Soil Propagation
Rooting Media Compared: Perlite, Coir, Moss and Potting Mix
What a rooting medium has to do, how perlite, vermiculite, coir, moss, potting mix and gritty blends compare for water and air, and a few simple blends to start from.
Guides
30 guides published
Water Propagation
Moving Water-Rooted Cuttings to Soil: How to Transition
How to pot up a cutting that rooted in a jar: how developed the roots should be, how to fill mix around them without breakage, and how to care for the plant while it adjusts to life in a pot.
Water Propagation
Houseplants That Root in Water (and Some That Rarely Do)
A plant-by-plant look at water rooting: the houseplants widely rooted in a jar, the ones that are slower or less reliable, and the poor candidates that need division, gritty mix or air layering.
Plant Division
Plantlets and Runners: Rooting Baby Plants Still on the Parent
Spider plants, strawberry begonias, mother of thousands and piggyback plants grow miniature copies of themselves. Here is how to root those plantlets, attached to the parent or detached.
Plant Division
Offsets and Pups: How to Separate Baby Plants
Aloe, haworthia, snake plant, pilea and bromeliads all make baby plants at their base. Learn how to tell when a pup is ready, how to cut it free and how to pot succulent and leafy pups differently.
Plant Division
How to Divide Houseplants Step by Step
Find out which houseplants can be split and which cannot, then follow clear steps to take a crowded clump out of its pot, separate the crowns and settle each division into its own pot.
Leaf Cuttings
Propagating Succulents From Leaves: Callus, Roots and New Rosettes
Turn fallen or plucked succulent leaves into new plants: which succulents grow from a leaf, how to remove it whole, why it is dried first and when to begin watering.
Leaf Cuttings
Leaf Section Cuttings: Snake Plant, Begonia and Cape Primrose
A few houseplants regrow from pieces of leaf blade. Learn which ones, how to cut and set snake plant sections the right way up, and how begonia wedges and cape primrose leaves differ.
Leaf Cuttings
Leaf Petiole Cuttings: African Violets, Peperomia and More
How to grow new plants from one whole leaf and its stalk: the short list of houseplants this suits, the steps for an African violet leaf, and what to expect as plantlets form.
Stem Cuttings
Types of Stem Cuttings: Tip, Section and Single-Node Cuttings
Tip cuttings, cane sections and single-node cuttings explained: what each one includes, which houseplants it suits and how to set it the right way up.
Soil Propagation
How to Root Cuttings in Soil or Potting Mix
A step-by-step method for rooting cuttings directly in a pot of light mix: how to plant the node, how moist to keep it, and how to check for roots without digging the cutting up.
Propagation for Beginners
How to Make Clean Cuts and Sanitize Propagation Tools
How to cut a stem without crushing it and how to clean your blades between plants, so a cutting starts with a smooth wound and a clean tool.