How to Air-Layer Trees and Vines with Just Water

In a previous article, I mentioned how one could easily propagate the Bougainvillea with just water. There was one query asking if other garden plants would respond positively with this approach of propagation. In particular, the inquirer asked about the Gumamela, which is the local term for Hibiscus.

It was rather coincidental that I air-layered a Hibiscus plant with this water technique and sent her photos of the Hibiscus plant I successfully propagated. She was elated to know as she wanted to grow her Hibiscus collections.

It seems that common garden woody plants like the bougainvilleas and hibiscus respond well to air-layering with water. But how about the plants that potentially grow bigger, like vines and trees?

So I put that to the test with a very mature vine of ours which is the Sandpaper Vine or Petrea volubilis, shown below.

Air-Layering Technique with Plain Water - Part 2

(This is the continuation from Part 1)

With the bottle now covered and secured, water and fertilize the plant as usual. Occasionally check the inside for water. Fill it up if the water level falls below 1 inch. Water loss may occur due to evaporation or spill-out when the plant branch is disturbed.

Wait until the roots will form.

Procedure Once the Roots Emerge

18. After 30 days, remove the foil cover of the bottle to peer on the inside of the plastic bottle. If the water in the bottle isn't to cloudy, you could actually notice some of the roots.
    
    
    
    
    

Air-Layering Technique with Plain Water

It was almost incredible to learn that some gardeners have professed to being able to propagate plants with just plain water. By this, I don't refer to dipping cuttings into a jar of water and then wait for some nubs to form which, hopefully, grow into roots.

That kind of propagation works, but seemingly to just a few kinds of plants - and sometimes, the mortality of seedlings is high.

Easy Compound Marcotting or Air-Layering for Quick Propagation

Spawned by the article on serpentine air-layering, I'm writing this one on how to easily propagate your favorite vines using compound marcotting.

As long as the vine branch is thick enough to perform marcotting, then you do marcotting in between nodes. Nodes that have leaves or foliage are preferable.

Before, I was hesitant to air-layer several parts of the vine (in other words multiple marcots), for fear that the vine may not have the "energy" to allow the marcots to root. That, however, is not so much the case.

Air-Layering Technique to Revive Dried Marcots - Syringe Solution

In a recent article, I discussed how I revived a drying air-layer with a nozzle bottle technique. It was effective as was shown by the results in the article.

In the past few days, however, the temperature has all the more risen and I'm finding wilting air-layers or marcots almost everyday. Although the nozzle bottle technique is effective, it takes a while to perform.

Serpentine Air-Layering or Compound Marcotting

Propagating the Golden Garland Tutorial

The Nong Nooch Vine aka Golden Garland

The Nong Nooch vine (Petraeovitex bambusetorum), also called Golden Garland, is such a lovely vine with pretty yellow flowers that we have these plants always blooming in hanging garden pots. But the best part about them is that they're incredibly easy to propagate by air-layering or marcotting.

Air-Layering Technique to Revive Dried Marcots - Nozzle Bottle Solution

A few days ago, I noticed some of the newly marcotted or air-layered Cape Honeysuckle (Tecoma capensis) had foliage that looked a bit wilted. These were the leaves of the foliage on top of the air-layers. The rest of the foliage of the plants looked healthy enough.

It's been particularly warm in the past few days and so I guessed the air-layer medium (coco dust) was drying up. Looking at one of these air layers confirmed my suspicion.

Air Layering or Marcotting (Rangoon Creeper)

The Rangoon Creeper (Quisqualis indica or Combretum indicum) is also known by the common names: Chinese honeysuckle, Burma Creeper, Scarlet Rangoon and Drunken Sailor. Other names for the plant include Quiscual (in Spanish), Niyog-niyogan (in Filipino), Madhu Malti or Madhumalti (in Hindi), Malati (in Assamese), Akar Dani (in Malay) and Radha Manoharam (in Telugu).

The kind that we have is the double-petaled variety. Compared to the single petal variety, the double has smaller petals on the flower. But the cluster of flowers look so much thicker. It is one of the most beautiful and fragrant vines we had. Naturally, almost immediately, we wanted to propagate or make clones out of it.

Splinting Weak Air-Layered Branches (Rangoon Creeper)

Although it may not be the best propagation technique that works for me, I've managed to propagate a few Rangoon Creeper (Quisqualis indica) seedlings through the air-layering technique or what others call marcotting. Air-layering the Rangoon Creeper vine especially on branches on top of a garden arbor is quite challenging. This is because you need to climb up a ladder with the marcotting kit and work from there.

