Water propagation, often misspelled as propogation, is the easiest way to get started multiplying your houseplants! Most types of plants will grow from cuttings in water. This article will highlight some of the best types of plant to try this method–and explain how and why we propagate plants in water.
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Best indoor plant cuttings to grow and propagate in water
The best plants to grow from cuttings in water are those that naturally develop roots quickly. Water propagation requires some part of the plant to be submerged. For this reason, slow rooting plants, like snake plants, can get mushy if they are underwater for too long. A fast rooting time means that the stem doesn’t need to remain underwater for too long.
Easy plant cuttings to propagate in water
The top plants to grow from cuttings in water are also some of the most popular varieties! These plants include pothos, tradescantia, begonias, and philodendrons. For many of these varieties we already have plant-specific propagation guides — follow the links to learn more!
- Propagating pothos in water: this guide covers golden pothos propagation, with instructions that will work for any of the many pothos varieties
- Propagating tradescantia in water: tradescantia is the fastest rooting common houseplant and a great option for getting started with water propagation
- Begonia propagation in water: cane begonias grow rapidly, so cutting them back and propagating the stems can keep your plant a manageable size as well as let you create new babies
- Propagating philodendron in water: there are a huge variety of philodendron species, such as the heart leaf philodendron, that propagate quickly and easily in water
List of plants that grow from cuttings in water
Other types of plants can also be propagated in water!
- Snake plant propagation in water: snake plant propagation is different than vining plants. Check out this guide for advice for cuttings and division.
- Propagating succulents in water: you can propagate succulents from stems and leaves! Make sure to let them callous over before placing in water.
- Propagating monstera in water: propagating monstera in water is easiest with cuttings that have aerial roots. An aerial root submerged in water will grow into a regular root.
- Propagate spider plant in water: spider plants often grow babies dangling off the parent plant. Once you separate them you can root the babies in water.
- Propagating peperomia in water: you can propagate peperomia by both stem and leaf cuttings! The new plants send out new shoots with tiny leaves.
Why do plant cuttings grow roots in water?
Whenever you take a cutting from your plant, the piece you remove can no longer sustain itself. While disconnected from the parent plant, the cutting has no way to get water or nutrients. As a result, it will put all of its energy into root growth. The cutting will continue attempting to grow roots until it can sustain itself again, or dies. Providing water as a propagation medium for your cutting will help it successfully grow roots.
Rooting cuttings in water
When propagating plants in water, you provide them the easiest possible access to what they need. Not only do they receive perfectly uniform access to moisture, but the cuttings also get the nutrients added to the water.
Propagating plants from cuttings in water
Once you have your cuttings, find a container large enough to submerge the nodes or cut area wherever the roots will grow from for your plant. (Check out the plant-specific propagation guides for instructions on how to cut different types of plants.)
Water propagation setup
Clear containers, such as glass or reused plastic takeout cups, are best. Through the transparent sides, you will be able to closely monitor the growth of your cuttings. In addition, make sure that mouth of the container is not narrower than the rest. Vase-shaped containers are not ideal because when roots grow, you can have a hard time getting the plant back out through the narrow neck. Click on the image or link to check the current price:
Next, remove any leaves that would be covered by the water in your container. Your goal is to minimize the amount of organic material to limit decay. Submerged leaves will get soggy and eventually rot, which can be harmful to the cutting. Then, fill the container with fresh tap water and replace it once every few days. You don’t need to use distilled water or anything special; almost all houseplants are completely fine with tap water (the exception being carnivorous plants like the venus fly trap that evolved in bogs with completely pure water).
Once roots appear, add a weak fertilizer like LiquiDirt to provide nutrients for your cutting. I prefer to use a liquid, dilutable fertilizer because adding too many nutrients to the water can allow algae to grow. Not only does algae ruin the aesthetics of clear containers, it can also start to compete with your cuttings and provide more organic material to encourage bacteria and disease. Click on the image or link to check the current price:
Ensuring success when water propagating
To complete the equation for plant growth, you need to continue to provide oxygen and sunlight to your cuttings. While submerged, the only oxygen available to your cutting is what is dissolved in the water. Replacing water frequently helps keep it from getting too state. Adding a small airstone, like the kind used in fishtanks, will keep oxygen levels higher in large water vessels with lots of cuttings or expensive ones that need the best shot at success. Click on the image or link to check the current price:
Make sure to provide your cuttings plenty of light, by placing them in a bright window or under a grow light. While they are in the fragile state of rooting, it is especially critical that they receive enough light. The majority of houseplants need “bright, indirect light,” which means approximately 20% of the strength of direct outdoor sun. It may surprise you to learn that even a few feet away from the window, indoor light levels are usually 1% or less of the light outdoors. Our eyes are meant to work in varying light levels so humans are not good at distinguishing the exponential scale of light intensity. Nevertheless, it makes a big difference to our plants!
