Propagating Plants By Leaf Cuttings

Press, Volume CI, Issue 30005, 14 December 1962, Page 7

Propagating Plants By Leaf Cuttings

Many homes possess house plants and their culture offers much interest to the householder. When out visiting we often see other house plants that we should like to possess and ask: “Will it grow’ from slips?’’ The answer most probably will be Yes, for house plants are generally fairly easy to propagate. Propagation is a fascinating subject and it would need a very large book to list and describe all the methods. In this article I intend to deal with those plants that can be propagated from leaves. This is a small group but nearly all members of the group are house plants. Propagation ’ buy this method can be carried out at any time of the year but best results are obtained from young leaves during the summer when the higher temperatures induce faster rooting. Peperomlas and African violets.— Those peperomias without stems can be propagated from leaf cuttings; those with stems are propagated from normal stem cuttings. The leaf together with the leaf stalk is detached. A pot is filled with sandy soil, and on top of this is placed about half an inch of sharp sand. The leaf stalks are then inserted half to threequarters of an inch deep in the rooting medium around the edge of the pot. This is then placed in a polythene bag. after being watered, and stood in a warm place out of the sun. Sansevieria trifasciata.—A leaf is detached and cut into pieces each about an inch long. These are then inserted around the edge of a pot in a sandy mixture, care being taken to keep the pieces the right way up. There is no need to keep these cuttings in a polythene bag; they can be stood on the window sill although it is best to keep them out of the direct sun. Although roots are produced fairly quickly, it takes a long time before the shoot emerges. This is formed at the base of the cutting and grows at first horizontally before it turns upwards so that it emerges from the rooting medium at some distance from the cutting. The variegated form of this plant if

propagated in this manner, will produce only plain green plants without variegation. Begonia rex.— Detach a leaf with about one inch of leaf stalk and cut through the main veins on the underside of the leaf. Half-fill a box with sandy soil and cover with a layer of sharp sand. Insert so that the leaf lies flat on the surface. Place a few small stones on top of the leaf so that the veins on the underside are in contact with the sand. Cover the box with polythene or a sheet of glass, place in a warm position out of the sun. After about 4 weeks a tiny plant will develop first at the place where the leaf stalk joins the leaf and then at the places where the leaf veins were cut. There is a group of plants which include, certain ferns <e.g. Asplenium bulbiferum) Bryophyllum (a genus of succulents) and Tolmiea menziesii (the piggy-back plant) which produce tiny plants naturally on their leaves. The leaf is detached from the plant and pegged down on-to a pot or box of sandy soil where the tiny plant will form roots and produce a new plant. All methods of propagation require that the propagator be patient. Do not go digging up the cuttings every few days to see if they have rooted. Inspect the pots periodically to see if they need water. When the new plants have become big enough to handle they can be potted separately.