Propagation by Cuttings: Multiply Your Plants for Free

Propagation by cuttings lets you multiply your plants for free, because a snipped stem of pothos, rosemary or geranium will grow its own roots if you give it the right conditions.

A cutting is a piece of stem, leaf or root that you persuade to grow its own roots, and it will give a plant genetically identical to its parent. The method that works depends on the plant and the season: soft young shoots in spring, firmer shoots in late summer, bare woody stems in winter. Get the type, the timing and the rooting medium right, and success rates for easy plants run high.

This guide is for anyone who wants to multiply houseplants, herbs, shrubs and fruit bushes without buying new stock. It sits within the Plant Growing Guides guides, and it pairs naturally with choosing pots and potting mix, because the medium decides more cuttings than any hormone does.

What actually makes cuttings root in propagation

Stem tissue near a node contains cells that can switch identity and become root cells. Wounding the stem and cutting it from the plant triggers that switch, and it needs three things to complete: moisture at the cut, oxygen around it, and enough warmth. Light matters too, but only because the leaves must keep making a little sugar to feed the new roots while there’s no root system to feed the leaves.

That last point explains most decisions. Keep too many leaves and the cutting loses water faster than it can take it up, so it wilts. Strip every leaf and it starves. The working compromise is two to four leaves, and on large-leaved plants such as hydrangea or fig, halve each leaf with scissors to reduce water loss.

Juvenile tissue roots more readily than old wood. Vigorous new shoots from the base of a rosemary or lavender root far more easily than a stiff tip from the top of an old plant. If you have a plant that’s struggling to root, take cuttings from the strongest regrowth after a hard trim.

Propagation by cuttings: types, timing and best candidates

In hot, dry or subtropical climates the calendar shifts. Softwood cuttings can be taken from late winter, and mid-summer heat may make semi-hardwood cuttings wilt in open air, so root them in shade with a cover. In humid tropical gardens, many shrubs such as hibiscus, bougainvillea and plumeria root outdoors through much of the year, and the main enemy becomes rot rather than drying out.

Water or mix: how to choose for cuttings

Water rooting is easy to watch and costs nothing, but water-grown roots are thin, brittle and adapted to a low-oxygen liquid. Mix-grown roots are branched and ready for a pot. The right choice depends on the plant.

Never use ordinary garden soil. It holds too much water, packs around the stem and carries rot organisms. A sterile, gritty mix is the single biggest difference between a bag of failures and a tray of healthy cuttings.

Step by step propagation: a semi-hardwood cutting in mix

1. Prepare the pot first. Fill a 9 to 12 cm pot with a mix of roughly equal parts perlite and fine compost or coir. Wet it, then let it drain so it’s damp, not dripping. Dibble holes with a pencil around the edge.
2. Choose the shoot. Take a healthy, non-flowering side shoot 10 to 15 cm long in the morning, when it’s full of water. If there’s a flower bud, pinch it off.
3. Cut cleanly. Use a sharp knife or secateurs wiped with alcohol. Cut straight across just below a node, then strip the lower half of the leaves. For hard-to-root plants, wound the base by scraping a 2 cm sliver of bark from one side.
4. Treat the base. Tap the cut end into hormone powder or gel and shake off the excess. Too much hormone can inhibit rooting, so a thin film is enough.
5. Insert and firm. Push the cutting into the hole so at least a third of its length, and at least one node, is below the surface. Press the mix gently around it. Leaves must not touch the mix or each other.
6. Create humidity. Cover with a clear bag or domed lid propped with sticks, and place in bright, indirect light at about 18 to 25°C. Open the cover for a minute daily and remove any fallen leaves at once.
7. Check for roots. After 4 weeks, tug gently. Resistance means roots. New top growth is a better sign still. Remove the cover gradually over a week.

Water rooting cuttings that survive potting up

Roots grown in water look impressive and then collapse in soil, because they have no root hairs adapted to air pockets. Two habits cut that loss. First, move the cutting while roots are still short, 2 to 4 cm, rather than waiting for long tangles. Short roots adapt; long ones snap and rot. Second, pot into a very open mix and keep it damp for the first fortnight, with a clear bag over the top for the first week.

