Stay Hydrated: The Key to Uniform Rooting of URCs

TECH ON DEMAND brought to you by GrowerTalks

Ball Technical Services specialist and culture research manager, Dr. Nathan Jahnke, joins Tech On Demand host Bill Calkins to share research-based best practices for rehydrating unrooted cuttings before sticking.

Cuttings can (and will) lose water at multiple points in the supply chain—arriving at greenhouses dehydrated by as much as 20%. As soon as harvest occurs, dehydration begins and although offshore farms have greatly improved harvest and handling processes in recent years, your young plants go through a lot before they land on your benches, ready to grow. Wilted cuttings can negatively impact production from the earliest stages, resulting in shrink and losses.

Dr. Jahnke walks growers through potential dehydration points in the supply chain and the challenges that result from dehydrated cuttings before explaining why water loss occurs and some of the ways farms are working to improve cutting hydration and handling. Then he moves quickly into ways growers can rehydrate cuttings before sticking, from good (misting) to better (dipping) to best (fogging) practices. From arrival to inspection and staging, protocols are offered to help production teams manage cuttings effectively.

RESOURCES

Article: Tech On Demand Best Management Practices for URC Hydration https://ballseed.com/PDF/TechOnDemand-URC-Hydration.pdf

Article: Rehydrating Unrooted Cuttings https://www.growertalks.com/Article/?articleid=26603

Article: Tips for Rooting Difficult or Slow-to-Root Cuttings https://www.e-gro.org/pdf/2020_904.pdf

Article: Swish-Swish—Dipping Unrooted Vegetative Cuttings to Reduce Incoming Pest Populations https://www.e-gro.org/pdf/2024-13-05.pdf

Article: Improve Your Success with Unrooted Cuttings https://www.growertalks.com/Article/?articleid=24307

Article: Stick & Die—How to Avoid It https://www.growertalks.com/Article/?articleid=25582

Article: Tech On Demand Poinsettia URC Action Guide https://ballseed.com/documents/Poinsettia-URC-Shipping-Performance-ActionGuide.pdf

Video Playlist: The Importance of Vapor Pressure Deficit https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8NX3KFjAfBn48BahYB5oaQpfb-jRy_3C&si=DXEDmuI0lNLxeq4K

Video Playlist: BMPs to Enhance Rooting Uniformity https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8NX3KFjAfBkUFpE72nX37ByIG9mjqg_o&si=giBR0RLmBDPd4cAO