A storage of rooted cuttings

In recent years there has been an increased production of lining out stock in greenhouse and outdoor mist beds. Large numbers of rooted cuttings are produced by plant propagators in the fall and winter months for early spring planting. Increased efficiency in the production of liners has resulted in a storage problem for many propagators. In some instances the rooted cuttings are left in the propagation beds until planting time. This method of handling rooted cuttings prevents refuse of the beds. Other propagators remove the cuttings from the beds and then pot or store them in flats in the greenhouse. This procedure requires additional storage space for the pots and flats.

The possibility of low temperature storage of rooted cuttings for extended periods of time has been studied as a partial solution to the storage problem of propagators who produce rooted cuttings for early spring planting.

The experiments reported in this thesis were conducted under conditions that most commercial propagators can provide. All equipment and facilities used can be obtained easily. Experiments conducted at other Universities indicate that controlled temperature storage of rooted cuttings shows promise of becoming an efficient method of handling cuttings.