I started 3 cuttings of random purple lilac after very carefully reading and following the instructions here and elsewhere about the timing, the size, and the rooting hormone treatment. One has definitely died, the second's (2 original) leaves seem a little leathery and dryish but they are still green, and the third seems pretty much unchanged since the day I started trying to root it in early June. SO... I suppose the fact that theyre not brown and shriveled is good news, but there is no new sign of life here.

I have many questions.

First, are these doing ok? Should I fertilize them? I'm dying to know whether they have roots and if so, how many, but I suppose there's no easy way to check without potentially damaging them. Should they be growing or sprouting at all?

Second, I'm running out of warm weather here, and wonder what to do about these over the winter. They definitely seem to fragile to put in the ground. Maybe they'll be happy on our unheated glassed-in sunporch? Any advice here would be very much appreciated.

Third, Can someone advise me what's likely to happen next? These are not evergreens, so I imagine their two little original leaves will fall off when the weather turns cold. It will take some courage to see these little bare sticks out there on the porch in the cold all winter! Theyre currently on the windowsill above the sink in the kitchen, which is probably the most humid area in the house. I don't think I should leave them there over the winter though, do you?

I apologize if this has been asked before, but I have searched diligently without finding answers to these questions. Most articles and posts on rooting lilacs seem to give very little information past the "getting roots on them" stage. Thank you sincerely in advance.