5 Simple Ways to Propagate Succulents

Succulents are super popular these days and for good reason. They add color and texture to your home and garden, they aren’t difficult to maintain, and they are pretty easy to propagate.

This means that if you have a friend with a succulent, chances are you can grow your plant from theirs. In the same vein, if you have a succulent of your own, get busy multiplying them and start sharing those plants around with other friends.

While you can grow succulents from seed, growing new succulents from their leaves and stem cuttings is much easier. Not all succulents grow from both leaf and stem cuttings, so you will have to research the specific type of succulents you have.

Read on to learn how to propagate your succulent plants, creating more and more greenery for this world.

1. Propagating from Leaves

Source: Garden Answer/YouTube

Many succulents can be quite compact with no discernable stem or branches. These are the plants that make great candidates for leaf propagation.

Propagating succulents from their leaves is probably the easiest method. Look for a leaf that has dropped from the succulent plant and use it to start a new plant. You will just have to make sure that this leaf is still reasonably fresh and not shriveled up.

You can also pluck a leaf directly from the plant. Try to remove it as close to the stem as possible.

2. Propagating from Stem Cutting

Other succulents have more easily identifiable stems and branches. These are the plants that you can likely take cuttings from. When choosing a piece to cut, be sure to choose a healthy section and cut 2-3 inches of the plant.

Some of these types of plants may also produce offshoots that you can cut away from the mother plant and regrow.

3. Curing Your Leaves and Cuttings

Next, you will need to leave the cuttings or leaves on a paper towel in a dry place so that the ‘wounds’ can heal. This will help prevent diseases from entering the cutting via the freshly cut part. It will also prevent the cutting from absorbing too much water during the propagation process and rotting.

Leave the cutting for a few days. If you start to see them shrivel, take them on to the next step.

4. Water Method of Propagation

Source: Small Things With Moumita/YouTube

To propagate in water, you will need an old jar or shallow bottle. Put your leaves or cuttings, ‘wound’ side down, in water about half an inch deep.

Place your jar in a sunny spot on a windowsill with good ventilation. Change the water out weekly or as needed. Once you notice roots growing, you will able to carefully replant the leaves and cuttings into soil.

5. Soil Method of Propagation

Source: Passion For Plants/YouTube

This method is great for potentially cutting out a step if you propagate your cutting in the pot it is going to ultimately live in. Otherwise, your newly rooted seedlings are easy to transplant from their nursery to their new home.

Prepare a tray or other container with soil and moisten it. Amazingly, if you have leaf cuttings, all you have to do is place them down on top of the soil. Make sure that the cut end is very close to the soil so that the newly formed roots can find it.

If you have a small branch cutting, plant it in the soil so that it can hold itself upright. You can add many leaves and cuttings to the same container and transplant them to their containers once they are established.

Place the containers in a warm, sunny spot and keep the soil moist but not saturated.

What to Look for

After a week or two, the leaves should have started to grow roots and new tiny leaves should emerge. You might also notice that the original leaf has started to wither away. These are all really good signs.

You might notice that some of the leaves have grown roots that are sprouting up into the air. This just means that the roots weren’t able to find the soil.

Your cuttings should appear stout and healthy and show signs of new growth, too.

What to Do with Your New Succulents

People tend to get pretty inventive when potting their succulents, so let your imagination run wild. The only rules are making sure that you plant good, well-draining soil and get to live in a warm sunny spot but away from direct sunlight.

Find out the specific species of plant that you have and research its individual growing needs.

Related Content:

• 10 Indoor Plants That Improve Overall Health and Wellness
• Houseplant Fast Fashion is a Thing
• How to Repel Household Pests the Natural Way With Plants
• Yes, You Can Eat These Houseplants
• Start Small When Growing Your Food: Container Gardening 101

Easy Ways to Help the Planet:

• Eat Less Meat: Download Food Monster, the largest plant-based Recipe app on the App Store, to help reduce your environmental footprint, save animals and get healthy. You can also buy a hard or soft copy of our favorite vegan cookbooks.
• Reduce Your Fast Fashion Footprint: Take initiative by standing up against fast fashion Pollution and supporting sustainable and circular brands like Tiny Rescue that raise awareness around important issues through recycled zero-waste clothing designed to be returned and remade over and over again.
• Support Independent Media: Being publicly funded gives us a greater chance to continue providing you with high-quality content. Please consider supporting us by donating!
• Sign a Petition: Your voice matters! Help turn petitions into victories by signing the latest list of must-sign petitions to help people, animals, and the planet.
• Stay Informed: Keep up with the latest news and important stories involving animals, the environment, sustainable living, food, health, and human interest topics by subscribing to our newsletter!
• Do What You Can: Reduce waste, plant trees, eat local, travel responsibly, reuse stuff, say no to single-use plastics, recycle, vote smart, switch to cold water laundry, divest from fossil fuels, save water, shop wisely, Donate if you can, grow your food, volunteer, conserve energy, compost, and don’t forget about the microplastics and microbeads lurking in common household and personal care products!