I've been growing Christmas trees since 1979, I've also worked for 4 other major regional growers. Even coming from you I'm thinking what you are trying to pull here. You did it, I must say, great job truly bringing to light the rooting and re growing of your cut Christmas trees.
@@MikeKincaid79 My little or the one that did 10's of 1,000's bought in seedlings from specialty growers, not that seed growing is difficult. My understanding is that any kind of cutting is near impossible. The specialty and named cultivars are grafted that could be your fun. On this one maybe you've had your fun with this video. Get to work on the Kalmia latifolia, it's a tough one that's done from cutting and who doesn't like mountain laurel.
What if you had taken cuttings from the tree and tried to root those instead? I wonder if that would have worked. Very interesting; thank you so much. 🙂
There are several people on TH-cam that show you how to do it, but all the ones I watched never had any success. Mike is great at showing the whole process, success or failure. Supposedly you can, but find someone who's successful first. Our Christmas tree growers grow them from seed or seedlings. They are not huge growers, mind you.
I know it can work, just need to work on it until I find success. Yeah, the problem with all the videos is that they never show you if it actually worked or not. I'm determined to show this and see this out.
I actually successfully rerouted my tree by cutting a half inch back off the bottom an drilled an 4 inch holes in the bottom I took baby pines with their roots cut the tops off shaved off their barks an made them all tightly fit in the holes I then replanted the tree in a huge pot with fertilizer / root regrowth with calcium oxide an sure enough by June i started seeing major improvements and by Christmas looked like nothing ever happened to it but when you buy them you need to cut another half inch off the bottom predrill half inch holes into it drop 6 goody powders in the water along with root regrow an feed it with pellets
@@MikeKincaid79 maybe one of the smaller table top trees would work better? I am sure you have something smaller on the property that has popped up you could experiment with. Just a thought.
Well, I just saw a vudeo, where the tree was cut above the cut and the bark was removed and it was treated with some hormone and plastered materials. It was on a Bonsai posting. Msybe that could work?
I was just thinking about this idea a day ago on the way to work. Perfect cheap way to fill you land at the end of an xmas season. Great way to recycle too
I believe this would have worked better if you had put the root stimulator in the water while the tree was in your house so the tree would begin sprouting roots while in that warm environment. This maynotbe possible up north but probably would work n southern Florida.
Mike, I have no doubt. if this can be achieved, you will find a way to make it happen, you've got a proven track record when it comes to propagating hardwood cuttings I hope you had a wonderful Father's Day! ~Margie🤗🌲
I've had luck the last 2 years in a row. I use liquid clonex when the tree is first cut, it's suspended by the base and starts to root out while being used as a Christmas tree. I then plant it after new years and viola. I'm located in the south east so the warmer climate probably aids in the success I've had
What i found this spring is that for my type of Lavender semi-hardwood and hardwood cuttings doesnt work to root only softwood ones so lesson learned, there are types of Lavender(hybrids) that work only one way so be patient and experiment.
Mike- when we propagate most cuttings, we cut the lower leaves/branches off and maybe give the tip a little trim as well, and we usually don't let the cutting dry out first... perhaps try the experiment again next Christmas season using a fresh tree and treating it like we would an arborvitae? Couldn't hurt, and might help, so it could be worth the extra expenditure for the additional tree. While you're at it, consider treating any limbed branches in the manor of any number of cutting propagations to see if you can increase your odds? I would do the experiment myself except that I always use artificial trees. If you try it, please keep us posted - I just moved from a West coast desert to 40+ acres on the East Coast and this is maybe something else I can do on my land! Best of luck, as always!
Interesting. Never heard of anyone trying to regrow a Christmas tree. Even though it didn't work you now have a beautiful rusty tree to add to your fall decor. 😂
I've always wondered about this as my fresh Christmas trees always seemed to stay green for a significant amount of time. (even after laying on the burn pile for a few months!) Thanks for your efforts and I hope you can find a way to make it work. 🌲
There's a way, just need to find it. They always stay green until the weather warms and that's what makes it tough. You never know how things are going in the rooting medium until it either grows or turns brown, lol.
My folks would always dig their Christmas trees and used a washtub for a Christmas tree stand. My dad would go plant them afterwards. We had at least three that made it and grew to full size trees. Keeping them watered seemed to be the key for them to survive. If they dried out at all they wouldn't make it. I think for your full size cutting to have a chanch it would need to be under a continuous mist for several weeks until some roots started being able to take over the job....but digging them with some roots already is the way to go.
I meant to include we were in zone 5 western PA, so i think how cold the season was might have had some bearing after setting them back outside after being in the warm house. The Blue Spruces seemed to be more successful than Scotch Pine.
Can you try this again but use water instead of soil, also build a insulated box to put arround the base so it doesnt lose heat. Then fill the pot with rooting hormone and watter. Or what if you grafted a healty sapling into the tree, like chop down a healthy smaller tree and graft it into the bottom.
Fresh lemon ... I did it once, you need to cut most of it off leaving the bottom round on branches then peel back the bark at the base about an inch . The lemon is to dunk the pre-prepared end in before applying fresh Butyric acid or lime 👍 the best substrate I've found is sandy dirt ..✌️ How's it goin Mike
I believe it can be done. Glad to hear of your success. I'm going to keep working on this one until I get it. I see you're still crafting the Kush. Good stuff man.
I’m using your propagation message and I have some green mold growing in the tote and I’m wondering what I should do for the rose and rhododendron semi hardwood cuttings
I was reading that older growth won't root. It requires the growth to be a year or less for it to possib;y work, this was for rooting cuttings rathr than the entire tree. Christmas trees sold have been growing for 8-10 years average. So that might be part of why this didn't work. It might be interesting to use these technques on young cutting or possibly the younger top growth and see if it works that way.
