It’s fun to share your love of plants with friends on social media through photos and posts.

But some plants are a snap to propagate so they are easy to share in person, too. 

Popular houseplants, such as pothos (left) and hoya (below) are so simple to root in water. 

My Mom’s favorite plant was her hoya. Everytime I visited, she made me walk into her sun room and admire it. “Look at that,” she’d say admiringly. “Isn’t that amazing.”

It was! Her hoya was impressive: large, vining, glossy leaved. It got bigger and bigger and it always looked great. 

So, I started some stems of my Mom’s hoya for myself as well as to share with our family. I’m hoping that each stem will root and spread the same sort of joy in their lives as it did in my Mom’s. 

Here’s how to root a stem: Start with a healthy plant. Choose a stem with several leaves, then cut it off a stem at the base of the plant.

Strip off any leaves close to the base of the stem. Take care to remove foliage that may be submerged in the water because the leaf will die and make the water funky.

Set in water. And wait. ;-)

I keep a water glass with my sprouting hoya stems next to my kitchen sink so I can check their progress. And I can see when I need to refresh the water. The water should be clear, not cloudy. 

Sharing cuttings is a great way to spread your love of plants and maybe even start a family tradition. What plants have you started in water?

 

Written by Karen Weir-Jimerson