DIY: Propagating succulents

 

A quick post this Saturday morning before I use the last of my energy to go out thrifting and garden shopping with Doc. This week has been tough, and I was sure I was going into labor about 8 different times last night. I keep bargaining with Homekid to try to wait until early to mid-week to make their appearance, as I really want this weekend to continue to work on his/her room, relax with Doc, and watch PSU (my alma mater) crush IU (Doc's) in some college football. I've also been promised nachos. Homekid has been informed that they do not get to enjoy the nachos if they decide to show up today, but there really is no reasoning with an unborn Homekid, is there?

 

But I digress, as per usual. Earlier this week I noticed that a little side project I had started about 6 weeks ago had made some progress, and I wanted to share it with you guys. I had heard that it's easy to propagate and root succulents merely by removing a few leaves, leaving them on a sunny windowsill, and forgetting about them. I decided to put that propagation method to the test, and low and behold, about 6 weeks later, 2 out of the 4 little leaves that I had so haphazardly placed on the windowsill and forgotten about decided to root! So that's fun. (The other 2 shriveled up and died rather quickly...) Sorry for the horrendous picture, but it's rather difficult with a 38+ week belly to lean over and worry about lighting. :)

 

DIY: Propagating Succulent Leaves:

 

1. Gently remove a few leaves from your succulent plant. (I'm not sure what the exact name of this plant is, as my mom got it for me as a present last year, but when we go to the garden center today I will scout it out...)

 

2. Put said leaves on a sunny windowsill.

 

3. Seriously, forget about them. You don't have to do a damn thing. Either they will root, or they will shrivel up, and I don't think there's really anything you can do to ensure one or the other, based on what I've read about the process. Just make sure they stay dry and get some sun.

 

4. One day, a few weeks later, for the ones that didn't shrivel up and die, roots will magically appear. Yes, magically. This process took about 6 weeks for us, but that may differ based on your climate/time of year that you attempt this.

 

5. Plant in a pot as you would any other succulent. Remember they don't like a lot of water, so don't oversaturate it when you water it. Just a little bit of water will suffice.

 

Sidenote: I also tried another method of rooting, and I think it worked as well. It's hard to tell, because it involved gently removing a leaf, and just sticking it in the soil, with the cut side down in the soil. I say I think it worked because the little leaf is still green, and that was a long time ago, so if it were dead it would not be green. I say I can't tell if it worked because I can't see the presence of roots, being that it is in soil. But I imagine that if it hadn't worked it would have shriveled up and died, like one of its counterparts that I tried in the same pot. So give both methods a go and see which works best for you.

 

Do you have any other methods for propagating and rooting succulents? I'm all ears as I'm new to this type of propagation!

 

A la prochaine friends...

 

Honey