Hi Mike, Happy New Year! curious if you tried this experiment again this year? Tempted to do something with my spruce tree, it’s held up beautifully and hasn’t dropped very many needles these past three weeks.
I’m trying to regrow mine. We cut from the mountains Dec 2nd, recut the base when we got home. Has been in water with a liquid growing medium from the start. I’m trying to decide whether to put outside or keep inside. I’m in Utah so it’s cold outside. The needles are all still soft. Suggestions??
I had no luck with this one. I would say that you should start immediately after cutting it and keep it outside in the cold on bottom heat. You might even want to prune some branches off to cut down on moisture loss.
We had many live Christmas trees since my childhood. We always kept them in water, and one fir tree developed roots from standing in water for 2 months
Hi! I love you videos! I was wondering if you new anything about rooting hardwood loquat trees? I can’t find much information online but I followed your videos as a guide! Thank you
I don’t have anything on them but get asked questions all the time about that plant. I suppose I’ll get around to it eventually. Thanks for thinking to look here on the channel!
Hi Mike! Been a long time! Ive had several catastrophies and buying a new property so have not been able to do any growing, cant wait to get back to it!! I always wondered if this was possible, tried many times
Hey, good to see you. Yes, been a very long time. New property, how exciting. Definitely takes time to get all the projects done and can feel overwhelming at times. Just pick one thing and do it. Didn't your name on here use to just be TJ?
It's 3 weeks after Christmas and my Christmas tree looks quite fresh and I have noticed at the lower part of the tree a few new fresh(light green you can tell is freshlygrown) 5cm branches. what shall I do, does my tree have any chances of rooting?🤔
Perhaps you can explain my xmas tree,so i bought a live xmas tree in a pot from our local supermarket here in the uk.After xmas i decided to pot it up for my grandson and heres were it gets weird.I pulled the 3ft xmas tree out expecting to find roots but instead was a log with a few roots growing out of the log.The log is round and around 1 foot across and 3 to 4 inchs deep,we even cut into the log incase we were getting it wrong and it was rootbound but all we got was sawdust.Its a log with some roots growing out of it and a xmas tree on the top,we even showed a neighbour as he has a garden center and he was baffled so if you could enlighten me i would be grateful.I always thought they were grown from seeds or cuttings not logs?By the way its a very healthy happy xmas tree and growing well in its new pot.
Great video as always and thanks for sharing 👍 What about trying to request from a supplier a tree with a bit of root left on it, rather than just sawn off. Put it in a pot of bark, use it for Christmas and keep it damp. The indoor warmth may help it generate rooting ?? Best wishes and good luck 😊🤞👍
I think it was still too cold because of that heating pad was at the bottom of the pot if it was along the sides of the pot as well I think it would have more of a success especially if you were to maybe put some kind of tarp over the pot and the heating pad that might have worked too
When you root your plants, you take off most of the leaves. So, next time, cut off the top 12” of tree and use that to try it again. My guess- There was too much “green” to keep alive with no roots.
This is exacly what I was going to suggest and I would add that it should be tried with at least two trees. Strip most of the branches and needles from one of them and strip everything from the second one (like your large fig cuttings). Place them in the shady spot like you normally do. You can probably find extra specimens next to driveways after the holidays and be able to try with pine, spruce and fir.
What if when somone get a tree the extra process to re root it was done during and before placing it in the stand. So that month its re rooting and at end of us its palced into a bigger pot that you can repeat the cycle. Keeping in garage during wonter than setting outside for the summer to do it all again next season.........😅❤
I had unintentional success rooting a Christmas tree from a layered branch after leaving it in my compost chipping pile. I planted the rooted branch and now have a very mature hemlock tree.
I believe you. I've seen some amazing things happen by accident in the garden. I've even seen a little chunk of big leaf maple branch root in a compost pile.
I have a MASSIVE Christmas tree in my yard. Zone 7. My neighbors said they planted it 40ish January's ago. My yard is sand. Its a white pine. They could be full of crap, but IDK if not where they got a perfectly Christmas tree shaped white pine around here.
@@MikeKincaid79 I've been told multiple stories and the truth is in there somewhere. My neighbor won't admit that her son planted the tree in my yard because the branches now hang over her car and drip sap on it. She wants me to pay to have it trimmed, says it's my tree. Multiple neighbors said her son planted it. It's at least 40 feet tall, a giant Christmas tree lol
I got a Douglas Fir in my yard, which is about 30 feet... I'd feel sad if I cut it down, because my grandfather planted it, and I want to preserve it. So I'm thinking to air layer the stem, somewhere in the middle of the height, where branches are coming out. One thing troubles me... I'm afraid that powdered hormones can't "penetrate" the first layer because of too much sap and resin are pushing them out, like a defense mechanism. So, my idea is to use thick wire and tightly wrap it around couple times beneath air layering point (to stop the circulation), or, to do it in the winter when the tree is dormant... What are your thoughts on this guys? Mike, I enjoy watching some of your videos for a while now, and thanks for sharing your knowledge. 15+ years ago I started rooting fig cuttings without any hormones, and I was about 80% successful in it... so I became interested in any of this processes :)
@@MikeKincaid79 Thanks Mike, will do for sure! But in the meantime, I've stumbled upon these research papers that you might want to take a look at: www.scionresearch.com/__data/assets/pdf_file/0010/58789/NZJFS421974BARNES120_126.pdf
As a little boy, I built a little country in my back yard for my army men to fight. Bits of scrap wood made the buildings and branches broken off of any nearby trees made the trees. Most died, but most of the bits broken off of our Christmas tree (a pine) were still alive and when I dug a couple up they had grown roots. It was my little forest. My army men liked it. Dad? Not so much.
