Succulents are amazing plants for beginning gardeners. They’re hard to kill, don’t need constant attention, and even better: you can learn how to propagate them from leaf cuttings. What does that mean? Let’s say you have one succulent and you want to have all the succulents. You can take a cutting from your original and use it to grow a fresh new plant baby.
Succulents aren’t the only kind of plant you can propagate with cuttings or leaves, but they are one of the easier ones. Not to mention they’re absolutely beautiful. If you’re ready to fill your house with newly propagated succulents, check out this how-to guide. You’ll have all the succulents you could want in no time.
Not all succulents are the same. Some can be propagated with a leaf (just pop off a leaf and use that to start your new plant), others need to be propagated with a cutting (taking part of the stem). Take some time to find out what kind of plant you’ve got and whether it propagates with leaves or cuttings.
Now it’s time to get into the dirt
To get started, you’ll want to find a good workspace where you can make a mess. I like to use a pair of gardening gloves so that I can really dig into the dirt without any issues. Make sure you’ve got all your materials so that you can move your new cutting into a fresh pot quickly and easily.
If your plant propagates with leaves, you can pick up a leaf that has fallen or remove one from the stem. What you want to focus on is getting the full leave, right at the stem. You can twist it to make sure that the leaf doesn’t break.
If you’re using cuttings, you want to make sure that you’ve got a sharp pair of scissors. Snip off part of the stem: this can be the top, including the rosette and leaves, or an offshoot if you’ve got one.
Get a clean cut.
One thing to focus on when you’re getting your cutting or leaf is a clean cut. Jagged edges will make it very hard for your little cutting to grow. I use these shears to get the best cut possible. I also like to trim off any rosettes or leaves from a stem cutting before I get ready to plant it.
The next step is to dry out your cutting or leaf. Leave it somewhere in the sun (I like to give mine a little bed of paper towel) until it’s scabbed over or starts to shrivel slightly. This will probably be between 1 and 3 days. Once it shrivels, you know it’s time to take it to its new home.
Prep your pot
Now that your baby succulent is ready for its new home, you have to make sure the new home is ready for it! Choose a pot that will fit your propagated succulent. I love this set from Amazon because it gives me room to grow so many new plants. Yes. More plants.
Give it some healthy soil
Prep your pot with a healthy dose of soil. This potting mix is a great option to give your new succulent plenty of nutrients. If you’re using leaves, you can just pop them right on top of the soil. For cuttings, it’s generally a good idea to “plant” them in the soil by burying one end.
This may be the hardest step of all. You have to be patient while your propagated succulent does its magic. It will take some time before you begin to see results. Don’t expect to see anything sooner than two weeks.
Don’t forget to water
While you’re waiting for your new plant to grow, it will need some watering. You don’t need to go overboard here: only water when you notice that the soil is dry. You can use a spray bottle or a traditional watering can to make sure that little baby has all the water it needs.
Once you start to see your new succulent grow, it’s ready to be loved just like your original plant. When it’s big enough, your new plant can be used to propagate even more succulents, which means you’ll be able to fill your entire house with these sweet plants soon enough.