The most used method for the propagation of plants is growing them from a cutting. It doesn’t require any special tools, conditions or special techniques.
The best of it all is that the hereditary qualities are entirely transferred. Depending on that which part of the mother plant you are going to take a cutting, there can be stem, leaf or root cuttings.
So instead of buying expensive plants, we are going to show you how to propagate them yourself.
Just follow the instructions below and enjoy the result of your efforts and care.
1. African Violets
Botanical Name: Saintpaulia
The easiest way to grow Saintpaulia is to do it with leaf cuttings. Put them in a glass of water and be careful that the leaves do not touch each other.
The best temperature is above 20 °C. The roots appear in 3-5 weeks. When planting your African violet choose a potting mix with a crumbly structure.
2. Arrowhead Plant
Botanical Name: Syngonium podophyllum
The propagation of Syngonium at home can be done with apical and air cuttings. They must have at least two nodes on them.
The best time for propagation is spring and summer. Make the cut with a sharp knife.
Place the cutting into the warm water where a tablet of activated charcoal has been dissolved. The roots will appear very quickly.
The other way is to treat the cut of the cutting with a grow stimulator and plant it directly in a pot with a substrate. During the root growing period, the pot must be covered with a foil or bag.
3. Begonia From
Botanical Name: Begoniaceae
To propagate the Begoniaceae, make a stem cutting or cut the corm in halves so that each one has roots.
The cutting from the stem should be at least 5 cm long. Place it in a pot of soil. You can also propagate from a mature leaf.
It must be healthy and cut inclined where it meets the stem. Plant it into the soil so that half of the stem is covered. The pot should be placed into a polyethylene bag with ventilation holes and an ambient temperature not less than 17°C.
4. Black Eyed Susan Vine
Botanical Name: Thunbergia alata
This lovely indoor shrub can be propagated with a long stem cutting. Take a 6-8 inches stem and remove the lower leaves.
Put it in a glass of fresh water. Once the roots have developed, plant in a pot.
5. Chinese Money Plant
Botanical Name: Pilea peperomioides
The reproduction of the Chinese Money Plant is very easy as it does it on its own.
When the new stems grow, cut them from the mother and plant them in a new pot. The soil must be wet but not overwatered as the young plant can rot.
6. Creeping Fig
Botanical Name: Ficus pumila
The best way to propagate the Creeping Fig is to place a pot next to it so that its branches touch it.
The plant will make roots on its own and then you can plant the new stems and cut them from the mother plant.
Another option is to cut a stem with a length of 10-14 cm. The stem must be mature so that you don’t stress the mother.
7. Croton
Botanical Name: Codiaeum
Propagating Codiaeum is very easy and even a beginner will successfully do it.
Take a stem cutting in spring and put it in a container with water. The ambient temperature must be warm.
If you want a faster growth of the roots, use a rooting hormone. You can also put the cutting into wet sand and use a hormone or warming up the soil.
8. Dragon Tree
Botanical Name: Dracaena marginata
Cut the top of the plant at 15-18 cm distance from the bottom leaf if possible.
Take off all old and dry leaves and let the cutting dry in the room for 2 hours.
Developing of roots can be done in 3 ways: in ordinary water with dissolved charcoal; in a nutritive mix of peat, charcoal and sand; in a special substrate for decorative palms.
9. Dumb Cane
Botanical Name: Dieffenbachia
Use apical or stem cuttings to propagate the Dieffenbachia.
The easiest way for the growth of roots is to grow them into an improvised greenhouse with a heated bottom.
You can also put them in water, sand, peat-sand mix, sphagnum. The optimum conditions for root development are temperature 21-24 degrees, bright light and regular water spraying.
10. English Ivy
Botanical Name: Hedera helix
Although the Ivy has air roots, it must be propagated with cuttings. Take a stem cutting that has at least two sets of leaves.
Put in water to form roots. If your cutting already has roots, plant in sandy soil (where the roots will further develop before the final planting).
For better root development, place a jar over the pot.
11. Fiddle Leaf Fig
Botanical Name: Ficus lyrata
The Fiddle Leaf Fig can be propagated with apical cuttings. Dip their ends in warm water for a short time and then plant in soil.
Until the roots are developed, the pot should be covered with a polyethylene bag.
12. Geraniums
Botanical Name: Pelargonium
You can propagate the Pelargonium during the whole year but the best period for that is the end of summer or early autumn.
Cut stem nodes from the top or the side sprouts. All leaves but the top ones must be taken off.
Stipules from the bottom part must be also removed as this part will be planted. Place directly into a potting mix.
13. Grape Ivy
Botanical Name: Cissus rhombifolia
To grow a new plant from the Grape Ivy, cut an apical stem with a few leaves. Place it in a glass of water or peat-sand mix.
After the cutting develops the root, transplant it into standard soil. If you want your vine to become lush, plant a few cuttings in one pot.
14. Hoya
Botanical Name: Hoya spp
The best period for the propagation of the Hoya is from spring to summer. Cut a short cutting with one or two sets of leaves.
The cutting must have at least two nodes. They will develop the roots and the leaves because the root hormones are concentrated in them. Place the cutting in water or soil.
A large container with water must be covered outside with aluminum foil so that the water is protected from the light.
If you prefer to grow the root system in soil, you can plant it directly into a light potting mix with peat moss or another substrate that keeps the humidity.
15. Jade Plant
Botanical Name: Crassula ovata
This unpretentious plant can be propagated with leaf or stem cuttings from the top.
