If I can turn one more person into a plant lover than I’ve done my job, and, well, propagating is key. If you’re new to propagating, you may be wondering how exactly to do it. We put three of the most popular ways of propagating plants to the test—and got step-by-step instructions from experts on a fourth method. Read on to find out what to expect with each as you grow your collection and share plants with others.
Method 1: Water Propagation
This is by far the most common and simplest way to propagate a plant. All you need to do is take a cutting of a plant that has a node. Plants that do well with water propagating are Pothos, some Philodendron, and Monstera just to name a few.
How to Do It
In my experience, this method is the best as it requires the least amount of effort and skill and still results in a plant with the right care and patience.
Method 2: Division Propagation
You can use the division method for a large variety of plants. The best plants for this method are plants that grow “pups” or offshoots. One of the most popular plants to propagate with this method is the Chinese Money Plant (aka the Pass It on Plant). It is commonly divided up once a pup is big enough and has roots of its own.
How to Do It
Method 3: Leaf Propagation
You can regrow some plants from a piece of the leaf. For instance, you can cut a bit of a snake plant leaf off, pop it in water, and roots will grow out of the bottom. You can also take a leaf from a Peperomia plant and stick it into moist soil or moss. The leaf will start to grow tiny leaves out of it after some time. Patience is key. If you’re going to use this method of propagation, a quick Google search will tell you if the plant can be propagated with just its leaf. All you do is snip the leaf and stick it in either water or soil.
Method 4: Succulent Propagation
Tawni and Krista from NeedlesandLeaves.net shared their process of propagating succulents. “I’ve had the best results when keeping my leaves indoors in a window with lots of indirect sunlight. After a few weeks you will see little pink roots sprouting from the ends of the leaves and then teeny tiny baby plants will begin to grow,” they said. Not all methods work for all types of plants, but with some careful attention and planning, you can grow lots of new plants for free.