Air Layering Marcots in Crowded Branches (Nong Nooch vine)

I've always favored marcotting (or air-layering) as a propagation technique over stem cuttings. If possible, I would air layer several branches of a garden plant all at the same time.

One limiting consideration with multiple air layers in one garden plant is when the branches for air layering are crowded and or are too close to each other.

Crowding of branches happen when there are simply too many branches in the garden plant, especially in one spot. One option you have is to marcot the branches at different times, meaning, continue airlayering only after harvesting the other marcots.

Or another option is to air-layer another spot or node along the branch so you avoid hitting another branch when air-layering.

Tip to Pre-Label Marcots or Air-Layers

In the first part of this two-part series, I discussed a technique to identify marcots for pre-labeling them in a multi-plant garden pot. The purpose is to easily identify the marcots without relying on flowers' color come harvest time. That's because there may be no flowers when the marcots have rooted. By identifying marcots and then pre-labeling them, removes the confusion of identification in a multi-plant garden pot.

But there's more. Say you have several different bougainvilleas planted to different pots. Then you managed to cut or harvest many marcots from these different pots and then put them in a big pile or a tray of water. How will you identify the marcots when you'll be potting them? This is especially if they have no flowers, and the leaves look very similar. How will you know which bougainvillea variety is one from the others?

Identifying and Pre-Labeling Marcots

When we were still in a buying frenzy for bougainvilleas, one of the pots we bought had two bougainvillea plants in it. One had white bracts and the other, violet. The garden pot had plenty of both of these colors and was absolutely gorgeous. I decided right there that I would be marcotting these two plants in the pot.

I've been marcotting (air-layering) plants for some time now and it's nothing new to me. Immediately I started marcotting all the branches that were a bit mature and had the likelihood of successful rooting. There were I think a dozen marcots that I air-layered that day.

Using Coconut Husk for Air Layering or Marcotting

The coconut husk is one of the by-products of the coconut industry. Coconut husk is also known as the mesocarp component of the coconut fruit. Many have found uses for the coconut husk especially in the agricultural and horticultural sectors - coco coir, coco chips, coco pith, coco dust and many more. Still, in some areas, it is discarded and then later dried as fuel.

I've used coconut husk mainly as part of my air-layering propagation materials. I keep coco husk pieces in dried form and kept in a plastic bag. It doesn't smell or rot and keeps for quite a while. When it's time to use it for marcotting, I just pick one piece or tear from a larger piece.

Air Layering Propagation Materials & Tips

This article is a continuation of a previous article on my Air Layering Kit. This gardening article discusses materials and other tools outside of the kit that you may need for inexpensive yet effective air layering on garden plants.

Air Layering, or what others call Marcotting, doesn't need expensive materials to be successful. This article discusses some readily available materials that are either cheap or free, depending on where you're located. It will also include a few tips on how these materials will be used in the air layering process.

Air Layering Kit and Propagation Tips

In a recent article, I discussed the steps in my air layering propagation technique as well as the instructions on how to harvest and plant the air layers or marcots. This air layering method has worked well enough for me on the garden plants I propagated like the Hibiscus, a Chinese Bell Flower plant, Nong Nooch Vines and several Mandevillas.

In this article, I'll discuss the tools and materials I have in my "Marcotting Kit" which I bring out everytime I air layer or marcot garden plants. The materials I use for air layering are cheap and some, virtually free. This marcotting kit is not only convenient to use, but it also makes your air-layering activities around the garden quick and organized.

Harvesting & Potting Air Layered Plants

After doing the steps for air layering on your plant, you wait until the adventitious roots start to appear. For the Chinese Bell flower plant, sometimes called Chinese Lantern, this can be as early as one week. For bigger plants with thicker stems, the time to root would typically be longer. Four to six weeks seem to be the usual range for most plants.

So what do you do while you wait? Nothing.

Shown below are the air layers I made on the Chinese Bell flower plant.

Steps for Air Layering or Marcotting

When I was in high school, a team of plant technicians from the Bureau of Plant Industry visited our school. They were to show a demo on various plant propagation techniques. I no longer remember what school subject that was, but like any other kid I was just happy we were in the audio-visual room for a change, instead of the usual classroom.

I remember the technicians supposedly show how you can make identical plants from an existing one. They had a live potted plant on a demo table and proceeded to show air-layering (or marcotting) and propagation from cuttings. I was incredulous of course. But I was a bit doubtful also especially after the technicians said it will take a few weeks or months before the marcots or cuttings would actually take root.

Many years, nay, decades later, I'd learn air layering is so easy to do and yes, it works.