It would be most helpful if you let us in on the kind of plant you are working with.

If it roots, I don't see why it will not send out shoots eventually.

Hi bstruss,
Yes, it would be helpful knowing what plant you are trying to propagate.

In a cutting the first order of the plant is to produce roots. Roots are the source of nutrients and water. Leaves do not make food, they make sugars, which are converted into ATP, (energy molecules which plants use to get things done).

After your cutting develops roots I would think that at some point shoots would develop. Cytokinins are manufactured in the roots of plants. Before the plant starts sending up shoots it first must 'know' that it has the nutrition to do so.

Plants have a cleaver communication system from roots to shoots. When water and food become available in the roots, these are drawn up through the Xylem and out to all parts of the plant. Along with the food comes cytokinins which signal the plant to grow. No food and water no cytokinins.

The process is a little more complicated but this is a simplified explanation.

Plant tissue culture is not all that hard if you want to give it a try. I posted some videos on YouTube showing how to get started. Search Microprogation on YouTube if you are interested.

Here is a link that might be useful: Videos

Thanks All. The specimen I am trying is a Mitragyna species, and I took and trimmed part of a thick leaf vein bare and left about 1.5" of leaf material on top and about 1" of trimmed leaf stem below.

I took a small vitamin bottle and burned a few small holes in the top with a soldering iron (for air and a place to insert the leaf). After then fastening the top, I placed a mixture of water, rooting hormone and honey therein and inserted the leaf stem into the top (down into the solution leaving the leaf foliage above). Voila! After 1.5 weeks I now have clear root development on the stem, but now I shall see if the this leaf section will send up shoots.

I have read that some species (citrus etc) can be gotten to root from a leaf like this but then fail to send up shoots. I will soon see if this works, but if not, I will need to go the tissue culture route. I think it's cool though that I got a leaf section to root.

I rooted an Echinacea leaf last year. It never grew shoots, but I now know a way I could make it do this.

I bet if you mix "Configure" to 300 ppm and spray the leaf, it'll send up shoots then. Have you already got the leaf in soil?

Thanks. Yes, I had two leaf sections that I was able to root. I placed them in soil but they never would send out shoots (just became brown and died). Hmm, where can this Configure product be acquired? I am looking for alternatives to going the whole tissue culture route, and I thought it might be successful since Mitragyna is in the coffee family, and some of these have been known to send up leaf shoots.

I Googled Configure and found several companies that sell it.

Try this number...
800-234-9756

Email me if you can't get it from them. I'd be glad to send you the number of the person who sent it to me.

I have live kratom trees, am interested in other propagation methods....did your leaf tech work out, or did you go to tissue culture tech?
Or just give up and root branches? ( like I do)