How to propagate Coast Redwoods?

[Carapace]

Hi guys, I recently got 10 little coast redwood seedlings and I wanted to know what the best way to propagate them is, cuttings? air layers? ground layers?
These are really rare and expensive (the transport is really) plants over here and I want to multiply them to give them to my friends.
If anyone has any experience with propagating them, I would really enjoy reading it.
Thx

 

[BrianBay9]

I just tried air layering some. I cut, they healed over, I cut again, they healed over, I widened cut, used wire, they healed over. Got lots of callus, no roots. Still trying.

 

[CaptColin]

4 for 4 rooting softwood cuttings last year. All made it through the winter in an unheated greenhouse central NC

 

[RKatzin]

They root cuttings very easily. I use the sand from pumice with very good success. Once the trees you have get well established they will begin to produce sucker shoots around the base of the tree and from the surface roots. These can be collected and started for more tree. The cuttings I'm starting are from a basil shoot I collected from a tree several years ago. It sprouted another shoot off its base and I'm growing it as a twin trunk. Good luck! I hope they do well for you.

 

[Carapace]

Thank you guys, I will most likely take cuttings instead of layering them, the seedlings already have quite a lot of suckers around the base.

 

[TrimmyWhimmy]

I had good success with cuttings that were basically a leaflet ripped off mature trees so the heal was attached. First year was very slow going. Next year will probably be exponential growth like the seedlings I bought.