Progress in the cloner

Last night, I cleaned the cloner. All the cuttings were removed and set aside. The white top allows me to see when it's time to clean. Small areas of green algae and black mold-like spots were visible. The humid environment is ripe for the growth of mold and algae.



One of the rose cuttings has developed nice firm roots. Unfortunately, they were growing through the foam material I use to hold them in place. One snapped off while gently trying to remove it. Along with all the others, it was placed back into the cloner to grow more roots.



Two other cuttings have developed large calluses, but no visible roots. If the wood heater wasn't in use, I'd pot them up now and use a plastic bag to keep them moist. I'd rather leave them in the cloner for now to see if they will actually root. I've gotten to this stage with roses many times only to have them start to rot from above.



Christmas Day, I snipped the pods from Gomphocarpus. I've rooted a single cutting in the cloner, so I figured I had little to lose. After drying, the seeds are smaller than most milkweeds. I'm not sure if this is normal or if the seeds are not viable. I might do a paper towel test soon.



This morning, I've got to cut and split more firewood. I have three pieces left in the basement. It's currently 30 degrees and clear. The high today should reach the mid 40s. I'm going to need a lot more wood.