Cuttings, plantlets or division: What suits your plant?

Do you know the species? Find out whether it can be propagated from stems, leaves or rooted divisions. More than one method may suit it. But a leaf that grows roots in water will not necessarily produce new shoots.

Start with a healthy parent plant without visible pests or soft, rotting patches. Where possible, choose a time when it is actively growing, and prepare clean, sharp tools and small pots with drainage holes. The pruning guide explains how to trim the parent appropriately.

With pothos and Tradescantia, you can root a healthy section of shoot. It needs stem tissue with suitable nodes – the places where leaves and buds join the stem. For pothos, a detached leaf and its leaf stalk alone are not a substitute. Wear gloves when cutting it, as its sap can irritate skin.

Prepare the bottom end below a node and remove leaves that would sit in water or potting mix. Leave enough healthy foliage on the parent. Our guide to rooting stem cuttings in water covers the glass setup and the later move into potting mix.

Spider plants form small rosettes of leaves on long runners. These are plantlets, each with its own growing centre. They now need a root system that can support them.

One easy way to follow the process is to rest a plantlet on the surface of a small pot of suitable, lightly moist mix while it is still attached to the parent. Gently hold it against the surface without burying its leaves. Once roots have formed, cut the connecting runner with clean scissors. Spider plantlets can also root after removal; keeping the connection lets you wait for roots before separating them.

A substantial peace lily develops several rosettes in the same pot. Division separates them into independent pieces, each with leaves, a growing centre and roots. It does not mean cutting an arbitrary root ball in half.

Carefully take the plant out of its pot and look for sections that can be separated with their roots. Gently loosen them with your fingers; cut firm connections with a clean tool. Keep enough healthy roots and foliage on each piece. A single trunk, such as a weeping fig’s, cannot be divided this way. The repotting guide explains pot choice and planting.

African violets and certain begonias can be propagated from leaf cuttings. New plants develop from the leaf or suitable leaf sections. The right pieces and cuts depend on the species; do not simply apply stem-cutting instructions to a leaf.

If someone has given you just one leaf, identify the plant first. Some leaves form roots without developing into a complete new plant. Particular cultivars may also lose the leaf pattern you want to keep; see the golden-edged snake plant example below.

A suitable stem cutting can root directly in an airy propagation medium; species such as pothos can also root in water. A glass makes roots easy to see, but they have to adjust when moved into potting mix. An already-rooted division does not need a detour through a glass of water. The potting-mix guide will help you choose a suitable medium.

For the soft-stemmed cuttings described here, choose bright light out of direct sun and keep the rooting medium lightly moist rather than saturated. Water rooted divisions according to the species and their smaller pots. Succulent leaf cuttings need a different approach. The guides to light and watering explain the basics.

Note the method and date, and look for intact roots and new growth. A fixed number of days tells you little about success. In Plantly, you can connect the new plant to its parent in a family tree while keeping its photos and care on its own profile.