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Succulents can be propagated in various ways, depending on the type of plant: separation, cuttings, or even seed.
It can take less than a week or more than a couple of months to propagate a succulent; it depends on the method used and the plant. Asexual propagation takes part of a stock plant, grows an identical replication of that stock plant, and is faster than seed propagation.
Table of Contents
What Is The Correct Propagation Method For My Succulent Species?
There are four asexual methods of succulent propagation. Which of the methods to use depends on the succulent species. Below is an overview of asexual succulent propagation techniques for various plants.
Succulents You Can Propagate Using Their Runners, Buds, and Plantlets (Pups)
Succulents that can be propagated from juvenile growth on the parent plant:
- Agave
- Aloe
- Gasteria
- Haworthia
- Orostachys
- Kalanchoes
Succulents You Can Propagate Using Leaf Cuttings
Plants with fleshy leaves are multiplied by placing the base of the leaf in the rooting media.
- Crassula
- Echeveria
- Gasteria
- Graptopetalum
- Haworthia
- Kalanchoe
- Sansevieria
- Sedum
Succulents You Can Propagate Using Root Division
Individual plants can be created by separating root groupings. These isolated plants can have scant or no roots, and they ought to be inserted into a rooting mix and left there until healthy roots form.
- Aloe
- Haworthia
- Sedum
- Sansevieria
- Kalanchoe
- Peperomia
Remember that plants grown from root division are not genetically identical to the parent plant. Plant mutations such are variegations are only transferable via folial or tissue culture propagation, not root or seed.
Succulents You Can Propagate Using Stem Cuttings
A stem cutting should have several leaves. Stem cuttings are often rooted in water, but pretreating the cutting with a rooting hormone powder before being planted in a rooting mix speeds the process up. Before planting, cuttings should be let to dry out for a few days to seal the cut end.
- Aeonium
- Crassula
- Delosperma
- Echeveria
- Euphorbia
- Graptoveria
- Kalanchoe
- Peperomia
- Portulacaria
- Sedum
- Senecio
The vast majority of succulent varieties propagate well from stem cuttings.
Succulents You Can Propagate from Seeds
Growing new succulents for your collection from seed is always a gamble. On average, germination rates are about 50%.
Seed propagation is the slowest way of expanding your succulent collection, but it can be great fun.
- Sedum varieties
How Long Does It Take for a Succulent to Root?
Dismembered parts of a parent plant, whether leaves, stems, or pups, are still producing sugars through photosynthesis or at least trying to. However, the process is not possible without water.
If the cutting or pup is hydrated, the need for water will trigger the development of adventitious roots. These fibrous roots grow laterally and are the primary supplier of the plant’s nutrient and water needs.
How long these roots take to develop varies.
Cuttings
Cuttings are the second quickest way to reproduce genetically identical plants, and the technique allows you to clone the parent plant and preserves all desirable traits. However, flaws, including disease susceptibility, are also passed on to offspring.
Most succulent species can be propagated from pieces of the stem cut from the parent plant. Although this propagation method is quick and simple, ensure your knife and other utensils have been sanitized to avoid introducing surface pathogens.
Before planting, the cuttings for the stems and leaves must heal or callus. A minimum of four to seven days should be given for the cuttings to air dry.
If the cutting tools were sterilized and clean, the callus would form without incident
After the cutting has callused, plant the callused end in a succulent-friendly growing medium that has been lightly watered.
Ensure the end is not too deep so the cutting can form roots.
A sterile medium is best for plant-starting, so avoid using potting soils or compost.
Growers commonly use perlite, vermiculite, coarse sand, or a combination of these inert materials.
Rooting can be accelerated by using plant hormones such as indole butyric acid and naphthyl acetic acid. It’s a myth that Vitamin B1 boosts root growth.
Throughout the developing process, water lightly; rotting is brought on by overwatering.
You can start a succulent from cuttings in about six weeks.
Divisions
Harvesting plantlets or pups is the quickest way to reproduce genetically identical plants. Many succulent species naturally reproduce by developing new tissue called offsets or plantlets.
As root tissue evolves into leaf buds, these offsets develop at the mother plant’s base, and some offsets form on leaves.
With basal offsets, the container eventually fills up as more tiny plants emerge and encircle the parent plant. These offset plantlets can be gently removed from the pot along with their root balls.
Before removing the plant from the container, give it a good watering so that more soil will cling to the roots. The little plants can’t grow until they have roots.
The time it takes for plantlets to grow without roots is the same as for cutting, as the process includes waiting for a callus to form over wounds.
Put rooted plantlets in their own pots, and you have an immediate new plant.
Some succulent types, like Pink Butterfly Kalanchoe, will develop offsets on the leaf margins.
Indoor Succulents that Grow Old
Some pets can outlive their carers – parrots are known to live more than a hundred years in captivity. There is also a pot plant that will still be flowing long after you’re no longer there if taken care of.
Schlumbergera is the Christmas cactus genus of the Cactaceae family. It is native to Brazil and is technically an epiphyte that grows in rainforests.
It has fleshy stems and showy leaves and grows well as a houseplant, preferring moisture but adapting to various home environments.
These plants can live for over a hundred years, so a well-cared-for specimen will brighten your living space for decades to come.
In Summary
Succulents are, without a doubt, one of my favorite plants, and I think there is nothing else like them in terms of colors, blossoms, and fascinating growth patterns. But the ease with which you can propagate succulents is my favorite aspect of these plants.
You can quickly increase the number of cacti and succulent plants in your collection by taking cuttings or dividing existing ones.
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