In the dark depths of winter, it can seem like the joy of sowing seeds and taking cuttings is a long way away. Yet there are two beautiful species you can propagate right now, that will give you instant houseplants in exchange for almost zero effort and which cost you essentially nothing: dracaenas and cordylines.
Both Dracaena marginata and Cordyline fruticosa are exotic houseplants that originate in the world’s tropical zones. Their vibrant foliage colour and elegant architectural forms have made them hugely popular in both the houseplant trade and floristry.
Both also happen to be among the easiest of all plants to take cuttings from. Indeed, as I discovered when working in flower shops when at university, the cut stems of both species (often up to 45cm long) will readily root even in the water of a vase.
While most florist greens fade to a brown mush that is destined for the bin in a week or two, these species will happily start to grow away, giving you plants for free. In fact, commercial growers of these houseplants will essentially be taking the exact same cut tips that are sold in floristry, and rooting them in compost for a just a few weeks in heated glasshouses before selling them at up to a quadruple mark-up.
For home growers, this makes buying them as cut stems always the cheapest way to get hold of these two species. They are so quick and easy to root from large stem sections, and they will look almost identical, giving you instant impact.
To get started, simply pick up a few of these stems, often sold as “ti plant tips” or “cordyline tips”, at your local florist. If they don’t happen to have them in stock, do ask, as most good florists will be able to order them in if given a week’s notice.
To root them, either pop them in a clean vase of water in a bright, warm room (my preferred option) or dip the cut end in rooting powder and plant them up in a small pot of well-drained cutting compost. The advantage, in my experience, of the vase technique is you won’t need to keep watering the newly planted cuttings to prevent them from drying out.
As long as you regularly change the water to prevent the build-up of bacteria or fungal rots, the success rate is extremely high. Using a clear glass vase will mean you can monitor the cleanliness of the water (and the root growth) easily.
Once roots are 5-10cm long the new plants can be potted up in any ordinary compost and grown on just like any houseplant. Ten years after graduating I still have some of mine from my uni days, adding a splash of year-round colour to my living room.
Email James at james.wong@observer.co.uk or follow him on Twitter @Botanygeek
