Are buds really necessary for rooting cuttings?

Question

I just got to wondering. Are buds really necessary for rooting cuttings of plants? I've read in lots of places here included that you should take your cutting just below a leaf node or leaf bud depending of what your rooting.

A few weeks ago I rooted a hardwood cutting of a willow tree I have in my backyard. Well I don't really know if it was really hardwood because it still appear green when it was wet in a jar. Well a week and a half later after sticking in a jar it started developing roots.

Well the roots didn't come out of the buds they seemed to could out from the sides of the stick around the buds. So, are buds really necessary for rooting cuttings? I'm talking about stem cuttings. Please let me know. Thanks.

Answer 1

A willow tree is the easiest to grow from cuttings even a branch cut off the main trunk will take root when pushed into the ground.



The type of cutting you rooted while still green would be a semi-hardwood or stem cutting,not a hardwood cutting .



Hardwood cuttings are taken in the fall and are 9 inches long and most of this length is put into the ground over winter.The next spring where the nodules are,(the round thicker part of the stem ), roots will form round these nodules.



There are many plants that can be rooted by putting the base into water .From below the node where the best cut is made,because this is where the roots come from, white roots known as water roots are formed.

Gradually soil is added after the roots have formed until it is firm and the plant develops proper roots. .



Buds are necessary for the plant to grow after the cutting has rooted.

Answer 2

There is no universal answer...it depends on the species. Willow is very obliging when it comes to rooting, other plants aren't.



Plants only grow where meristem tissue is concentrated....buds. So that node/bud is packed with meristem.



Adventitious buds arise at sites other than the terminal or axillary position...nodes. They may develop from roots, a stem internode, the edge of a leaf blade, or callus tissue at the cut end of a stem or root. Adventitious buds allow stem, leaf, and root cuttings to develop into entirely new plants.



These adventitious buds come from pockets of meristem the plant produced in the initial development of that shoot. Depending on the species, these pockets can remain viable for quite some time, others they are no longer viable after a couple of years.



It is a fascinating field to study.......if you to explore taking cuttings and rooting I'd suggest a book on the subject . .

Answer 3

As usual, Fluffernut gave a very thorough answer. The reason you need a bud on the stem is not to produce roots, but to produce leaves that will eventually feed the roots. Most plants don't produce adventitious buds. Without a leaf bud on the stem, you may get roots, but in most plants, you won't get any leaves and the cutting will die.

Answer 4

Buds are not needed, although before you strip the cutting back, the more growth it has, lets you know it is full of life, thereby it will be a good specimen to use. It is best to try and get as many of the leaf nodes in the soil as you can.....Like planting tomatoes......the more leaf nodes in contact with the soil, the more roots you should have. Willows, in general, will simply root in water.

Answer 5

I think you are referring to hardwood cuttings and not to leaf bud cuttings. Leaf bud cuttings are usually taken in late summer from semi hardwood stems. You make one cut just above a bud in the leaf axil and the other 3/4-11/2" below the bud. Dip the lower end in hormone rooting powder and insert in a pot of gritty compost. Each bud should make contact with the compost. Keep at 16-18C. Hardwood cuttings are taken in early winter and this is what I suspect you have in mind. Woody shoots about the thickness of a pencil are selected from the last years growth. Cut the pieces 8-9" long, straight across just above a bud at the top, and at an angle just below the bud at the bottom. Then you know which end is which. Dig a v shaped trench about 5" deep and put a layer of sand in the bottom for drainage. Insert the cuttings vertically 4-6" apart with 2/3rds of the stem below ground level. Replace the soil and firm in. Within 12 months they will have rooted.