Plant Propagation - a simple guide

So, I love all of my plants, and I have quite a few. I am no expert by any means, but I want to share how I propagate my plants to make more plants, to save money and to give as sweet gifts to people. I promise you that I would rather get a gift that someone grew and made than anything bought from a store! Or if you are propagating for yourself, it is my firm belief you can never have too many plants!

So for starters, I take clippings. Many plants need clipping to stay healthy. This jade tree plant, one of my roommates, was getting so weighed down, the branches were just hanging down and were no longer standing up and looking healthy. So I decided I would cut off some branches for it to stand up again, and tossed them. Well later I thought they might grow into a plant, so I dug them out of the garbage (ew I know!) and started reading, and sure enough they do! So I let the clippings dry for 2 - 4 days, and then planted them in soil, gave it a shot of water, and waited. Now I will be honest, things were not looking good. The leaves of the plant looked sad and wilted, much like the bigger plant before it got pruned. Side note: after cutting off a branch from each big clump of the main plant, the branches started to rise up and the plant got much healthier, so if your jade tree is getting weighted down and looking sad, the answer may be to snip a few branches off, making it less heavy in order to thrive! Anyway, after about 3 weeks I was ready to give up on my propagated branches, just when they started to perk up a bit. So, for anyone who does this do not give up on your little plant! It may just take a bit more time for the branches to take root, give or take a few weeks. Mine took about 3 - 4 weeks before it started to look healthy again.

This is my jade looking happy and healthy now, with the propagation process being repeated to make this whole pot. This pot started as two small pruned branches that were tossed in the trash, and when planted, every time one branch grew another, I snipped it off, let it dry for the few days, and planted it as its own branch in the same pot. So far, so good. I have not had one fail yet! I water it about once per week, with about a cup of water. This is one of my favorite little guys, and it was so easy to propagate. Chances are someone who already has one is routinely pruning their's to keep it healthy, so I am sure they would not mind giving you a branch or two to start your own plant. And if you have one, pruning it regularly is necessary, so you might as well grow some unique and thoughtful gifts to give to people by letting the clippings dry and gifting them to the person to plant within the 2 - 4 day window, or by going out and buying a pot about a month before you want to gift it and plant a few clippings to give them their own plant, a cheap, yet thoughtful gift. Besides it is a very easy plant to care for, so it is a good gift even for people who are not super plant savvy.

So the next plant propagation I will discuss is quite possibly my favorite plant to exist. The philodendron. Clipping this plant in at least 3 - 4 inch pieces is your best bet for increasing the likelihood it will grow. I got mine from my mom's plant she has had for years, as well as other clippings from a philodendron in a public library. If you ask, people are usually very willing to let you take clippings of their philodendrons since they grow long vines and need to be clipped every so often anyway. You then take the clippings and add them to a jar of water to put in the sunshine like any other plant, I use a mason jar, but you can use any type of container (pictured at the top of this post). Your clippings should grow roots in anywhere from 3 - 6 weeks. These clippings were in the jar for about 6 weeks. You know they are ready to be planted when you see the long roots as seen in this photo. This is also super easy to propagate, you basically just keep the water covering the stems in the jar and let them grow all on their own.

When the 3 - 6 weeks are up and you're ready to plant these guys, it is quite simple. I gathered them into clumps to be planted together, with a simple pot (gifted to me with a different plant from my aunt), some potting soil, and the clippings. You just gather them into clumps of your choice, and place them in the soil and give them a little water. Continue watering them once per week or so, and they should thrive!

This would also be an excellent plant to gift someone, especially because it is such a long and rapid grower that it can make multiple gifts, and then they can gift pieces of their plant in return in no time.

I hope this helped anyone who struggles with plant propagation. It can be so confusing which clippings to dry, which to place in water, and how to plant them after you get them cuttings. I hope this gave you more insight to plant care! Anyone can have a green thumb with the right guidance and the right plants! Welcome to the plant mom club, and happy planting!

you are blessed. you are gifted. you are loved and appreciated, just as you are.

mindfully, molli