I think if you used the top 10 inches of the tree and cut the branches off of the lower half and tried again it would work. If that did not work, I would try a shorter amount of the tree. I just don't think that no or few small roots could support so many branches, it just can't absorb the water and nutrients it needs. I would also let the top sit in water for a day before trying to root it. Just my thoughts. It was fun to watch you try!
To much top growth for any roots to support coming from the trunk. I am not surprised by the outcome. Will cuttings from the tree root like that of a box wood plant?
Hold on thar Baba Louie! Take a semi hardwood top cutting and provide a mini greenhouse environment to prevent transpiration loss. If an evergreen can regrow from topping it should have the differentiated cells to root.
Heat tape coiled in the pot would probably work a whole lot better than the mat. And of course trimming the excess leaves to reduce moisture loss. Maybe use a dilute liquid hormone soak for 24hours to help with both hydration and penetration of the PGR.
This was great. Nice attempt, I hope you figure it out eventually. What species is that tree? I'm sure results can vary depending on that. Smaller cuttings might be easier, but you probably already know that. Your dry wood stove air is an interesting theory as to why it didn't work. I have a few alternative theories. Possibly it was from sitting in the water while you had it inside, I'm sure there were plenty of microorganisms and possibly rot on the bark by the time you planted it. Also, did you use a chainsaw when you cut it down? Maybe some bar oil got sucked into the cambium.
Seems to me it would have too much limbs to support. When i take cuttings i cut off most of the growth. Tree is a giant cutting. I'm currently trying to root roses in clear bins like you've shown. Lookin good!!!
I couldn't resist trying this after seeing so many videos saying it would work and then not showing the results. Maybe this is more of a myth busters video.
Hydroponics rooting while it is on Christmas display is an idea to try . Now many of the videos from the other guys plainly state that air layering works on everything except pines or evergreens in general . SO that I assume also applies to trying to root cuttings as well .
@@MikeKincaid79 So have I . I have been a blueberry farmer my whole life . This layering method is just the latest one to blow my mind . I see watching some of the older videos that it has been around awhile , but just learned of it a few months ago . So I am trying everything I can see with potential as I am trying to diversify what we grow so my children have options as the climate change causes growing areas to shift . Food for thought on that one too .
@@MikeKincaid79 have you ever tried willow water? The fresh tips of the willow are soaked in water to extract a rooting hormone and this encourages growth.
I get about 85% success rate on cloning all cloning to me is the same big or small think split the bottom get to the inside where the plant can get water to live yes put cloning mix with it let it spray the bottom but you must make cuts like fanning make sure not to hot or to cold in order to keep the plant alive
The best opportunity to re-root. First, Keep the base of the tree moist wile inside the dwelling. When you move the tree to a growing pot, First, soak the base in water for an hour or two. Then Shut back the bark at the base and apply a root growing hormone. Then, attempt your re-planing of the tree. That is the only way I cant think of that may work. Though, I think based on the large size of the base, you may see no growth.
I tried this about 18 years ago and I was fooled for a while thinking it rooted including my family until it warmed up it got lighter green then turned brown and was dead. 😆🙃 I heard that these Christmas trees aren't even freshly cut, a guy from the home Depot told me about these "fresh cut trees" that they actually cut down the trees and throw them into the bottom of a lake for 2 years which preserves them by sealing them which is why they cut the bottom of the trunk off so the trees can suck up water in the tree stand so they're is definitely no way the trees are alive when you buy them. It's basically like a mummified tree and that also explains why they don't have a good pine scent.
Can you do a video (or have you done a video) on Green flies?!! 😤 They're always on my sunflower leaves and they've swarmed my roses. I bought some "Universal Bug Control", but it doesn't seem to do anything. 😕 I'm going to try the washing up and water a go. Also!.. I have a load of coffee grounds from my local shop, what's best to do or should I do both?... homemade fertiliser or directly in the soil? Do I have to dry the grounds before I add them to the soil? It's currently raining (and the next 4 days) here in Stockport, England!... so they'd get wet anyway when the weather is unpredictable 🤔 what would you do? *I'm completely new to gardening and there's so much conflicting advice on Google! Thanks 😊
No green flies around here that I'm aware of. Coffee grounds are easy to come by but not sure if they're that fantastic in the garden as I've never really used them that much. The best you can do is try it yourself and see how it goes. In my opinion, layering new ingredients and mulch on top of the soil is usually better than digging the soil up and mixing it in. When traversing google, always remember this verse from the bible: "There is no end of opinions ready to be expressed. Examining them all can go on forever and become exhausting." -Ecclesiastes 12:12
I suggest trying grafting a much younger tree to an existing root system and/or grafting a branch to an existing root system. If that doesn't work then nothing else will imo
Seemed dry from start. Would have cut at least an inch of the trunk and then let it soak for a good 24h to rehydrate itself before putting the rooting hormone on and “planting”. Is it possible that with the heating mat on, it would have required frequent watering ( you didn’t talk about further watering)? Maybe next time you can try one outside and one in your cold frame to see if it makes a difference?
Next time, try soaking the bottom in water for quite a time to rehydrate it first, or trim all the branches and soak the whole thing in water. I think that will increase the chances.
All the little lambs that I cut off a Christmas tree that I was gifted for my goats. None of the branches rooted either. That was funny that we were trying to reach Christmas trees the same year 😅
@@MikeKincaid79 more than the cost of the tree? Just curious because if a christmas tree costs roughly $100 and if your experiment had worked, would it be financially worth it?
