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The Floriculture Vegetative

Cutting Industry

James E. Faust
Department of Plant & Environmental Sciences,
Clemson University, Clemson, SC, USA

John M. Dole
Department of Horticultural Science, North Carolina State
University, Raleigh, NC, USA

Roberto G. Lopez
Department of Horticulture, Michigan State University,
East Lansing, MI, USA

ABSTRACT

Vegetative cuttings are an essential means of asexual propagation of many
commercially important, herbaceous, ornamental species. Unrooted cuttings
are typically comprised of small shoots that are 2–5 cm long and possess 2–5
leaves. The cuttings are taken from stock plants grown in greenhouses mainly
in tropical, subtropical, or Mediterranean climates. Extremely high sanitation
protocols are observed during stock-plant production to prevent systemic
pathogen infections that can jeopardize the health of all of the harvested cut-
tings. Once harvested, the cuttings are cooled, packaged, and generally shipped
overnight via airfreight and/or refrigerated truck. Proper packaging, postharvest
protocols, and cold-chain management are essential to the delivery of viable
cuttings. Upon receipt, the cuttings are placed in a propagation area to produce
rooted cuttings. Root initiation typically begins in 1–3 weeks, and fully rooted
cuttings are ready to be shipped or transplanted after 2–8 weeks. The 10 largest
cutting suppliers for the international floriculture industry produce more than
4.3 billion cuttings annually in over 400 ha of greenhouses (Drotleff 2014).

Horticultural Reviews, Volume 44, First Edition. Edited by Jules Janick.
© 2017 Wiley-Blackwell. Published 2017 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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