This is my bubbler

2pugs, that is sort of what I thought- but again don't know if the weight would make any difference.

The plastic bottles won't melt on a heat mat or heating pad. They don't melt on my stone patio in 100+ degree Texas sun, so they're bound to be OK on that! I know the temp of the stone passes 100. I finally figured out that rooting plumerias was easiest done by sticking them in a pot and putting them on the hot patio. The bottom heat really works for that. I've also rooted a number of copper plants this year in water with a couple of drops of root stimulator in it. I'm going to try to put together one of the bubblers. I can't wait to try it out! Thanks for sharing the instructions for it yardqueen.

Hi All,
You all got me excited about this, so I went out and bought a few large clear plastic container ( storage boxes) at Dollar General. Also I do ceramics, and a few years back bought a bunch of fountian pumps to use in fountians I was making. I still had 5 left, so I got them out.
They are working great.
Mums have rooted in 5 days. And I have been taking cuttings of all kinds of stuff!!
But.... Just in case anyone is interested in the fountian pumps... I have a link. You can pick them up pretty cheap...
http://www.nationalartcraft.com/subcategory.asp?gid=4&cid=39&scid=67
Just incase anyone might be interested.
Sue

Don't fountain pumps pump water? You need one that pumo air right? I have little fountain pump. I could have used that?

confused blonde
Carol
Bookmarked the site for when I start my watergarden.

It seems to be working great for me. It circulates the water keeping the gas from building up. Mosquitos will not lay eggs in the moving water.
Maybe I am completely off track. I have gone from blonde to gray...lol crazy and forgetful...how scary is that...lol

I am right behind you, turning greyer by the minute. lol I'd rather be going crazier.

carol
Think I will set another bubbler up and test both air and water pump methods.

Water pump might work, as the moving water will absob air from the surface and circulate throughout the container. When the water is still only the top water is exposed to air.

Carol (yardqueen)

I've got almost all the things I need now for my bubbler. I bought a container last night and I already have my pump and tubing. I just need to make something for the cuttings to stand up in. I have some grid I'm not using and I think I will cut it to fit in the container. Then I'll be ready to grow. No pun intended. LOL

Jesse

You know I was thinking about that...the best way to keep the cuttings upright. What about a pillow made of chicken wire? This would make a grid to hold both the bottoms and the tops. Unforutantely I don't have any chiken wire but will add that to my never ending garden shopping list. :-)

carol

Jesse, post a picture of the grid when you get it done..Im thinking that I would need something big enough so if Im taking the cutting out of the bubbler that it would need enough room to either get the leaves out of it or the roots....Judy

Here is a picture of my bubbler. I do not have a bubble stone or anything attached to the end of it because I have not had chance to go back to walmart. So it is just the end of the tubes in the water. Here is a shot taken of the whole thing.

Jesse

Here is a close-up shot of the grid. It is sitting on 4 pieces of PVC pipe cut at the same height. I have not done this yet but you could cut pieces of the pvc pipe and put them in a container and cover them with water and put the tubes in that. But I like using the grid better. And if I have larger cuttings I will just cut out a section in the grid for it. Right now most of mine are small.

Jesse

Jesse,

your bubbler looks great! It is even simpler than mine, but I don't have any thing like your grid. What plants are you rooting in the picture?

Carol

The ones that are green and red are fittonias. The other is a caricature plant. We just stuck the latter one in for the picture. We are trying to do some test and find out if the bubbler really does make it any faster. I think it will. And I think it will help with our humidity problem. Constant bubbling water will just add moisture to the greenhouse which we think will help with our low humidity problem.

Jesse

Hi Jesse,

May I ask where you found the plastic grid. I just brought my first brug in for the winter and I need to trim it back but was nervous about trying to root the cuttings until I saw this topic. Thank you for posting the photos:)

Donna

You can find it in the lighting section from Home Depot. It is what is used to cover the bulbs they use in most stores for lighting. Each one costs about $12 I think but you could make several with just one sheet. I think each sheet is 4' x 2'. If you can't find it just ask for the grid that they use to cover flourescent bulbs in many different types of stores.