I just can't imagine this working regardless of what is done. That vast root network required to support that tree would take a long time to grow and lot of energy. I've seen people take cuttings and I've yet to see someone who was successful. The best approach would be to take the tree and put it into the pot with rooting hormone immediately. if you don't get anything after a month or two, it would never happen. Love your videos, but I knew how this one would end ;-)
What's a rule in rooting? remove as much of the leaves as you can. Next time, trim off all the needles and if it's doing to live, it'll sprout new ones. viva nieto!
That's what I like about you. You even tell us about the disasters. Some others like to make you think they are so good and never make mistakes, or have something go wrong. To be honest Mike I don't think it can be done that way. Think about it, the first thing you normally do is cut off all of the leaves. You might leave a couple half leaves, but that's about it. I think you're either going to have to bury it up to the last six inches or strip off all the limbs but the last six inches or so. Either way you're not going to get what you want.
This turned out to be more of a myth busters video, didn't it, haha. Yeah, no one is right, or successful, 100% of the time. The real test of a person's mettle is whether or not they keep going until they succeed. I never mind people seeing my mistakes or failures. I'm not going anywhere and I know there's a success in the future. Love having your hear and your thought provoking comments.
I found a colorado blue spruce xmas tree that was thrown away in January 2024. It was so beautiful I couldn’t watch it being thrown away so i brought it back home and put it in a bucket of water. It’s July now and the tree isn’t dead. 😁. In fact there are baby pine cones growing on the branches. Has anyone seen this or heard of this? There’s no roots forming but the tree isn’t dead and baby pine cones are forming and growing. Can this tree be hydroponically grown in this water bucket?
@@MikeKincaid79 thanks for responding! I added alaska fish fertilizer and morbloom to the bucket of water. If everything goes well and the tree is still alive after the summer, i will upload a video of the tree because i think it’s amazing too!
I was about to call Olympus and tell them you have claimed the title of Propagation god. I was SO hoping you had cracked the Christmas Tree code. Oh well, always next year.
I love that you experiment and show the failures. Failure is nothing more than opportunity. Thank you!
Yep, opportunity to learn
I've been growing Christmas trees since 1979, I've also worked for 4 other major regional growers. Even coming from you I'm thinking what you are trying to pull here. You did it, I must say, great job truly bringing to light the rooting and re growing of your cut Christmas trees.
Do the farms you’ve worked with take cuttings or grow from seed?
@@MikeKincaid79 My little or the one that did 10's of 1,000's bought in seedlings from specialty growers, not that seed growing is difficult. My understanding is that any kind of cutting is near impossible. The specialty and named cultivars are grafted that could be your fun. On this one maybe you've had your fun with this video. Get to work on the Kalmia latifolia, it's a tough one that's done from cutting and who doesn't like mountain laurel.
Enseñame a reproducir esquejes de noble y douglas feer de antemano gracias u que Dios te bendiga
What if you had taken cuttings from the tree and tried to root those instead? I wonder if that would have worked. Very interesting; thank you so much. 🙂
There are several people on TH-cam that show you how to do it, but all the ones I watched never had any success. Mike is great at showing the whole process, success or failure. Supposedly you can, but find someone who's successful first. Our Christmas tree growers grow them from seed or seedlings. They are not huge growers, mind you.
I tried it this Xmas.. the cutting stayed green for about 2 months until they got covered in fuzzy mold
I know it can work, just need to work on it until I find success. Yeah, the problem with all the videos is that they never show you if it actually worked or not. I'm determined to show this and see this out.
Did you water it? It looks like it was never watered at all. Perhaps that's why mine grew & yours didn't?
I actually successfully rerouted my tree by cutting a half inch back off the bottom an drilled an 4 inch holes in the bottom I took baby pines with their roots cut the tops off shaved off their barks an made them all tightly fit in the holes I then replanted the tree in a huge pot with fertilizer / root regrowth with calcium oxide an sure enough by June i started seeing major improvements and by Christmas looked like nothing ever happened to it but when you buy them you need to cut another half inch off the bottom predrill half inch holes into it drop 6 goody powders in the water along with root regrow an feed it with pellets
My parents planted ours and it grew. They may have kept it well hydrated indoors. I will ask my dad what he did but it is a noble Christmas tree.
I'd love to hear about what they did to make it work.
Nice experiment! Next one should be taking cuttings or air layering pine.
I think you're right.
Seriously Mike you are a mad scientist. I love seeing these experiments even when they don't work.
Lol, me too! I plan to tweak this a little next year. I'm determined to make this work one way or another.
@@MikeKincaid79 maybe one of the smaller table top trees would work better? I am sure you have something smaller on the property that has popped up you could experiment with. Just a thought.
This great! Must try this with a pine tree I have to cut down next week.
I still think it’s possible. Just need to play with the variables. Good luck with your tree
@@MikeKincaid79 Nothing ventured, nothing gained. I either play with it this way or cut up for firewood. This way is way more fun! Thanks
Great video Mike! Happy father's day my friend!🤗❤️🤗
Thanks Camelia! I appreciate you.
Well, I just saw a vudeo, where the tree was cut above the cut and the bark was removed and it was treated with some hormone and plastered materials. It was on a Bonsai posting. Msybe that could work?
I was just thinking about this idea a day ago on the way to work. Perfect cheap way to fill you land at the end of an xmas season. Great way to recycle too
I’m going to keep working on this until it works.
I believe this would have worked better if you had put the root stimulator in the water while the tree was in your house so the tree would begin sprouting roots while in that warm environment.
This maynotbe possible up north but probably would work n southern Florida.
I did that this year. I’m trying to decide whether to put outside in the water or leave it inside. We cut on Dec 2nd and the needles are still soft.
