- slicing shears
- gardening mitts (for handling spiny varieties)
- a little trowel
- potting soil for cacti and succulents
- jars with sufficient drainage holes
Remove Some Leaves or Behead
Take a few leaves at random from your succulent plant, gently twisting each one off the stem without breaking it.
These can be cut off the bottom of the stem, which will be discarded, when it begins to grow lanky.
To remove a specific leaf from a plant, such as a Christmas cactus, you might need to use scissors.
If you’re “beheading,” cut the stem of the plant head cleanly with your scissors or clippers about an inch below the lower leaves.
Plant
When roots start to form, either choose a site in your garden that is ideal for planting or fill well-draining containers of your choosing with potting material.
Sunshine and well-drained soil are ideal for succulent growth. They get paler in the absence of sunlight, and they decompose in excess moisture.
When the sun is less powerful, such as in the early morning or late afternoon, plant in a sunny location.
To lift the cuttings above the edge of your container or garden surface, pile dirt higher. To stabilize the roots, gently tamp the earth down; do not water.
Water and Feed
It’s time to buy a succulent/cactus food at this stage, such as Miracle-Gro Succulent Plant Food, which is sold on Amazon. administer as directed by the manufacturer.
Succulents can also be propagated via cuttings that are placed on top of potting soil and allowed to callus off so they can root themselves in the soil.
Can you transplant a succulent stem that has broken?
Succulents are a preferred option for many individuals due to their hardiness as a plant. Given the correct conditions, it can develop new roots, and it is much simpler to propagate than other plants. In fact, succulents can develop on their own if the soil is sufficiently damp! Sadly, it doesn’t always happen, therefore you have to foster a favorable climate for it to flourish.
Succulents are tough plants, but it doesn’t make them unbreakable or immune to damage. There are many things that can harm these plants; anything from neglect to over-care can result in fading, tension, or injury. Since I’m very certain that you already have a broken succulent on your hands, let’s fix it first before moving on.
Method #1: Leaves Falling Off
When leaves begin to fall, for example, we can say that a succulent is broken. There are a number of causes behind it, but that doesn’t mean you can’t save your plant. Falling leaves are actually just the beginning for a new succulent—how it’s they spread. It will develop into a new plant if you simply provide the right conditions for it to flourish.
Gather the leaves as soon as you notice them starting to fall from the plant and store them away for three days. The only way for the leaves to establish roots is through this process, which makes it essential. To place these leaves, you’ll also need a fresh pot and cactus soil. As long as it has adequate drainage to drain excess water from the soil, any container will work.
Succulents require moisture in the soil to flourish, so keep that in mind. However, this does not obligate you to water the plant in the pot to the same extent as you would other plants. Injurious amounts of water can inhibit new roots from forming on leaves. You only need a tiny bit of moisture. It should be sufficient to spray the surface every other day to produce the ideal conditions for succulents to flourish.
Here is a simple instruction to showing you how to use a damaged succulent’s dropping leaves to salvage it:
Unfortunately, not all succulents are created equal, and not all of them can be multiplied using leaves. Only those who possess a Stonecrop or Copperleaf can use this technique. You cannot utilize fallen leaves to grow Aeoniums or Sansevieria. You must remove a fresh leaf from the stalk if these are the plants you have. You can just plant it on a cup filled with damp soil rather than letting it dry out.
The steps are the same, but you’ll employ the leaves in a different way. Some succulents must get callused before they can develop roots, while others are resilient enough to continue to thrive even after being cut and replanted. Making sure that the soil has the right amount of moisture—neither too little nor too much—is essential if you want to effectively propagate succulents.
The leaves will drop off even with careful maintenance. Because certain succulents need it for reproduction, it is typical. You don’t need to worry about it, but it would be better to take good care of it to promote its development. Simply check that the soil can absorb enough moisture, the container you’re using has sufficient drainage, and you’re only giving it little quantities of water every few days.
Method #2: Stem Decapitated
You can’t always utilize fallen leaves to keep a succulent branch from breaking off. Even some plants cannot spread through the leaves. If you’re taking care of a succulent that looks similar, you might need to cut off a stem from the plant and utilize it to sprout another one. However, it won’t enough to just remove the stem and plant it in a new container.
If your plant utilizes a stem to reproduce, you must first cut off a portion of the stem and store it until it becomes calloused. The new roots will form in this area. Even in the ideal conditions for succulents to develop, your stem will just wither away without this callused portion.
The stem will develop a callus in just three days, at which point you can bury it in cactus soil. Unfortunately, establishing roots from a succulent that has had its head taken off takes time. It moves at an agonizingly slow pace. It requires a lot of patience because you could not even see effects for a few weeks, and some things might even take months to take root!
Another essential step when using a cut-off stem is to ensure that it doesn’t receive direct sunlight—instead, it needs indirect sunlight. In addition, you should wait three weeks before watering or spraying anything into the soil’s surface. To begin forming roots, the stem must go through this procedure.
You can repot the plant in a better container with sufficient drainage after the stem begins to develop roots. You have now successfully salvaged a broken-off succulent and can resume your regular succulent maintenance. There are still some things you can do to save the old plant, so don’t worry.
