up there longer and see the roots grow fatter before I transplant them. they won't die right?

4. My next questions would probably revolve around transplanting. I already read up and watched many youtube videos on it. Hope they truly live! thank you so much!

Tapia, your tip A I can relate to. Tip B not so much because I do not plan on going to the extent of putting rooting powders. Plus, here in the tropics, everyone I asked haven't heard of wrapping marcots with foil. It is unheard of. Plus, watering the marcots daily or every other day is necessary, so I was advised and I believe so due to the sun. If it rains that day, then I do not water. Putting foil actually is a hassle when watering. Maybe in temperate countries no need to water it daily. therefore can use foil.

the layers that have rooted I only used ordinary garden soil mixed with rice husks. I now know that it is not the most ideal because marcots need to breathe and ideal is when you water it, the water flows and drains well. My later marcots, I used soil mixed with dried coconut husks. Last week, I was able to buy some kind of moss from gardening company. I still mixed some soil with the moss. let's see. I am so happy marcots have roots and I am learning. Thank you so much Tapia!