Why root cuttings in nurseries using paper pots?

As part of today’s Ceres Academy, our expert Michal Stuchlik has prepared a text for you answering a question we have been asked more than once, and the answer is definitely longer than a few sentences. We hope that after reading this text you yourself will want to try rooting cuttings in your nursery using paper pots.

Rooting cuttings is a common method of propagating plant material in ornamental nurseries. Nurserymen use various rooting methods, but most often they use rooting media with which they fill various kinds of multiplates or trays. These methods have been known on the market for a long time, but they differ in effectiveness, which affects the profitability of the rooting process and the quality of the material produced. Nurserymen are increasingly facing difficulties, such as a shortage of workers and rising costs associated with their maintenance. The cost of production in the form of prices for various types of inputs used at different stages of production, which are increasing year after year, is also not insignificant. Because of these problems, more and more nurserymen are looking for methods to reduce costs in order to further compete in the market. There are many ways to cut costs – some are looking for cheaper inputs, while others are increasingly focusing on understanding production processes and looking for ways to cut costs in improving them.

As I mentioned earlier, the rooting process can be divided into at least several, if not more than a dozen, stages. It usually starts with preparing the right conditions for rooting, such as suitable facilities, climate, irrigation, temperature, humidity and shade. The next step is preparation in terms of inputs such as multiplates, substrate, fertilizers, protectants and rooting and growth stimulants. An important stage is also the very choice of plants from which the cuttings will be obtained, the timing of their acquisition, their health, the time needed from acquisition to place the cuttings in the ground and much more. By breaking down the entire process into individual steps and arranging them in a chronological manner, you can see what a large and complicated process rooting cuttings is. The important thing, however, is that this allows you to look at each stage and make adjustments, which opens up opportunities to improve the entire process and achieve better results.

One such activity that is becoming increasingly popular in the nursery business is the use of paper sweats for rooting many coniferous and deciduous species. I often come across the question of whether and why to use paper sweats in nurseries? Having known this system for many years and the values it brings, I believe that it is currently the best way to root cuttings in nurseries.

So why use paper sweats for rooting cuttings?

1. Labor availability issues. This is probably one of the most common threads in conversations with nurserymen. How is it related to the use of paper pots? Using paper sweats can significantly increase rooting efficiency, up to 100%. More prepared cuttings that will be used at the beginning will end up as finished plants for planting in P9, for example. As a result, there will be no need for employees to prepare subsequent batches of seedlings. Suppose a nurseryman wants to produce 100,000 pcs. seedlings ready for planting to P9. If the efficiency of his process is, for example, 80%, it means that at the start he has to prepare 125,000 seedlings, from which at the end of the process he will get the expected 100,000. seedlings. Using paper sweats, in many cases the efficiency can be raised to 100% which means that 100,000 finished seedlings will be obtained from 100,000 seedlings at the start of the process. The difference is visible to the naked eye – the 25,000 seedlings of difference, for example, someone has to obtain and someone has to handle the next stages of production.
2. Much better air and water conditions in the root zone. This is one of the most important arguments that directly affect the rooting of cuttings. It is safe to assume that the looser and more permeable, and therefore better aerated the substrate, the better the rooting efficiency of the cuttings. Seedlings in such conditions form a healthy and strong root system much faster. Why are paper pots better than multiplats buried in loose soil? Since the paper sweat inserted into a properly sized multiplat does not adhere tightly to the walls of the multiplat cells, it is surrounded by air. As a result, excess water is drained better and more easily, and there is ample air access around the paper pot, which positively affects the quality of the rooted cuttings.
3. Greater quantity and quality of rooted cuttings. Better air and water conditions directly affect the number of cuttings that take root. In many cases, this difference can be as high as tens of percent. More rooted cuttings means less cost to produce them. The quality aspect of the cuttings produced is also not insignificant. Cuttings are more evenly spaced, which can directly affect the ability to produce larger uniform and more even batches of young plants.
4. Shorter rooting time for cuttings. Another aspect related to the much better air and water conditions. The cuttings root faster and are ready for further production in a shorter time. For example, cuttings of thuja smaragd, but also of other coniferous species, the rooting of which began around mid-January 2023 (the process took place in a greenhouse that was lightly heated, on tables, with a fogging system) were ready for further stages of production in the second half of May/early June 2023.
5. Secure root ball. Thanks to the use of an envelope of special paper, the root ball is protected from damage. This is especially important when transplanting plants into larger containers. Seedlings produced in a loosely backfilled substrate when pulled out of the multiplat may be damaged. It is very common for the root ball to spill/disintegrate, which many times entails damage to the delicate root system. The result can be the loss of the seedling, meaning the costs incurred without the final result, or the slowing down of its further growth – the time it takes to rebuild the damaged root system. In the case of paper sweats, such phenomena are practically non-existent, and the seedling planted in a new substrate immediately begins to grow.
6. The possibility of the so-called. seedling accumulation. Thanks to the fact that the paper pot has a concise structure, you can start carrying out various types of control activities very quickly. First of all, the paper pot can be easily pulled out of the multiplat cell without risking damage to the seedling. In the case of backfilled multiplats, such action is absolutely impossible before the root ball is completely overgrown. This is important because we can check the progress of rooting on an ongoing basis, and if we find cuttings that, for various reasons, did not take root and died, we can carry out the so-called “rooting”. accumulation that is, to remove easily and quickly such seedlings and replace them with healthy ones. This reclaims space in the facility and allows us to insert more multiplates with new seedlings in this place.
7. Possibility of using cuttings with not fully developed root system. This is an important consideration, especially in nurseries where intensive production is carried out and large numbers of cuttings are rooted in batches one after another. Thanks to the use of paper pots, rooting time is noticeably reduced, but equally important is the fact that we can work with a cuttings that have a root system that is not fully developed, and we can replant such a cuttings to free up space for the next batches.
8. Ability to pull the seedling out of the multiplat more easily. Cuttings produced in paper pots are much easier to pull out of the multiplat at the transplanting stage. This is a significant convenience for workers who stand at the machines and have to keep up the pace of work. In addition, the risk of damage to the lump and resulting losses is minimized.
9. The possibility of setting seedlings in the so-called. checkerboard. Another argument for why to use paper sweats, especially important on farms that produce large cuttings with large leaves and require proper spacing at the rooting stage. With paper pots, you can get this effect from the beginning of the process or easily spread the cuttings as needed at any time.
10. They significantly solve the problem of plastic disposal. Paper sweats are surrounded by special certified paper that degrades in industrial composting facilities. At a time when plastic in manufacturing is becoming more and more challenging paper sweats can be made from a special paper that is certified and 100% biodegradable. In addition, the system is also evolving and is already poised to be an alternative to the production of youngsters with P9 pots. Importantly, the multiplates that are used in the rooting process also can be easily replaced with versions with a much longer life and durability, significantly reducing the amount of plastic to be recycled.

Paper sweats, as a solution used for rooting cuttings, bring many benefits. They effectively improve the rooting process, both in terms of quantity and quality. They reduce the time and enable accelerated crop production, while reducing the labor costs required to achieve the desired results. They reduce the loss of material and have a positive effect on the next stages of plant production, speeding up the transplanting process and minimizing any losses at this stage. There are many arguments in favor of using paper sweats for both coniferous and deciduous rooting. The number of benefits of their use outweighs the costs, which is an irrefutable argument.

If you want to learn more about the parameters of the various paper pots, please visit here: Paper-pots – Ceres.pl