Why you should not use softened water to root cuttings with your intermittent mist system

As promised, here is the link to the more in depth article about why you should not use water from a water softening system when rooting cuttings with your intermittent misting system.
Why you should not use softened water to root cuttings with your misting system
Kinda makes me glad I have good water

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Using water that has gone through a water softener with your intermittent misting system

I recently read an interesting post about the benefits of bypassing your water softener while misting your cuttings. While I don’t have any personal experience on this subject, I thought I would post a link for those of you that may need this information.
11 reasons you should bypass your water softener when rooting cuttings with [...]

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Keeping the bottom of your cuttings warm-Part 4 of 4

What is the advantage of keeping the bottom of the cuttings warm?
As I wrote in Part 1:
The bottom of the stems should be kept warm because roots tend to develop quicker. 68 to 70 F is a safe range to shoot for. Higher rooting medium temperature can be beneficial, but because the sun will raise [...]

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Preparing stock plants for taking cuttings

What is a stock plant?
Stock plants are those plants that you have chosen to be the source of your cuttings. They can be planted in blocks, rows, or simply be planted in your landscape.
Why is it important to prepare them for taking cuttings?
Preparing the stock plant is done for many reasons, but three of the [...]

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Keeping your stems moist-Part 3 of 4

Why is it important to keep the cutting’s stems moist?
Un-rooted softwood cuttings need to be kept moist for a few reasons.

To help keep the leaves cool
To provide moisture to the cutting

As I mentioned in Part 2, the cuttings cannot be allowed to overheat and wilt. Shade will help tremendously with this, but with softwood cuttings, [...]

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Electronic leaves for plant propagation pros and cons

What is an electronic leaf?
An electronic leaf is a device that controls when and how often your cuttings will receive mist. There are a few different varieties, but they basically work the same way; as the mist falls on your cuttings it also falls on a mechanical leaf that is attached to an arm that [...]

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Keeping the tops of your cuttings cool-Part 2 of 4

As I wrote in part 1, keeping the tops of your cuttings cool greatly increases the odds of them rooting.
So how do we keep the tops of the cuttings cool?
Using an intermittent misting system is one way of keeping the tops cool. As the mist lands on the leaves of the cuttings, it will immediately [...]

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Temperature requirements of softwood cuttings-Part 1 of 4

Cuttings require many specific variables to root. One is temperature.
The rule of thumb when rooting cuttings under mist is to keep the tops cool, the stems moist, and the bottoms warm. So essentially what we are shooting for is a range of temperatures when rooting our cuttings.
Cool tops
What is meant by cool tops? Basically we [...]

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Intermittent Misting Systems-How They Leach Nutrients From The Cuttings And What You Can Do About It

Intermittent mist was a great revolution in propagating plants. It enabled the propagator to quickly and cost effectively produce many plants at a time. However, with the benefits comes negative impacts on the nutrients that are within the cuttings. Not knowing how your cuttings are performing can cause them to form roots very slowly, not [...]

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Using intermittent mist to root cuttings

Why use intermittent mist?
Using intermittent mist to root cuttings of woody ornamentals and perennials is one of the most efficient means of asexually reproducing large quantities of plants. Intermittent mist offers a means of automatically supplying moisture during the critical periods of propagation by using timers that control the delivery of the misting water on [...]

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