Don’t worry if you don’t have the perfect windowsill; grow lights are an easy option to make sure your cuttings can thrive in any location in your home. GE grow lights are my favorite because they come in multiple sizes and can fit into a normal lightbulb socket. The light is high intensity and optimized for plant grow, but appears bright white, which looks great in your home compared to ugly purple grow lights. I always order them on Amazon because the price is usually discounted compared to big box hardware stores. Click on the image or link to check the current price:
Rooting plant cuttings in water vs soil
Because water roots don’t need to draw moisture from the soil and maneuver around obstacles, they grow thinner with more fragile root hairs. As a result, water roots can grow more quickly than soil roots. The main benefit of the speed of water rooting is that your cutting will be able to sustain itself again more quickly. As a result, it remains more healthy and less stressed.
Furthermore, water is a cleaner medium without organic material like soil. Rooting cuttings in soil requires consistent moisture levels that can cut off the airflow in the soil. This leads to an anaerobic environment with harmful microorganisms, disrupting the balance of the soil’s ecosystem. When that happens, it is easy for cuttings to rot.
You may wonder if the speed that water roots grow versus soil roots means that the overall propagation process will happen faster. The answer is sometimes, but not necessarily, because cuttings grown in water need to transition to soil to start growing soil roots. The overall time depends on how well you transition your cuttings.
Transitioning cuttings from water to soil
There is a common misconception that plants that grow from cuttings in water for too long cannot be switched back to soil. In fact, the reality is more complicated. The longer the plant grows in water, the more water roots it will develop. More roots are always better than less when transitioning a plant between mediums, even if they are not the correct type. The difficulties that might arise from switching plant cuttings in water to soil result from 1. the amount of roots needed to sustain a certain sized plant in water versus soil and 2. keeping the water roots happy in the new medium while the plant starts its soil roots.
Plant type
You may have heard that one type of plant or another is difficult to transition between mediums or doesn’t do well. In truth, no plant likes being replanted in a different medium because it is disruptive and not part of its normal growth routine. The success of the transplant depends mainly on how well you acclimate the plant to its new conditions, not the type of plant.
How much water roots is enough?
First, let’s address the amount of roots. Due to the ease of receiving water and nutrients, a plant growing in water needs a smaller root system. For example, say you have a plant with three leaves that grows exactly enough roots to sustain itself in water. Once you move that plant to soil, that same amount of roots might only be enough to sustain two leaves in a more challenging environment, so the plant will shed its oldest leaf. In order to prevent leaf loss when transitioning, you should wait until your plant has more than enough roots.
How do you know how much that is? The exact length or quantity of roots depends a lot on the plant, so there is a lot of varying advice. The easiest way to know is to look at your plant’s behavior. Once you see visible signs of growth, such as a new leaf starting, you know the plant has enough roots to sustain itself. Take a picture to remember what the size of the root system is. Then, wait until the root system increases by half, or one and a half times (150%) of the original size. Switching the cutting to soil after this point ensures that it can afford to lose some roots. Even if it loses up to 1/3 of its water collection efficiency, there will still be enough roots to sustain the new plant.
Acclimating plants grown from cuttings in water to soil
Lastly, take into account the difference between water and soil roots. Once you place your cutting in soil, any new roots it grows will be soil roots. In the meantime, though, the water roots are used to consistently moist conditions. If you wait until the soil is dry before watering the first time, the water roots can dry out too much and die. Ease the transition for your cutting by starting off planting it in moist soil, and gradually reduce the amount of water for a few weeks until you are watering normally for a soil-grown plant. Click on the image or link to check the current price:
Want to use what we use to propagate plants? Check out our recommended best plant propagation supplies on Amazon!