Trays must have holes in the bottoms for drainage. The plastic will help keep the humidity high and reduce water loss from the cuttings. Horticulture Information Leaflets 404 and 405 describe how this can be accomplished. The four main types of stem cuttings are herbaceous, softwood, semi-hardwood, and hardwood. These terms reflect the growth stage of the stock plant, which is one of the most important factors influencing whether or not cuttings will root.
Calendar dates are useful only as guidelines.
Refer to Table 1 for more information on the best time to root stem cuttings of particular ornamental plants. SW, SH, HW Ceanothus Ceanothus spp. SW, SH, HW Cedar Cedrus spp. SH, HW Cotoneaster Cotoneaster spp. SW, SH Cryptomeria, Japanese Cryptomeria japonica SH Daphne Daphne spp.