Mike, I have no doubt. if this can be achieved, you will find a way to make it happen, you've got a proven track record when it comes to propagating hardwood cuttings I hope you had a wonderful Father's Day! ~Margie🤗🌲
Yep, got to spend time with family. We'll come back to this one. I'm sure there's a way to make it work.
This video is so necessary.. thank you so much!
You're so welcome!
Happy Father's day Mike!
Thanks!
That was a beautiful tree. I think if you did that as soon as you brought it home (before you decorate it) it might work.
If it's fresh cut.
I’m thinking that would give it a much better chance.
Add the hormone 2 the water while it's n ur house i do it every year
I've had luck the last 2 years in a row. I use liquid clonex when the tree is first cut, it's suspended by the base and starts to root out while being used as a Christmas tree. I then plant it after new years and viola. I'm located in the south east so the warmer climate probably aids in the success I've had
What i found this spring is that for my type of Lavender semi-hardwood and hardwood cuttings doesnt work to root only softwood ones so lesson learned, there are types of Lavender(hybrids) that work only one way so be patient and experiment.
I've seen it once. 2 decades later that tree stands strong👍🏽.
Mike- when we propagate most cuttings, we cut the lower leaves/branches off and maybe give the tip a little trim as well, and we usually don't let the cutting dry out first... perhaps try the experiment again next Christmas season using a fresh tree and treating it like we would an arborvitae? Couldn't hurt, and might help, so it could be worth the extra expenditure for the additional tree. While you're at it, consider treating any limbed branches in the manor of any number of cutting propagations to see if you can increase your odds? I would do the experiment myself except that I always use artificial trees. If you try it, please keep us posted - I just moved from a West coast desert to 40+ acres on the East Coast and this is maybe something else I can do on my land! Best of luck, as always!
I’ve considered all these options. Just wanted to start with this one since so many people are claiming it can be done.
Interesting. Never heard of anyone trying to regrow a Christmas tree. Even though it didn't work you now have a beautiful rusty tree to add to your fall decor. 😂
Hahahaha
This video really kept me rooted till the end
😂
I was so hopeful! 😄
I know, me too! LOL
Lol Mike - that was a good try. I've always wondered if a X-mas tree could be reconstituted and you've pretty much answered that for me.
Lol, this was my best shot at it but I might be able to tweak some variables and make it work.
I've always wondered about this as my fresh Christmas trees always seemed to stay green for a significant amount of time. (even after laying on the burn pile for a few months!)
Thanks for your efforts and I hope you can find a way to make it work. 🌲
There's a way, just need to find it. They always stay green until the weather warms and that's what makes it tough. You never know how things are going in the rooting medium until it either grows or turns brown, lol.
You need to try cutting the leaves off before planting. The leaves take up a lot of energy that could have been used for the roots
You're crazy ! 🤝🏼😄 i ❤️ the idea, man
Lol, I’m only crazy when it doesn’t work 🤣
My folks would always dig their Christmas trees and used a washtub for a Christmas tree stand. My dad would go plant them afterwards. We had at least three that made it and grew to full size trees. Keeping them watered seemed to be the key for them to survive. If they dried out at all they wouldn't make it. I think for your full size cutting to have a chanch it would need to be under a continuous mist for several weeks until some roots started being able to take over the job....but digging them with some roots already is the way to go.
I meant to include we were in zone 5 western PA, so i think how cold the season was might have had some bearing after setting them back outside after being in the warm house. The Blue Spruces seemed to be more successful than Scotch Pine.
Love your experiments
Thanks Tatiana
Can you try this again but use water instead of soil, also build a insulated box to put arround the base so it doesnt lose heat. Then fill the pot with rooting hormone and watter. Or what if you grafted a healty sapling into the tree, like chop down a healthy smaller tree and graft it into the bottom.
Fresh lemon ...
I did it once, you need to
cut most of it off leaving the
bottom round on branches
then peel back the bark at the
base about an inch . The lemon
is to dunk the pre-prepared end in
before applying fresh Butyric acid
or lime 👍 the best substrate I've
found is sandy dirt ..✌️
How's it goin Mike
I believe it can be done. Glad to hear of your success. I'm going to keep working on this one until I get it. I see you're still crafting the Kush. Good stuff man.
@@MikeKincaid79 ya Mon🌴✌️🌴
I’m using your propagation message and I have some green mold growing in the tote and I’m wondering what I should do for the rose and rhododendron semi hardwood cuttings
My grand paw did that in florida and it worked
Sweet!
Atleast you tried but there still might be hope. Love seeing these experiments
I’ve got a few more tricks up my sleeve that I want to try.
I was reading that older growth won't root. It requires the growth to be a year or less for it to possib;y work, this was for rooting cuttings rathr than the entire tree.
Christmas trees sold have been growing for 8-10 years average. So that might be part of why this didn't work.
It might be interesting to use these technques on young cutting or possibly the younger top growth and see if it works that way.
We want another experiment!!! 😃😃😃
Hi Mike, Happy New Year! curious if you tried this experiment again this year? Tempted to do something with my spruce tree, it’s held up beautifully and hasn’t dropped very many needles these past three weeks.
I didn't try it this year, but I'd recommend taking smaller cuttings of tips of branches.
I’m trying to regrow mine. We cut from the mountains Dec 2nd, recut the base when we got home. Has been in water with a liquid growing medium from the start. I’m trying to decide whether to put outside or keep inside. I’m in Utah so it’s cold outside. The needles are all still soft. Suggestions??
I had no luck with this one. I would say that you should start immediately after cutting it and keep it outside in the cold on bottom heat. You might even want to prune some branches off to cut down on moisture loss.
hi mike..can you root roses stem on perlite alone..thnks..
Yes, I don't see why you couldn't.
