Propagation Month, Day 14: Rooting a Fig Scion

I've heard some people say that rooting fig scions is incredibly easy. But as with many other things that I've heard are incredibly easy to do, I seem to be having a hard time with this.

I started about two weeks ago with a Desert King fig scion that I'd gotten at the California Rare Fruit Growers' scion exchange in January. I'd kept the scion wrapped in a moist paper towel in a ziploc bag in the refrigerator. When I took it out of the fridge, there were a couple of buds just starting to turn green, so it was apparently beginning to break dormancy.

One suggestion I'd read on the Internet said to soak the scion in a dilute rooting hormone dip for 24 hours and then pot it up. I did that, although I thought it might be better to pot it just in perlite and keep it in a plastic bottle to keep the humidity in. It seems to have kept too much humidity in, however, because it was starting to get a little furry and there were still no roots forming. It's still alive, though, because the buds are green and growing.

Today I took it out, wiped it down with hydrogen peroxide to kill the fungus, and repotted it in a 50/50 mix of perlite and potting soil. I also rubbed it down again with some rooting hormone, although this time I used a gel form that should stick a bit better. Tomorrow it goes out in the greenhouse for its last chance to put on some roots.