Propagating plants is a great way to take your love of houseplants to the next level. Multiplying your green friends is a rewarding project, and you can gift the babies to friends and family! The plants below are some of the easiest to propagate – you will surely have success with these.
1. Jade
Jade is one of the easiest plants to propagate: you will only need to cut a single leaf to grow a new and beautiful plant. And remember: like almost all succulents, jade cuttings need to be calloused before they can sprout roots – a process that can take from two days to a week.
How To Do It
Snip off a leaf at the base of the plant and place it on top (not inside, this is important!) of a pot filled with some well-draining potting soil.
In about 2-3 weeks, your Jade'ss roots will find their way down into the soil, and a new tiny replica will grow at the base of the leaf.
During the process, keep the soil moist but not soggy, and give your Jade plenty of indirect light. In a few months, the leaf will gradually wilt and disappear.
2. Christmas Cactus
A Christmas cactus makes the perfect holiday gift. Imagine placing your cuttings in some decorated pots and sharing them with your friends and parents: it will make your gift really personal!
How To Do It
Take a Y-shaped cutting from the stem tip using a pair of clean scissors. Make sure the cutting consists of at least 2 or 3 jointed parts.
Place the cutting on a paper towel and allow it to dry out for three hours.
Then, place it in a pot, about a quarter of its length below the soil.
Position the pot where it can receive plenty of indirect light. Keep the soil slightly moist, and soon you will see signs of growth at the tip of the cutting.
You can move the cactus into a place with a little more light as it keeps growing.
3. Pothos
Pothos is a very popular houseplant and a great choice for beginners. It's super easy to propagate, and propagating old plants will also keep them healthy. There are two ways to propagate Pothos – one with water and one with soil.
How To Do It
Snip off a 4-6 inches long healthy stem, making sure it has four or more leaves. Now cut the stem into individual leaf cuttings.
Cut to the left and right of every leaf stem, leaving a small piece of vine attached to the bottom of the leaf stem.
The little brown bumps on the vine are called nodes, and that's where new roots will form.
Propagating in Water
Put the cutting in a glass of water, and place the glass next to a window that gets lots of indirect light. Change the water about every other day. You should see roots in about four weeks.
Once some roots have grown, transplant the cutting into a pot filled with peat moss and some perlite.
Propagating in Soil
Dip the end of your cutting into some rooting hormone, then place it into the right soil mixture.
Keep the soil moist but not soggy. Place the pot in a place where it will receive bright light but not direct sunlight.
4. Tradescantia
Tradescantia makes a beautiful hanging plant that can brighten up any corner of your house. Growing a new plant from a cutting is easy and will take from three to four weeks.
How To Do It
A well-hydrated plant will respond better to propagation: the night before you take the cutting, water your Tradescantia slowly until water seeps out of the drainage holes.
The next day, use a clean sharp knife, find a healthy tip that has new growth, and cut it just below a leaf node, at a 45-degree angle. Place the cutting in clean water.
Change the water every other day and, once you see established roots, you can transfer the cutting into a pot with soil.
5. Pilea Peperomioides
Pilea Peperomioides has become popular for being a true "baby-maker": little sprouts constantly grow around the plant, and you can easily cut them and re-plant them.
The best part is giving your baby plants to friends and family, so they can start building their own Pilea collection too.
How To Do It
Pilea can continue growing fine no matter how many plantlets are harvested. Just ensure that you replace any soil that was taken out while cutting sprouts. Also, the bigger the baby is – a few inches works fine – the more chances of surviving away from the mother plant.
Propagating in Soil
The easiest way to propagate your Pilea is by cutting those plantlets you can see popping up from the soil. Follow their stem about 1 cm underneath the soil. Then cut the plantlet with a sharp knife. If the baby plant already has roots, you can put it straight into some moist soil. After a few weeks, the plantlet will get anchored to the soil and start growing new leaves.
Propagating in Water
When you propagate Pilea using a plantlet that doesn't have roots yet, you want to make sure it's strong enough to survive on their own.
Put the baby in water first, in a way that the leaves of the plantlet don't touch the water. Leave the plantlet in water for at least 2 weeks; at that point, you will see some roots growing. Once little roots have grown, you can plant the baby in some soil.
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