I took several cuttings in early Sept from a couple grapevines on my grandparentÂs old ranch in Sacramento, CA. The property is soon to be cleared for development so I had no choice but to take what I could at this time.

I've had them in damp newspaper, bagged and in the refer since coming home. I took them out today to see if they were still viable and they are. Mold was starting to grow so IÂve cleaned them with a toothbrush and a 10% bleach solution. I've never rooted grape cuttings before and donÂt want to chance loosing these. I live in San Diego County in the backcountry. No soil to speak of, more sandstone than anything, so burying the twigs as I've read is not doable.

I was thinking of using a garbage can and filling it with vermiculite and burying the twigs upside down in this. We get very little cold weather maybe 4-7 days below freezing and very little rain either. Should I keep the vermiculite damp thru the winter? Should I keep the twigs in the refer until winter cold sets in, Dec/Jan?

Are there any experts here that can comment on this strategy or may have a better idea?

Thanks, Sue