Nice post! Have you ever tried honey instead of rooting hormone? I understand that works well too. Not that it has any compounds similar to plant hormones, but simply because it's antibacterial/fungal/viral. I also hear that it's good to split the stem vertically from the cutoff point, about an inch or two, to increase the area of the exposed inner flesh. Maybe those cells have an easier time modifying to root cells? I dunno... If either of us ever have a lot of cuttings again, it'd be a good experiment. Happy transplanting!