using willow for starting cuttings

18 years ago

If you recall some time ago someone on here posted a you tube video on here showing a young girl using willow leaves to make rooting hormone. Well ever since I saw that video I've been on the look out for a willow tree.

I finally located one in the yard of my son'

s neighbor. I went over and asked the guy if I could cut a few branches from his tree. I told him what I wanted to do with them and he said he had heard of that being done. He told me to take all I want. I broke about three two foot long branch tips from the very large tree.

My son lives over an hour drive away from my home and it was very hot that day. When I got home I stripped the leaves from the stems and filled up four small zip lock bags and placed then into the freezer.

I just finished doing a Google search and came up with the information pasted below. I only kept the leaves like the young lady in the video did--I did not keep the twigs just the leaves. Have any of you ever tried using willow for starting your cuttings? On the video it looks like she just chopped up the leaves. Can I do it just using the leaves?

Here is what I Goggled concerning the subject.

DON'T ASK ME WHY I WANT TO TRY THIS but I do---

Things YouÂll Need:

1-Boiling Water

2-Large Pot

3-willow twigs

4-clippers or cleaver

5-jar with tight fitting lid

Step1-Gather a handful of chopstick-size willow twigs. Fresh branches work best; avoid deadfall. Any variety of willow (salix) will work since they all contain the natural chemical IBA (indolebutyric acid) - a natural plant growth regulator.

Step2-Chop the willow stems into 3-4 inch pieces with clippers or a cleaver. You should have about 2 cups of clippings to make a one gallon batch of willow bark rooting hormone.

Step3=Place the chopped willow pieces in a large container and cover with 1 gallon of boiling water.

Step4-Allow the prepared willow bark tea to stand overnight. The longer it steeps, the more IBA will be released into the water.

Step5-Store the willow bark rooting hormone in the refrigerator in a sealed container. Label the container.

Step6Soak tip cuttings into the willow bark rooting hormone overnight prior to planting in soil. The IBA will infuse into the bark and stems encouraging rooting and inhibiting fungus, bacteria and viral disease.

Here is the video link

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Hl8sBac3TCo

Here is a link that might be useful: FIG CUTTINGS

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Comments (6)

pezzuti9
Original Author
18 years ago
Copied from the same web site as in pot above.
Tips & Warnings
Willow bark rooting hormone will stay fresh up to two months in the refrigerator.
Water young plants with willow bark rooting hormone. The salicylic acid from the willow will help defend plants against bacteria, fungus and viral diseases.
Evidence shows that salicylic acid works by aiding the wound healing process. Absicsic acid is a stress hormone that all plants release in response to injury. It stops the movement of fluids through the system and Â??shuts down' the injured area. The salicylic acid found in willow bark tea works to inhibit the wound response, hence allowing growth.

Looks like I am going to have make another trip to get fresh branches.
Lou NE., PA
xgrndpounder
18 years ago
Hello Lou,
I might have to go to the back of our property and look around our little spring fed creek for a willow tree!
A super nice Man sent me some LSU Gold roots not long ago, I just wonder if the willow will work on them?

The best to ya.

Cecil
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svanessa
18 years ago
'Acetyl Salicylic Acid' is Asprin! I wonder if crushing an asprin tablet would do the same or if the acetyl component would cause problems? It would save a whole lot of time and trouble if we could!

Sue

Here is a link that might be useful: Story of asprin
elder
18 years ago
Lou, I tried a willow infusion on some cuttings several years ago, and they all successfully rooted. But, since I failed to use a control group, it didn't really prove anything.
Also tried to collect willow sap in the Spring, like with maple sap, total failure. Didn't collect enough to stick cuttings into it. Take my word for it, an elderberry branch will NOT allow itself to be pounded into a willow tree (I had read that the oldtimers used elderberry on the maple tree farms).
I have read that some florists use aspirin to keep cut flowers fresh, don't know how that transfers to rooting cuttings.....Lou
pezzuti9
Original Author
18 years ago
Thanks people.
I knew about the aspirin connection to willow and also remember as a kid my dad always crushing up two aspirins and place the powder into the Xmas tree stand that held up a live Xmas tree--and that was a long time ago,

Lou you have at least tried out using willow and I just want to take a shot at it. It's not a necessary thing but I like to try things out.

I just want to know now that I found more sites dealing with using willow and they all say to cut up the small branch tips. Only in that video I see that young woman just using the leaves she stripped from the stems. Would either be as good - Stems vs. leaves?

We used to have access to two large willow trees in my neighbors yard but they where cut down years ago. I located another one growing down the highway from me about 1 mile. Maybe I can cut some of the tree at the time I need it so it will be fresh. The one site said you need a bundle of 3 to 4 inch long stems that fit in your closed up fist to make one gallon of the (tea)

I am going to try it out on a variety I have that known to be hard to set roots. I have the commercial rooting product but I don't like using that on my fig cuttings.

Again thanks for all your input--Cecil I want to see those roots turn into a fig tree before winter sets in--if anyone can do it you can.

Lou NE., PA
xgrndpounder
18 years ago
We are trying Lou,
But, I sure don't deserve the credit on it if it does make a Baby LSU Pezzuti9 Gold plant ;-)
Loslunasfarms has REAlly helped me on this little project.

Thanx to you Lou & JBS.