Abstract
Most of the mulberry saplings in Korea have been produced by grafting. But the production of mulberry sapling by this method is very complex process and requires high level of technique and two years to produce saplings. Therefore, to develop the mulberry sapling production system by softwood cutting method which is suitable for mass production, several conditions on rooting and growth of cuttings were investigated. The rooting ability of cuttings varied according to mulberry varieties, showing the highest rooting ratio of 93.3% in cultivar of Shingwangppong. Of different soil texture as for rooting media, the clay was found to be the best; other media decreased in order as follows; sand, sand loam and vermiculite. The shading ratio by 70% with polyethylene film showed the highest rooting ratio of the cuttings. Optimum day of cutting was around 50th day after sprouting, whereas the ratio of stem thicker than 7mm at the base of saplings in diameter was highest at 44th day.
