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If you have a favorite houseplant and would like to have several more like it, then you should propagate it. Plants that have gotten too big for a particular space can also be propagated as an alternative to repotting to a larger container.
There are several different ways to do this, but some methods work better with certain plants while others do well with various methods. Keep in mind that you should only propagate a houseplant that is healthy and disease free.
ROOTING PLANTLETS
Certain plants (such as spider plants or strawberry begonias) have little clusters of leaves growing at the end of the long stems. Simply snip these clusters at an angle on the stem, then stick the small plantlets into a moist planting mix.
STEM CUTTINGS
The most common way of propagating is to take a stem cutting and root it in sand, perlite, vermiculite, peat moss or a combination of these mediums. Start by preparing your mix and washing the container you plan to use with hot soap and water. Also make sure the bottom of the container has drainage holes. The container you use can be a clay pot or a plastic flat, but it should be fairly small and shallow.
Water the plants well the night before you plan to cut the stems. The stem you use to cut should be actively growing but not too immature. The best cuts are what are known as “tip cuttings” where the stem as cut at the end. The stem should be about 5-6 inches long and have several
leaves on it. Cut with a clean blade at an angle just below the node, which is where the leaf joins the stem.
Dip each end of the cut stem into a root-inducing hormone powder or paint hormone powder that enables the cutting to root more quickly. Make a hole in the soil (about one to two inches deep) then stick the stem down inside spreading the soil out in the container so that the stem will firmly stand up. Put a couple of tall stakes in the soil and cover with plastic. Place the cuttings in an area that gets plenty of light but should not get direct light.
LEAF CUTTINGS
Cut a young leaf with about 1 1/2 to 2 inches of stem left attached and use the same procedure as you would with stem cuttings. However, you do not need to cover leaf cuttings with plastic. When tiny plantlets form, transplant them into individual pots after they have developed root systems. Good plants to use for this type of propagating are African violets and begonias. Jade, geraniums and cactus are easy to root this way, also. You can also root leaf and stem cuttings in jars of water. However, water can rot the roots so this is not always the best way to propagate. If you do though, be sure to transplant as soon as the plant does root, because mature roots do not easily make the transition from water to soil.
DIVIDING ROOTS
Gently take plant from the container and pull the roots in half, and re-pot. Bulbs, aloe, ferns and some begonias do very well with this method.
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