Cloning a Jade Plant
The Jade plants, (Scientific name: Crassula ovata) are a succulent that produce small pink or white flowers depending on the variety. It is a very common houseplant and is also sometimes referred to a the 'lucky plant'.
These plants are hardy and can be grown large or turned into your own personal bonsai - and to be perfectly honest, that is why I decided to take a cutting off of my large jade plant - BONSAI!
To propogate a plant, first we need a pot and to fill the base with rocks or wood debris to assist in drainage before we add our potting mix. This is especially important for succulents, they need water of course, but they don't like too much of it.
Create a space in the pot and prepare your cuttings by removing as much extra leaf around the nodes as possible. A node in the plant world is like the armpit of your plants leaf, but remember you still require some leaf in order for photosynthesis to occur. Some plants will do better with less leaf, and some plants like succulents can survive for a long time as a cutting - so I left a little bit extra here!
Rooting hormone isn't always necessary for propagating plant cuttings but it can accelerate the process. Succulents specifically are a variety of plant that don't need much help, but just for good measure!
Alright, now put your plant cuttings in the pot, pack the soil and add a bit of water.
Now set oven to broil and ... just kidding. Set your plant cutting in the sun or shade depending what the variety prefers and water everytime the soil dries for a couple of weeks. If your cutting doesn't take - and not all of them do, just try again!
An interesting tid-bit about succulents - Just the petals or 1 small leaf can be propagated and usually without any help. If you wanted to do this with the leaf we just removed from our cutting, wait for the plant wounds to heal (they seal and turn brown), stick them in some soil and bam, add water. There is a high probability that the succulents will begin to root.
Happy Gardening!
