On your journey to learn how to propagate houseplants, tradescantia is one of the most rewarding to grow! This fast-growing plant is the simplest to root of all. Whether you plan to use your tradescantia propagations to make new baby plants or fill larger pots with lush, overflowing vines, we’ll cover all the methods here!
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Tradescantia plant names
Tradescantia come in many varieties, patterns, and colors, including cream, pink, purple, and burgundy in addition to green. The name “Tradescantia” refers to many different species of plants in the Tradescantia genus, as well as some in the genus Callisia. Tradescantia also has a variety of nicknames to match its variety of species, including inch plant, spiderwort, and dayflower. Some varieties are fuzzy, while others have smooth leaves.
Some of the most popular species of tradescantia (with nicknames in parenthesis) include:
- Zebrina – the most common type of tradescantia has green leaves with silver zebra stripes and magenta undersides. Tradescantia zebrina comes in a variety of cultivars including “quadricolor” and “red gem”.
- Blossfeldiana (lilac, bubblegum, or nanouk) – green leaves striped with pink and cream, with purple undersides
- Sillamontana (white velvet) – green leaves covered in silver-white fuzz
- Spathacea (boat lily, oyster plant, or Moses-in-the-cradle) – elongated green and purple leaves with pearl-like flowers
- Fluminensis (small-leaf spiderwort) – green striped with lavender, yellow, or white
- Pallida (purple heart) – fully dark purple leaves
- Mundula (rainbow or tricolor) – green leaves with pink and white variegation
Wandering Jew plant name versus tradescantia
“Wandering Jew” is an old nickname for some species of tradescantia that has been retired from common use. Even when used with good intentions, this name has anti-Semitic origins so it’s best to use the real name or another nickname instead. You can learn more about the history of tradescantia names at the House Plant Hobbyist blog.
When to propagate tradescantia
Tradescantia is a hearty plant that you can propagate often. Most commonly, people propagate their tradescantia when the strands become “leggy.” This means that the stems have become too long compared to the density of the leaves. For example, a leggy plant might have a few long stems with only a few leaves. The result is a plant that looks scraggly instead of full and bushy.
Tradescantia and other plants become leggy when they are not receiving enough light. The stems of the plant grow longer between each leaf because they are stretching to get closer to the light. If you want to take the guesswork out of lighting once and for all, the best thing you can do is buy a light meter. This will tell you the exact light measurement in foot candles. You can use this information to perfect the placement of every plant and grow light in your home. This the one I use. It is a great value, easy to use, and works perfectly. Click on the image or link to check the current price:
Although it’s a symptom of insufficient lighting, a leggy appearance doesn’t harm your plant. On the other hand, because we use houseplants as decorations in our homes, we can improve the aesthetics via propagation. Propagating tradescantia allows you to prune off leggy stems. Then, returning the rooted cuttings to the same pot can improve the bushiness of your plant by double or even more!
How to cut tradescantia to propagate
The correct way to take tradescantia cuttings is by first identifying your plant’s nodes. If you take a close look at your plant, you can see that there are one or many strands in the pot. Each leaf grows out of a stem, and at the point where the leaf and stem connect there is a ridge around the stem. This is the node.
Can you grow tradescantia from cuttings
An entirely new plant can be grown from a tradescantia cutting as long as you have at least one node in the cutting. The new bud will sprout from the stem near a node, so make sure to leave a little room on each side of the node. New roots also grow from the node.
To take a cutting, identify a location on the stem between two nodes. Using sharp shears to avoid crushing the stem tissue, slice through the stem at the midpoint between the nodes. Depending on how long the stem is, you can repeat the process multiple times to separate many cuttings. The tip cutting of each stem, which includes the newest leaf, will grow new leaves the fastest. Cuttings further down the stem, or mid cuttings, take a bit longer. Click on the image or link for the current price:
Ultra Snip 6.7 Inch Pruning Shear with Stainless Steel Blades
Types of cuttings
The minimum cutting size is a single node (corresponding to a single leaf), which will yield the maximum number of baby plants. The downside of single node cuttings is that they can be hard to position in the propagation medium and take longer to grow. If you want a head start on new long strands in your pot, you can instead take longer cuttings with several nodes. 3-4 inches is a good length. Longer cuttings are easier to propagate and look like a regular plant the soonest.
Aim to leave at least 2/3 of the parent plant behind so that you don’t cut off more than 1/3 of its leaves at once. Soon, you’ll notice new growth on the parent plant coming from the nodes left behind.