Method #3: Leaves Cut in Half
What if the leaf is sliced in half? is the most frequent query I receive. Yes, a fallen leaf with the portion still attached to the stem can develop roots. Roots can also form on the plant stem that has been severed. But if the portion of the leaf attached to the stem is already rotting or has entirely dried out, will it still be able to produce roots?
As you are aware, succulents have a special quality that enables them to develop roots even when the stem-connected portion is already decomposing. Although you must get rid of the rotten component, the procedure is identical to producing roots from leaves. It may even take a month or two for the leaf to begin producing roots because of how long this process takes.
The quickest approach to save your succulent, no matter how long it takes, is to create a new one from the pieces of a broken one. At initially, these new succulents won’t need a lot of maintenance. It will be simple for you to save a broken-off succulent if your soil meets the requirements. Some people are even starting farms utilizing the methods I’ve shared with you!
Method #4: Repotting the Old Plant
The first three techniques are the ones that people use the most frequently to rescue a broken-off succulent. They are able to have more as a result of these techniques in addition to salvaging what little of their plant is still there. Repotting a damaged succulent is another approach to salvage it, and any issues your plant is having may simply be a sign that it needs a little extra care.
You can check its health and the soil’s quality by repotting. A number of factors can negatively impact the health of your plant, but the best method to save it is to remove rotten roots and make sure the soil you’re using is suitable for it.
Can a succulent be grown again from a cutting?
Yes, by holding your succulent leaf or stem over the surface of a clear container of water or by allowing the calloused end to dangle into the water just a little, you can encourage the root system to begin growing. If you wish to propagate succulents indoors during poor growing conditions or if you want to see the roots grow in full view, you might like this method.
But other people could find this approach tedious. To maintain the water clean and at the proper level, it must be changed. If the cutting is too small to fit through the mouth of the jar, you might need to suspend it over the water using plastic wrap that has had a tiny hole drilled through it. This approach requires more work, but it is effective.
Can a succulent generate new roots on its own?
Succulent plants are great houseplants if you’re anything like me. I make an effort to keep them in windows that receive lots of light, but occasionally they can still become leggy. When a plant doesn’t receive enough light, it begins to spread out, which lengthens the stem and increases the distance between the leaves.
Do not be alarmed if your plant is beginning to sag like this one. The timing is right to spread now!
Although this plant still has lovely upper leaves, the lower leaves will soon start to wilt and fall off, leaving us with a rosette perched high above the ground on a long bare stem. Therefore, let’s remove the leaves before they begin to perish and propagate them to create additional plants. Growing succulents is simple, enjoyable, and cost-free!
The bottom leaves will be taken off first. When you separate the leaves from the stem, exercise extreme caution. I firmly grasp the leaf and move it side to side until I feel a small break. Make sure you collect the complete leaf. The leaf won’t be able to develop roots or become a new plant if you rip it while the base is still joined to the stem.
If the leaves are correctly removed from the stem while staying completely intact, they will appear like this.
You will have a little rosette on a long, bare stem once you have successfully removed the lower leaves. I like to refer to the following step as “decapitation propagation.” Although I’m not sure whether that is the correct terminology, it rhymes, and we’re about to cut off its head, so…
We now own a number of leaves, a stump, and a small, endearing plant.
Now, we wait. We must let the ends of our leaves to dry up and callus over before putting them on soil to start developing new plants. This action is crucial! The ends will absorb too much moisture and rot and perish if you don’t let them dry out and put them directly on soil. We must allow the rosette’s stem end to dry out in addition to allowing the leaves to callus over. This can require a few days to a week or so.
When you think the ends are completely dry, set them on top of some cactus or succulent soil that drains nicely. (Some people dip the ends in rooting hormone; I haven’t and have had tremendous results without it.) I’ve found that keeping my leaves indoors at a window with lots of indirect sunshine produces the best results.
The leaves will start to produce small pink roots after a few weeks, and then teeny tiny baby plants will start to grow. Until I see roots or babies emerging, I hardly ever water the leaves.
At this stage, I will soak the roots of the young plants or give them a nice soak once a week, or if I see the soil is completely dry. Too much water is bad, just like with a fully developed succulent. I advise spraying the ends of your leaves with a spray bottle once daily rather than soaking the soil entirely if you want to be sure not to overwater.
I let the mother leaf to begin to wither before I saw the young plants growing in rows. The leaf will then be gently removed from the stem in the same manner as it was from the original plant, and the baby plant will then be placed in its own container. It can be tough to avoid pulling out the roots along with the leaf, so you might want to play it safe and let the leaf fall off naturally.
Remember that not every leaf will develop into a new plant. According to what I’ve observed, some leaves just wither away, some will take root without ever producing a new plant, and some may even produce a plant but never root. While there may occasionally be a minor amount of losses, the majority of leaves will develop roots and eventually become a new plant. The three leaves below were all begun on the same day, but each one developed differently.
With this batch, I ran out of separate tiny pots, so I simply removed the dying leaves as they appeared and allowed the plants to cluster into a miniature succulent forest.
Back to that stump now. Don’t worry, nothing from this plant will be wasted.
Simply set this pot away, and over time, each spot where we removed a leaf will start to sprout new plants!
Returning to our original plant—the impetus behind our entire ordeal— Place your plant back in a pot with well-draining cactus or succulent soil once the stem has dried out and calloused over to encourage new root growth and continued growth. Isn’t the propagation of succulents amazing?