Jesse

Jesse, that is just too cool....this does look like a good way to be able to cut out sections for bigger cuttings...I was sitting here all day trying to think of what I could put in my plastic box.....heading to the hardware store after work....Judy

I had to go cheap..lol When I went to the Dollar store I picked up some styrofoam cups.
I cut slits in them and filled them with pea gravel to hold my cuttings up.

These are the tubs...on with water the other not filled yet.

Here are the cups with the pea gravel added, and I used a heating pad under the tub.

Another view

Finally the cuttings have been added, and there you go!!
Pump $10.00
Tubs $2.00 each
Styro cups $1.00 (for 75)
Pea gravel $2.49 at Lowes

Very nice! and cheap too! Are you rooting oleander?

Carol

Thanks!! Gotta go cheap..lol I want too much!!
Yes, red, white and pink oleanders

I went on a **CHOPPING SPREE** LOL.. I took cuttings of everything I could find in the yard. I have 5 of those tubs set up now and they are pretty full.
Camellia
Red Tip
Lady Banks rose
Butterfly bush
Oleanders
Wigelea
Spireah
mums
Bottle brush bush
confederate rose
to name a few

I love your setup blckwolf but I think I would use the plastic cups instead...I dont know what happens when the tubs are used all winter but if the water gets dirty I would think it would cling to the cups and trying to get anything off styro cups wouldnt work...Im just thinking out loud here since I havent done anything yet....my brug cuttings are sitting in anything I can find right now waiting for me to get my bubbler together....thanks for all the pictures..I love everybodies ideas...Judy

Nice set up blckwolf! I really like that one. Let us know how it does.
carol

I tried rooting some seeds last year in the plastic cups...but they rot real quick. Maybe because I bought the cheap ones from...you guessed it...The Dollar Store...lol So I decided to try the styrofoam ones this year...they dont rot very easily.

I also last year bought these dome things from Parks seds. They come with styrafoam holders and sponges that are bio-degradable so you can plant your cuttings right in a pot. So far all the camellias I took cuttings of, rooted.
http://www.parkseed.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/StoreCatalogDisplay?storeId=10101&catalogId=10101&langId=-1&SearchText=dome&mainPage=textsearchresults&RequestType=NewRequest
These things are great!!!

Thanks everyone for an interesting thread.....I've a question about the water depth in the main container/tub.....should it be kept at a certain depth or an approx. ratio relative to the length of the cutting? Is too deep detrimental? I've set up a bubbler and my initial try ended up with slime on each cutting's entire length that was under water...I guess I had the water about 3" deep.
Thinkin' that it was too deep now. I added H2O2 ...probably an ounce per gallon.....even changed the water once in a week. I had a double outlet bubbler with both hoses/rock ass'y in the container...lots of bubbles. I'm doin' somethin' wrong! Thanks for any input!

good question Willis. My bubbler water is about 4.5 inches deep and I don't see any slime on my cuttings. What is it that you are rooting?
carol

I had some coral vine and some althea....in a plastic 5 gal bucket....maybe a dozen cuttings in all

hmmmm...I haven't a clue. Is your bucket clear plastic?

Willis,

I think sometimes it depends on the cutting. I am rooting about 30 or more Brug cuttings. There were a few that got slimy and they are the ones that were rotting instead of rooting. Also I have have begonia cuttings turn slimy in just a bottle of water because they were in there so long without rooting. Others of the same plant rooted. And begonia is easy to root. I don't know why this happens either.

Carol

Justfurkids...the bucket was a translucent white.......do you suppose the reduced light made conditions right for slime formation?

Thanks Carol,...did you toss the cuttings with the slime and continue with the rest?

yes

since willow water is supposted to help in cuttings do you think it would work here? Would it be too much?

It would work great I think. I was planning to see if I could find a willow on my property this week-end. I was understanding that it could be any kind of willow.

Yardqueen...if you dont find any willow....d-mail me I will be glad to send you some.

What plants do you use the bubbler to root?

I have brug cuttings, penta, coleus, bush morning glory, hydrangea, tropical hybiscus, gardenia, Passion vine In my bubbler. I have had excellent results with the first 4 items but the rest are slower. I am going to be adding willow water as soon as I receive the willow.

Carol