We had many live Christmas trees since my childhood. We always kept them in water, and one fir tree developed roots from standing in water for 2 months
Hi! I love you videos! I was wondering if you new anything about rooting hardwood loquat trees? I can’t find much information online but I followed your videos as a guide! Thank you
I don’t have anything on them but get asked questions all the time about that plant. I suppose I’ll get around to it eventually. Thanks for thinking to look here on the channel!
Hi Mike! Been a long time! Ive had several catastrophies and buying a new property so have not been able to do any growing, cant wait to get back to it!!
I always wondered if this was possible, tried many times
Hey, good to see you. Yes, been a very long time. New property, how exciting. Definitely takes time to get all the projects done and can feel overwhelming at times. Just pick one thing and do it. Didn't your name on here use to just be TJ?
I feel like there was to much top growth taking energy maybe if it was smaller or cut in half ??? That could work
There definitely was. That's why I added the bottom heat and kept it outdoors in the cold. Plenty of variables to tweak for next year.
Thank you for making this video 📹
Thanks for watching!
Catching up on Mike’s 🏡 Building Vids. But I saw this ☝️ & thought, how curious! Can it really be a done? Well I’m gonna finish watching and 👀.🤣
Definitely an interesting project. Wish it would have worked out.
Is it required to use the entire tree? Is your method a viable approach to propagating conifers via cuttings?
I don’t know, just having fun and experimenting. If you wanted to get serious then do this same method with small 8 inch branches.
Perhaps the base needs to be cut at an angle like cuttings in order for rooting to occur.
It's 3 weeks after Christmas and my Christmas tree looks quite fresh and I have noticed at the lower part of the tree a few new fresh(light green you can tell is freshlygrown) 5cm branches. what shall I do, does my tree have any chances of rooting?🤔
Perhaps you can explain my xmas tree,so i bought a live xmas tree in a pot from our local supermarket here in the uk.After xmas i decided to pot it up for my grandson and heres were it gets weird.I pulled the 3ft xmas tree out expecting to find roots but instead was a log with a few roots growing out of the log.The log is round and around 1 foot across and 3 to 4 inchs deep,we even cut into the log incase we were getting it wrong and it was rootbound but all we got was sawdust.Its a log with some roots growing out of it and a xmas tree on the top,we even showed a neighbour as he has a garden center and he was baffled so if you could enlighten me i would be grateful.I always thought they were grown from seeds or cuttings not logs?By the way its a very healthy happy xmas tree and growing well in its new pot.
Maybe get two this Christmas, one for your house and the other for a rooting attempt.
I like it.
what about using rooting powder/gel before planting the tree.
I did
Great video as always and thanks for sharing 👍
What about trying to request from a supplier a tree with a bit of root left on it, rather than just sawn off. Put it in a pot of bark, use it for Christmas and keep it damp. The indoor warmth may help it generate rooting ??
Best wishes and good luck 😊🤞👍
I'm sure there are better ways to go about this. This is more of a myth busters video than anything. Still, I was hoping for some level of success.
How do you deal with fungus gnats? Currently i exclusively root in "aeroponics" because i cant get rid of the flying cancer
I don't have an issue with them outdoors. Only deal with them indoors through the winter and I use mosquito bits at that time.
I think it was still too cold because of that heating pad was at the bottom of the pot if it was along the sides of the pot as well I think it would have more of a success especially if you were to maybe put some kind of tarp over the pot and the heating pad that might have worked too
When you root your plants, you take off most of the leaves. So, next time, cut off the top 12” of tree and use that to try it again. My guess- There was too much “green” to keep alive with no roots.
This is exacly what I was going to suggest and I would add that it should be tried with at least two trees. Strip most of the branches and needles from one of them and strip everything from the second one (like your large fig cuttings). Place them in the shady spot like you normally do. You can probably find extra specimens next to driveways after the holidays and be able to try with pine, spruce and fir.
I agree 100%
What if when somone get a tree the extra process to re root it was done during and before placing it in the stand. So that month its re rooting and at end of us its palced into a bigger pot that you can repeat the cycle. Keeping in garage during wonter than setting outside for the summer to do it all again next season.........😅❤
What if you take the first layer of bark off & replant it? Just an idea
I had unintentional success rooting a Christmas tree from a layered branch after leaving it in my compost chipping pile. I planted the rooted branch and now have a very mature hemlock tree.
I believe you. I've seen some amazing things happen by accident in the garden. I've even seen a little chunk of big leaf maple branch root in a compost pile.
Hi Mike! How are the white rose cuttings from your coworker/friend Galena?
They’re doing great. Thanks for asking. I suppose I can do an update on them.
I have a MASSIVE Christmas tree in my yard. Zone 7. My neighbors said they planted it 40ish January's ago. My yard is sand. Its a white pine. They could be full of crap, but IDK if not where they got a perfectly Christmas tree shaped white pine around here.
Lol, sounds cool. Would be neat to know the full story.
@@MikeKincaid79 I've been told multiple stories and the truth is in there somewhere. My neighbor won't admit that her son planted the tree in my yard because the branches now hang over her car and drip sap on it. She wants me to pay to have it trimmed, says it's my tree. Multiple neighbors said her son planted it. It's at least 40 feet tall, a giant Christmas tree lol
Love the video!
Abies or Picea , does it make a difference ?
Hey Mike,
Do you have any tips on air layering Vine Maples?
I've never tried it but I have a few vine maples on my property so maybe I need to get that one going.
