Beginners Guide to Water Plants
Growing indoor plants in water has become so popular we put together a step-by-step guide. Water plants make wonderful living gifts.
Remove plant carefully from the pot. You are shaking soil from the roots carefully to remove the larger pieces. After you have removed as much as you can, wash the roots thoroughly until there is no soil left. You can use a soft toothbrush, but we stress carefully remove the dirt. Take off any dead or yellow foliage that would rot in the water.
Place your cutting into the propagation container and fill your container with room temperature distilled/tap water, so most of the plant roots are submerged. The leaves need to be out of the water, and some of the roots can be above water to get oxygen.
Refresh the water once a week. Keep an eye out for murkiness or fungus growing. Wash under running water and clean the vessel. Some people put pebbles on the bottom of the container or an inverted shot glass to hold up the plant. Stones must be washed weekly as well.
Place your cutting in a warm location with bright indirect light (avoid direct/low light). Now for the most challenging part, wait patiently for your cutting to sprout roots. This could take weeks to several months, depending on the plant.
The fine water roots are visible. These roots are different and are fragile. You should not be adding any sort of fertiliser to your cutting if it is in the beginning stages of forming a root system.
- We are using 5ml per litre of growth technology CCS Clonex Clone solution (order online). It is a premium nutrient for cuttings and seedlings once a month. Replace the nutrient solution and the water every 4-6 weeks.
Comments
Robyn Bailey said:
Hi, I love my philodendron in water that I found at a fete and got interested in growing other plants. However none of the articles I’ve read mention mosquitoes! Breeding in my bathroom!!
Is there a way to deter them? Their life cycle is about 8 days, being adults for about half of that.
Robyn