Change the water every few days, or at the first sign of cloudiness, and keep the glass out of direct sun to stop algae. A little water topping up isn’t enough, because stale water holds little oxygen.

Decision rules for choosing what to try

• If the plant has soft, juicy stems (coleus, basil, pothos), use water or damp mix and expect roots within two weeks.
• If the plant is woody but evergreen (rosemary, camellia, holly), wait for semi-ripe wood and use hormone, bottom warmth and a cover.
• If the plant is deciduous and fruit-bearing (fig, currant, grape), take hardwood cuttings in winter and leave them alone in a trench or deep pot.
• If the plant is a named hybrid or patented variety, check that propagation is allowed before you share or sell plants. Home use for your own garden is normally unproblematic, but patent rules vary.
• If the plant is grafted (many roses, fruit trees, some lilacs), a cutting grows the rootstock or its own roots, which may behave differently from the named variety. Cuttings from grafted plants are best treated as an experiment.

What cuttings need to root

A cutting loses water through its leaves before it grows roots, so a propagator or clear bag holds humidity and protects pothos, coleus and geranium from wilt. Cutting just below a node improves rooting because hormone-rich tissue sits there, and sharp secateurs prevent the crushed stems that invite fungus. Perlite and coir drain well and stop the soggy base that causes rot.

A heat mat warms the mix and boosts rooting in rosemary, lavender and fuchsia, while a bright spot without direct sun shades the leaves from scorch. Removing the lower leaves reduces rot, and trimming big leaves in half cuts water loss. Why do some cuttings fail? Too much moisture encourages botrytis and damping-off, so you should vent the bag and discard any stem that turns black. Layering suits clematis and hydrangea when cuttings prove difficult, and your extension service can advise on timing for your area.

How propagation by cuttings turns one plant into many

Semi-ripe cuttings of rosemary, lavender and sage root best in late summer, because stems that are firm at the base hold enough food to feed new roots. A cutting of 8 to 10 cm needs at least two nodes, and sharp secateurs prevent the crushed stems that invite fungus. Hormone powder boosts rooting in fuchsia and hydrangea, but pothos and coleus root in plain water within 3 weeks.

A propagator holds humidity near 80% and protects geranium leaves from wilt, while perlite and coir drain well and stop the soggy base that causes rot. A heat mat warms the mix to 20°C and shortens rooting for rosemary and fuchsia by a week or more. Strong sun scorches thrips-free leaves too, so a sheer curtain shades the propagator and protects cuttings of mint and basil. Botrytis spreads in still, wet air, so you should vent the propagator daily and remove dead leaves from pothos and coleus. You’ll know a cutting has rooted when it resists a gentle tug, and the RHS lists timing for each plant. Pots with perlite mix improve drainage and prevent rot in the first 4 weeks.

If you keep your cutting tray away from direct sun and check it every 2 days, you’ll lose far fewer stems, and your future plants will cost you nothing but a little compost and patience.

Common mistakes and what causes them

A quick way to tell a dead cutting from a slow one is the scratch test. Nick a tiny strip of bark at the base with a fingernail. Green beneath means alive and waiting. Brown or black and papery means the cutting has died, and you should start again with a fresh one.

Troubleshooting a stalled tray

If the problem looks more like a disease on the parent plant than on the cutting, compare symptoms with reading plant signals before you take more cuttings from it.

Hardening off the new plant from cuttings

A rooted cutting has been living in high humidity and still air, and it needs several days to adapt. Remove the cover for a few hours at first, then for longer each day over a week. Hold off on fertiliser until you see new leaves, then use a half-strength feed. Outdoor-bound plants go through the same exposure routine described in how to transplant seedlings: shade first, then morning sun, then full conditions. Water new plants carefully, since a small root system dries and rots fast; the principles in watering plants the right way apply with extra force here.

What to read next

If cuttings aren’t suited to your plant, sowing from seed is the usual alternative. To time cuttings against your local season, use the seasonal planting calendar. For rose-specific rooting and care, read how to grow roses, and for kitchen plants that root readily, see herb garden essentials. Back to the Plant Growing Guides.