I got a Douglas Fir in my yard, which is about 30 feet... I'd feel sad if I cut it down, because my grandfather planted it, and I want to preserve it. So I'm thinking to air layer the stem, somewhere in the middle of the height, where branches are coming out. One thing troubles me... I'm afraid that powdered hormones can't "penetrate" the first layer because of too much sap and resin are pushing them out, like a defense mechanism. So, my idea is to use thick wire and tightly wrap it around couple times beneath air layering point (to stop the circulation), or, to do it in the winter when the tree is dormant... What are your thoughts on this guys?
Mike, I enjoy watching some of your videos for a while now, and thanks for sharing your knowledge. 15+ years ago I started rooting fig cuttings without any hormones, and I was about 80% successful in it... so I became interested in any of this processes :)
Man, if you can get that to root, I want to be the first to hear about it. Good luck
@@MikeKincaid79 Thanks Mike, will do for sure! But in the meantime, I've stumbled upon these research papers that you might want to take a look at: www.scionresearch.com/__data/assets/pdf_file/0010/58789/NZJFS421974BARNES120_126.pdf
As a little boy, I built a little country in my back yard for my army men to fight. Bits of scrap wood made the buildings and branches broken off of any nearby trees made the trees. Most died, but most of the bits broken off of our Christmas tree (a pine) were still alive and when I dug a couple up they had grown roots. It was my little forest. My army men liked it. Dad? Not so much.
Haha, sounds cool
I think if you used the top 10 inches of the tree and cut the branches off of the lower half and tried again it would work. If that did not work, I would try a shorter amount of the tree. I just don't think that no or few small roots could support so many branches, it just can't absorb the water and nutrients it needs. I would also let the top sit in water for a day before trying to root it. Just my thoughts. It was fun to watch you try!
There are many variables we can play around with. I'm determined to make this work now. Just need to keep working with it.
@@MikeKincaid79 I'm looking forward to it!
To much top growth for any roots to support coming from the trunk. I am not surprised by the outcome. Will cuttings from the tree root like that of a box wood plant?
I’m not too surprised either but it was a fun try. I was really hoping for good results but hey…….you never know unless you try
Lol! Great experiment. I think it resented the fir bark lol
That one gave me a good laugh
8:15 well I have seen with a lot of cloning videos. You got to strip away the outer layers & use a sugar like honey....
What if you did the rooting right after you cut it and set it up in your house while it was fresh?
Root it while the lights and ornaments are on it. Sounds reasonable.
Hold on thar Baba Louie! Take a semi hardwood top cutting and provide a mini greenhouse environment to prevent transpiration loss. If an evergreen can regrow from topping it should have the differentiated cells to root.
It's got em, we just need to tweak some variables.
Heat tape coiled in the pot would probably work a whole lot better than the mat. And of course trimming the excess leaves to reduce moisture loss. Maybe use a dilute liquid hormone soak for 24hours to help with both hydration and penetration of the PGR.
This was great. Nice attempt, I hope you figure it out eventually. What species is that tree? I'm sure results can vary depending on that. Smaller cuttings might be easier, but you probably already know that. Your dry wood stove air is an interesting theory as to why it didn't work. I have a few alternative theories. Possibly it was from sitting in the water while you had it inside, I'm sure there were plenty of microorganisms and possibly rot on the bark by the time you planted it. Also, did you use a chainsaw when you cut it down? Maybe some bar oil got sucked into the cambium.
All things to think about and change for next time. I think this one turned out to be more of a myth busters episode.
Seems to me it would have too much limbs to support. When i take cuttings i cut off most of the growth. Tree is a giant cutting. I'm currently trying to root roses in clear bins like you've shown. Lookin good!!!
I couldn't resist trying this after seeing so many videos saying it would work and then not showing the results. Maybe this is more of a myth busters video.
Hydroponics rooting while it is on Christmas display is an idea to try . Now many of the videos from the other guys plainly state that air layering works on everything except pines or evergreens in general . SO that I assume also applies to trying to root cuttings as well .
I try not to count anything out. I've seen some amazing things happen in the garden.
@@MikeKincaid79 So have I . I have been a blueberry farmer my whole life . This layering method is just the latest one to blow my mind . I see watching some of the older videos that it has been around awhile , but just learned of it a few months ago . So I am trying everything I can see with potential as I am trying to diversify what we grow so my children have options as the climate change causes growing areas to shift . Food for thought on that one too .
I wonder if setting it in water for a time. Like when you place a cutting in a glass of water.
That would probably help. I've got several other ideas for next year.
@@MikeKincaid79 have you ever tried willow water? The fresh tips of the willow are soaked in water to extract a rooting hormone and this encourages growth.
Nice try Mike, what if you tried to root the next one when you're using it for the season?
Carol
I get about 85% success rate on cloning all cloning to me is the same big or small think split the bottom get to the inside where the plant can get water to live yes put cloning mix with it let it spray the bottom but you must make cuts like fanning make sure not to hot or to cold in order to keep the plant alive
The best opportunity to re-root. First, Keep the base of the tree moist wile inside the dwelling. When you move the tree to a growing pot, First, soak the base in water for an hour or two. Then Shut back the bark at the base and apply a root growing hormone. Then, attempt your re-planing of the tree. That is the only way I cant think of that may work. Though, I think based on the large size of the base, you may see no growth.
Was its trunk in water the entire time it was in your house?
Yes
I tried this about 18 years ago and I was fooled for a while thinking it rooted including my family until it warmed up it got lighter green then turned brown and was dead. 😆🙃
I heard that these Christmas trees aren't even freshly cut, a guy from the home Depot told me about these "fresh cut trees" that they actually cut down the trees and throw them into the bottom of a lake for 2 years which preserves them by sealing them which is why they cut the bottom of the trunk off so the trees can suck up water in the tree stand so they're is definitely no way the trees are alive when you buy them. It's basically like a mummified tree and that also explains why they don't have a good pine scent.
