How to Propagate Succulents from Cuttings

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Have you ever wondered how to propagate succulents from cuttings? It’s a super easy process that can be done with most varieties of succulents!

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Succulents can be pretty expensive. If you’re trying to fill in a succulent garden, you might not want to buy all those succulents at once.

The good news is, it’s pretty easy to propagate succulents from cuttings! So you only have to buy a few succulents to get started.

Propagating your own succulents will save you money and it’s super fun to do!

How to Propagate Succulents from Cuttings

Depending on the variety of succulents there are two main ways to propagate succulents: by using the leaves or stem cuttings of the plant.

Propagate from Leaves

The first way to propagate succulents is from the leaves. Gently twist the leaves of the succulent until they pop off.

My other favorite way to get leaves is to look around the plant. Leaves sometimes fall onto the dirt beneath the plant and you can gather these leaves to form new plants!

You can plant the leaves directly in dirt, can place them in water, or my favorite is to lay them on top of some rocks.

Get a pot and fill it with rocks, this will help with drainage. Then place the succulent leaves on top.

There are pros and cons to each way. I find root rot to be a greater problem when popping leaves directly into the dirt.

If you put them in water, they can mold if you don’t change the water pretty frequently. Placing them directly on top of rocks seems to be the easiest way to propagate succulents with the least amount of work.

You’ll want to keep your leaves in indirect light and keep them moist. Water frequently, you can spray with a spray bottle.

It takes a while for the leaves to start to grow. Roots and new leaves will begin to form in 2-3 weeks. It will be a couple months before they are big enough to be potted.

If you don’t have a few months to wait, or your succulent doesn’t have leaves, you can propagate your succulents from stem cuttings.

Propagate from Stem Cuttings

Succulents are extremely hardy plants. When cut they will grow back roots.

Succulents that have ‘branches’ can be cut and replanted. You should allow the cuttings to dry out before replanting.

This gives you a more mature plant that can be planted and will grow leaves. I used this technique to fill in my front planter with succulents that were already thriving in that area.

You can also do this with plants that hang over the pot, like string of pearls. As the strings get long, cut some and you can replant into the top of the plant, or in a new pot!

Propagating Succulents from Pups

Some succulents have ‘pups’ or little baby succulents that will start growing at the base.

You can gently pull these succulents out, separate the roots, and replant them.

Propagating succulents is super easy and is a great way to full out your succulent garden! Have you ever propagated succulents?