Before placing in the rooting medium, you can allow the cut ends of the stem to callous over. Do this by leaving the cuttings in the open air for a few hours. For tradescantia, this step is not critical and your cuttings should be successful either way.
Propagating tradescantia from leaf
Sometimes, you might find yourself in a situation where you have a tradescantia leaf without any of the stem. Regardless of the cause, without a node you cannot propagate just a leaf. It may grow roots and survive for a while but it will not turn into a new plant.
Rooting tradescantia
You’re in luck when rooting tradescantia because this plant roots extremely quickly! The reason for tradescantia’s rooting speed can be traced back to its growth pattern in the wild. As a “creeping” or “carpeting” plant, tradescantia is low growing and often used for groundcover. It spreads across the ground when its trailing stems make contact with the soil and take root, giving the plant a water and nutrient boost to grow faster. As a result, it is adapted to send out root shoots quickly whenever a node is placed in a suitable medium.
How long for tradescantia to root
Tradescantia cuttings can start to grow roots in a matter of days, and be finished rooting in a few weeks. Furthermore, because they are robust plants with small leaves, they don’t need many roots to be ready to replant. Once the roots are a few inches long they are ready to go!
How to propagate tradescantia in water
The best method for propagating tradescantia cuttings is in water. Place each cutting in a container of clean water so that the node is submerged. Then, replace the water every few days.
For a multi-leaf cutting, you can remove the bottom leaves so that it is easier to get more nodes under the water. Leaves that are submerged will start to rot eventually. Preferably you want to keep any remaining leaves above the water level.
Using a clear container for propagating will allow you to watch the roots form. Cut off any leaves or stem that turn brown or black and mushy. Make sure to choose a container with a wide mouth so that the cuttings will be easy to remove once roots grow. Click on the image or link for the current price:
Adding a gentle fertilizer like liquidirt to your propagating water can keep your cuttings fed without causing algae to grow in the water. Start adding fertilizer once you see roots starting to grow. Before it has roots the plant doesn’t have a method to absorb the nutrients. Click on the image or link for the current price:
How to propagate tradescantia in soil
To propagate in soil, select a soil mix with a moisture retaining element. I prefer mixes that use coconut coir like rePotme soil, instead of peat like MiracleGro. Coir is more sustainable & is easy to rewet, where peat can become hydrophobic (water repelling) if it gets too dry. It’s also important to choose a soil with chunky add-ins like perlite to improve drainage. Ingredients with a large particle size help the soil stay moist but not waterlogged. Click on the image or link for the current price:
rePotme Houseplant and Tropical Classic Potting Soil Mix – Mini Bag
Select a pot for your cuttings that will comfortably fit them without extra room on the sides or bottom. Large volumes of extra soil retain too much water and take too long to dry out. Fill the pot partially with soil, place the cuttings in, and fill the rest of the way so that the nodes are under the surface. Try to keep all leaves above the soil, and cut off any that might be buried. Water the cuttings right away, and keep the soil slightly damp to the touch until the cuttings root. It can be difficult to tell what’s happening under the surface, so give one cutting a slight tug. If you find resistance, that means its roots are developing well!
The benefit of rooting in soil is that you don’t need to replant your cuttings once they root. Just return to your typical watering routine of letting the top layer of soil become dry to the touch before watering again.
Soil rooting dangers
For most houseplants, I don’t recommend propagating in soil, but tradescantia is an exception. This plant roots so easily that common soil propagation issues like rot, that can be devastating when they occur invisibly below the level of the soil, are less of a concern.
Rot occurs most commonly when weakened or dying tissue is exposed to organic contaminants for a long period of time in an area that is moist with limited airflow. Your tradescantia cuttings will quickly grow enough roots to sustain themselves, keeping them healthy to resist rot. Furthermore, you only need to keep the soil consistently wet for a week or two until the cuttings establish their roots, limiting the window of ideal rot conditions.
Soil rooting tradescantia without cutting first
As a bonus technique, if your parent plant has very long strands you can try looping them back into the pot. Fasten them using a curved wire or bobby pin so as many nodes as possible are in contact with the soil. When the nodes starting rooting into the pot, you can then cut them free from the original stem. This method allows you to root your tradescantia cuttings prior to separating them from the parent plant’s stem. It works best if you plan to keep your cuttings with the parent, as the roots can be difficult to untangle.
Want to use what we use to propagate plants? Check out our recommended best plant propagation supplies on Amazon!