Can you do a video (or have you done a video) on Green flies?!! 😤
They're always on my sunflower leaves and they've swarmed my roses. I bought some "Universal Bug Control", but it doesn't seem to do anything. 😕 I'm going to try the washing up and water a go.
Also!.. I have a load of coffee grounds from my local shop, what's best to do or should I do both?... homemade fertiliser or directly in the soil? Do I have to dry the grounds before I add them to the soil?
It's currently raining (and the next 4 days) here in Stockport, England!... so they'd get wet anyway when the weather is unpredictable 🤔 what would you do?
*I'm completely new to gardening and there's so much conflicting advice on Google!
Thanks 😊
No green flies around here that I'm aware of. Coffee grounds are easy to come by but not sure if they're that fantastic in the garden as I've never really used them that much. The best you can do is try it yourself and see how it goes. In my opinion, layering new ingredients and mulch on top of the soil is usually better than digging the soil up and mixing it in. When traversing google, always remember this verse from the bible: "There is no end of opinions ready to be expressed. Examining them all can go on forever and become exhausting." -Ecclesiastes 12:12
I suggest trying grafting a much younger tree to an existing root system and/or grafting a branch to an existing root system. If that doesn't work then nothing else will imo
Seemed dry from start. Would have cut at least an inch of the trunk and then let it soak for a good 24h to rehydrate itself before putting the rooting hormone on and “planting”. Is it possible that with the heating mat on, it would have required frequent watering ( you didn’t talk about further watering)? Maybe next time you can try one outside and one in your cold frame to see if it makes a difference?
I saturated the bark and watered constantly through the winter. There's always next time and more changes to make to the experiment.
This potting process should be done as soon as you have it in your house after it's cut down, and even then I wouldn't expect it to root! 😂
Next time, try soaking the bottom in water for quite a time to rehydrate it first, or trim all the branches and soak the whole thing in water. I think that will increase the chances.
All the little lambs that I cut off a Christmas tree that I was gifted for my goats. None of the branches rooted either. That was funny that we were trying to reach Christmas trees the same year 😅
Great minds. We’re brothers man.
I would have pruned it back considerably and let it try to root that way so it's not expending so much energy
HI MIKE I STILL GROWING BABY CHRIST MAS TREE IT'S JUST GOT STARTING GROWING FAST FOR SUMMER LONG DOING GREAT AS WELLLOVE DAVID
HAPPY FATHER'S DAY
Thanks Lucy!
How much electricity did that use?
A lot.
@@MikeKincaid79 more than the cost of the tree? Just curious because if a christmas tree costs roughly $100 and if your experiment had worked, would it be financially worth it?
What if bought not bring inside but did just did
I just can't imagine this working regardless of what is done. That vast root network required to support that tree would take a long time to grow and lot of energy. I've seen people take cuttings and I've yet to see someone who was successful. The best approach would be to take the tree and put it into the pot with rooting hormone immediately. if you don't get anything after a month or two, it would never happen. Love your videos, but I knew how this one would end ;-)
Fuel for my fire, lol
@@MikeKincaid79 - Awesome. Glad I could help :D
@@MikeKincaid79- Did you try this again in 23/24?
What's a rule in rooting? remove as much of the leaves as you can. Next time, trim off all the needles and if it's doing to live, it'll sprout new ones. viva nieto!
I'm definitely going to keep working on this one.
@@MikeKincaid79 God bless!
May have tried just the top or part of a branch
Maybe next time. I was trying to do something that would have been super cool if it had worked.
I hear you that would have been totally awesome
What if you take a cutting when you first buy it. ???
That would definitely improve the outcome.
It may work if humidity is 100% keep it in a polythene like you did with lavender.
Different type of cutting. You don’t want to cover dormant cuttings typically. You never know though. Obviously it didn’t work this time.
try with smaller tree with a bag over it to keep the humidity high
In theory, the bag shouldn’t be necessary for dormant cuttings and it might be detrimental.
That's what I like about you. You even tell us about the disasters. Some others like to make you think they are so good and never make mistakes, or have something go wrong.
To be honest Mike I don't think it can be done that way. Think about it, the first thing you normally do is cut off all of the leaves. You might leave a couple half leaves, but that's about it. I think you're either going to have to bury it up to the last six inches or strip off all the limbs but the last six inches or so. Either way you're not going to get what you want.
This turned out to be more of a myth busters video, didn't it, haha. Yeah, no one is right, or successful, 100% of the time. The real test of a person's mettle is whether or not they keep going until they succeed. I never mind people seeing my mistakes or failures. I'm not going anywhere and I know there's a success in the future. Love having your hear and your thought provoking comments.
I found a colorado blue spruce xmas tree that was thrown away in January 2024. It was so beautiful I couldn’t watch it being thrown away so i brought it back home and put it in a bucket of water. It’s July now and the tree isn’t dead. 😁. In fact there are baby pine cones growing on the branches. Has anyone seen this or heard of this? There’s no roots forming but the tree isn’t dead and baby pine cones are forming and growing. Can this tree be hydroponically grown in this water bucket?
Sounds interesting. Keep going and keep us informed.
@@MikeKincaid79 thanks for responding! I added alaska fish fertilizer and morbloom to the bucket of water. If everything goes well and the tree is still alive after the summer, i will upload a video of the tree because i think it’s amazing too!
Let growing Xmas trees and sell them for late of November for Christmas 🎄 😀
Mike Kincaid 👏👏🇧🇷🇺🇸
I was about to call Olympus and tell them you have claimed the title of Propagation god.
I was SO hoping you had cracked the Christmas Tree code. Oh well, always next year.
We're not through yet, lol. Plenty more variables to play with.