Do the dahlia cuttings stay wilted?

16 years ago

The cuttings I took today have been cut below a node with a X-acto blade, that pair of leaves removed and the node buried in sand in a small plastic cup of damp sand set in a tray of water. They are so limp they are hanging over the edge. They were pretty leggy, IÂm wondering if I should have cut them shorter. But I thought they should have at least a few pairs of leaves. For some that means that they are still 10 inches tallÂor given the fact that they are laying flat, 10 inches longÂ If they live at all I see them curving up again from a prone position much like the floppy tuber shoots themselves did. The sand is not really deep enough to put a stick in that wouldnÂt also fall over from the weight of the stem.

What am I overlooking? Or is this to be expected?

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Comments (3)

dahliagardener
16 years ago
You only need one (or 2 at the most) set of leaves above the sand & one set of leaf nodes is sufficient under the sand. Sounds like you could get a few more cuttings from your 10 inch cuttings.
Ellie
dahliagardener
16 years ago
Forgot to ask-- did you cut a hole in the bottom of the small container so the sand stays REALLY wet- the water below isn't just for humidity- it's to keep the sand wet at all times. You're growing your cutting in the water- the sand is just to keep it standing up straight- which it will do if it's shorter. If you didn't cut a hole it won't be wet enough & the cuttings will wilt.
linnea56 (zone 5b Chicago)
Original Author
16 years ago
I did put holes in. I figured the sand had to be sopping wet. Then I can water from below too to keep it wet. I did think of cutting up the long stems and making more sections, but I donÂt know what IÂm going to do with these as it is! I have a lot of tubers started. They were too leggy and I knew I had to cut them down, and hated to waste anything.