I cut below one bud, keep the next leaf, cut below the next bud and so one. If the stem has 12 buds, for me that means 6 cuttings - I am a very economical type of person. My cutting range from 1.5 inches to 4 inches. Roses can also be propagated by leaf-bud cuttings, one bud with leaf, so the above stem would yield 12 cuttings; this method is useful if the supply of cutting material is very limited, but I've only read about that, haven't tried it yet. It's best to have some healthy leaf with the cutting for photosynthesis, because usually the stem doesn't have enough supply of carbohydrates to get the whole thing going, unless you take hardwood cuttings, obviously. With semi ripe cuttings, leaves might all fall off due to getting infected with fungus, and I think that's happening with some of mine right now. They say not to give up on them until they are obviously all dead, so I'll watch and wait.
Paul Mozarowski.

The pros use one-leaf cuttings, attached with a clothes pin to another rootstock, usually Natal Brier, a type of Rosa canina, both canes having been cut on an angle. For outside propagation, I have always used a four-leaf cutting, with two leaves kept and two leaves stripped and that part of the canes submerged in the rooting medium. However there's no reason why Paul's method wouldn't work.
Steve.

Wow! I've been making my cuttings a heck of lot longer...most of them between 10-14"! I could have had many more! I think I'll go with your advice with just a little longer!

Thanks!
Susanne

I'm new at cuttings, but my latest batch with one basal bud and one apical leaf seem to be rooting well at 10 days, even though some leaves have gone yellow and fallen off. I'm not throwing away any part of the stem, just make a straight cut below one bud, keep the next leaf, straight cut below the next bud, keep the next leaf, etc.

Just a follow up, 40% of my cuttings rooted, but I still got 72 plants out of the deal, since I stuck so many. I stick 2 per peat pot, so if one dies, that's o.k., I still have the other, and if both root, then I divide them with 2 dinner forks, and if they both die, I throw them out. I'm not sure what to do to increase the %rooting, but I'm still happy with what I got. Since I use such short cuttings, I am able to get 2-3x the number of cuttings from a given amount of stock material, so in the end I did o.k. Paul Mozarowski.

Do You do them with bottom heat and tented?

I don't need bottom heat, because my room is 22 degrees C. and I keep my garden raised on a platform close to the ceiling (suspended with heavy duty 3/8" hooks, and heavy chain), so the garden is up high close to the lights where it's warmest, and I use a Mondi humididome 6" high and fits a standard 11x21" plastic tray. The humididome has vents that I crack open initially, then open all the way after about 2 weeks. The plant needs a bit of drying stress to stimulate roots, but gently. After about 4 weeks the humididome can be taken off, because they're all rooted by then. The cuttings are all semi-ripe, so if they're going to root, they do so readily. I use an indoor outdoor thermometer with a little probe at the end of a wire to make sure the temps. are as specified by George Mander (70-74F) Paul Mozarowski.

Where do you get an indoor/outdoor thermometer? Lowes? Walmart? Have not seen one......Paul, are you saying the temp of the soil needs to be 70-74 degrees or the air temp? Thanks......any other rooting tips that work for you would be appreciated! I plan to root some from Oliver Rollinger tomorrow......I am 2 hours from Houston so hope it wont be too cold.....
Judith

Wally Mart has cheap thermometers that show indoor outdoor temp. the outdoor temp is at the end of a long piece of wire. I put the tip of that wire into the soil to check the soil temp. The wire is thin enough to fit under the humididome. George Mander specifies that the soil temp should be 70-74 degrees F. (see George's thread - Trouble with rooting?)
Paul Mozarowski.