The cuts must be gently dried and then placed into peat and sandy soil. Plant the cutting with developed roots in early spring.
16. Philodendron
Botanical Name: Philodendron
You can easily propagate it with growing roots of a stem cutting. Note that the mother plant must have at least 2 or 3 stems.
Cut one of them and put it in a glass or jar of clean water. If there are stem sprouts, you can tear them and let them stay in the water until roots appear.
You can propagate also in soil. Plant the cutting and cover with stretch foil. Take off the nylon from time to time to let the excessive humidity evaporate.
17. Pothos
Botanical Name: Epipremnum aureum
Choose a stem cutting with 2-3 leaves and place it in water or soil.
In case you prefer the water method, plant the cutting in suitable soil when the root network develops well.
18. Prayer Plant
Botanical Name: Maranta leuconeura
Separate a sprout from the plant and leave it for a few weeks in water until the root network develops well.
Another and not that popular way for propagating the Maranta is to remove a cutting below a node at the bottom of the stem and place it directly into the potting mix.
19. Rubber Tree
Botanical Name: Ficus elastica
If you want to propagate the Rubber Tree, do it with green stem cuttings. After cutting dip them in cool water so that the milk juice runs out.
Then put it into the soil and use a root growth stimulator.
20. Silver Dollar Vine
Botanical Name: Xerosicyos danguyi
Developing a new plant from a Silver Dollar Vine would take time.
Remove a mature and healthy leaf with a sharp knife and let the end of it dry. Then lay it on a pot with a succulent mix.
The roots should appear in 6 weeks.
21. Snake Plant
Botanical Name: Sansevieria trifasciata
Surprisingly or not the gorgeous Snake Plant can be propagated with leaf cuttings.
Take a mature leaf and cut it transversely into segments with 6-7 cm length. Leave them for a few hours outdoors so that the cut dries a bit.
Then place the cutting vertically into a substrate from sand and peat soil. The optimal temperature for development of roots is 20-22°C.
You can also put the cut segments into the water but the roots will appear in a month.
22. String of Bananas
Botanical Name: Senecio radicans
Do the propagation the same way as Strings of Pearls. It is important that the soil of the new plants is always wet.
23. String of Nickels
Botanical Name: Dischidia nummularia
This slowly growing but fabulous plant can be propagated with a short stem cutting placed directly into special sphagnum moss that has been preliminarily watered.
When the root system is developed, transfer the cutting into a pot filled with orchid bark mix.
24. Strings of Pearls
Botanical Name: Senecio rowleyanus
The reproduction of the lovely Strings of Pearls can be done in two ways- by dividing the plant or with a cutting.
Each of these methods must be done during the vegetative period in spring and summer.
Take a few strings without separating them from the mother plant and place them in a flower pot close to one of the existing plants. The leaves that will come in contact with the soil must be removed.
The roots will develop quickly. In a month’s time, you can cut the strings from the mother.
25. Split Leaf Plant
Botanical Name: Monstera deliciosa
Take a stem cutting and then place in a glass of water with a charcoal tablet dissolved in it.
When the roots grow, dip the bottom in liquid fertilizer and then plant in the soil.
Water regularly. After 3 weeks when the roots are well developed, take out the cuttings and plant them in new soil.
26. Ti Plant
Botanical Name: Cordyline fruticosa
The easiest way to propagate the Ti Plant is to do it with apical cuttings or sprouts of young stems with at least one node.
Plant them in wet sand mixed with peat soil. Wait for transplanting until the root mustaches appear.
Spray the cuttings regularly with water and keep the temperature between 25-30°C.
27. Tradescantia
Botanical Name: Tradescantia
The beautiful Tradescantia can be propagated in spring, summer and autumn from cuttings with a length of 10 cm.
The root network can be established either in water or in soil. The smallest cutting can be a piece of the stem with two nodes. Put it in soil and cover only the bottom node with soil. It will grow the roots.
The cutting must be placed at non-direct light and temperature around 20 degrees.Roots can easily be grown also in water. Just put the cutting in a glass of water and in 2 weeks the root network will be well developed.
28. Umbrella Tree
Botanical Name: Schefflera
Propagation of Schefflera can be done with seeds or cuttings. Cut a stem cutting in summer and place in into a pot with potting mix and sand (1:1).
The best temperature for growing the new plant is 20-25°С. After the root network is well established, displace the cutting into a new and permanent potting mix which must contain one part sand to ensure good drainage.
29. Wax Ivy
Botanical Name: Senecio macroglossus
The cuttings of the Wax Ivy must be long and taken during the warmer months. Place them in practically dry sand.
The container shouldn’t be in direct sunlight and the ambient temperature must be warm.
30. Weeping Fig
Botanical Name: Ficus benjamina
Cut a stem from the apical part of the mother plant so that 2-4 leaves remain on it.
Do an inclined cut with a sharp knife. Dip the bottom of the cutting in warm water so that the juice runs out.
When the juice stops going out, dry the bottoms at room temperature for 2 hours. Add a charcoal tablet in a container of water and put the cuttings in it. Place the container next to a window but not in direct sunlight.
When you see roots with 2 cm length, you can transplant the young plant.
31. ZZ Plant
Botanical Name: Zamioculcas zamiifolia
The wish tree can be propagated by the separation of the tubers or from a leaf cutting.
Usually, the bottom parts of the torn leaves are placed into wet sand compost and the pot is covered with a nylon bag.
Although the leaves may dry, the parts in the soil must develop structures looking like a bulb that can be planted and develop in new plants. Mind that this process may take a year.
