May 01, 2023
By Maddy Hogan
Collecting indoor houseplants has morphed from a pandemic essential, into a longer term trend with enhanced benefits for your living space aesthetic as well as your personal health. From stunning foliage that features intricate designs and colors, plants have the ability to purify our air of toxins while proving to become an integral part of our home and office decor. One of the additional benefits of indoor houseplants is that they are easily propagated, creating new plants to share with friends, add more greenery to your space, or fill in an older plant that needs some TLC. Below we will be jumping into what propagation is, methods of propagation, and what houseplants are the easiest to propagate.
You may be thinking ‘what is propagation?’ Propagation is the sexual or asexual reproduction of plants. Sexual reproduction of plants through seeds is common, but not always the best results and often the plant may appear different than the parents. Asexual propagation is extremely successful with indoor houseplants as it creates a genetic duplicate of the parent plant from a stem, root, or node and can be carried out through water or soil propagation which we will dive into next.
There are two main methods of propagating houseplants: water propagation and soil propagation.
What you will need for propagating your indoor houseplants:
WATER PROPAGATION
We will start with water propagation, as it is a mess-free and effective way to propagate many indoor houseplants.
Step 1: Choose a healthy stem cutting that is 2-3 inches long. Make sure the cutting has a few leaves on it.
Step 2: Use your sterilized pruning shears to cut the stem at a 45-degree angle. This will increase the surface area for the plant to absorb water.
Step 3: After making the fresh cutting, spray generously with Clonex or a rooting hormone of your choosing to expedite the process as this will stimulate root growth and generation..
Step 4: Fill a small container with water and place the stem cutting in the water. Make sure the stem is fully submerged in the water. We recommend using a propagation station for optimal results and have two options that we sell online or in our downtown Napa location.
Step 5: Place the container in a bright area, but not in direct sunlight. Refresh the water every few days to prevent bacterial growth.
Step 6: After 4-6 weeks, you should see roots starting to form. Once the roots are at least an inch long, you can transplant the cutting into soil. To ensure a smooth transition from water roots to soil roots, we recommend repotting a water propagated cutting into a Jiffy pot filled with moistened soil into a small (4” recommend) dirt filled pot. The Jiffy pot is biodegradable and will allow for a smooth transition from moistened soil to regular waterings as the roots harden from water to soil.
SOIL PROPAGATION
Soil propagation requires a bit more effort than water propagation, but it is an excellent way to propagate plants that do not root well in water.
Step 1: Choose a healthy stem cutting that is 2-3 inches long. Make sure the cutting has a few leaves on it.
Step 2: Use your sterilized pruning shears to cut the stem at a 45-degree angle. This will increase the surface area for the plant to absorb water.
Step 3: After making the fresh cutting, spray generously with Clonex or a rooting hormone of your choosing to expedite the process as this will stimulate root growth and generation.
Step 4: Fill a small pot with a soil mix, we recommend using a Jiffy pot centered within a 4” nursery pot. Make a small hole in the soil with your finger or a pencil.
Step 5: Place the stem cutting in the hole and gently press the soil around it to secure it in place.
Step 6: Water the soil until it is moist, but not waterlogged. Place the pot in a bright area, but not in direct sunlight.
Step 7: After 4-6 weeks, new growth and roots should start to form. Once the roots are well-established (6-12 months), you can transplant the plant into a larger pot.
Tips for Successful Propagation
If you have questions about where to cut your plants for propagation, how to repot plants you’ve been propagating into soil, or any of our propagation stations or materials we are more than happy to help. You can find propagation related items in our online store or in person at our First Street location in downtown Napa at 1300 First Street, Suite 355!
1300 1st Street Suite 355
Napa California 94559
PHONE: (707) 637-4388
*In the alleyway in-between Eikos and Copperfield books.
ROOTED IN NAPA
Riza (noun); Greek for ‘Roots’. Riza’s mission is to connect people through plants. We handpick the highest quality plants, ceramics, and indoor garden supplies for our customers, and consider ourselves a hub for all things relating to indoor plants. Whether you want to connect more with nature, brighten up your living space, or learn about caring for your new indoor plant, we take the time to work with your skill level and environment to find the perfect piece of greenery.
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