How to propagate a money tree at home
Content:
A mini-tree in an apartment - this is what crassula looks like for the uninitiated. Its unusual appearance inspires bonsai masters to create their masterpieces, and the unpretentiousness of these plants has settled them in every more or less decent office.
How to propagate a money tree at home
Crassula is popularly called the money tree because of its fleshy leaves. Like most other succulents belonging to the Fat family, this South African plant accumulates water in special tissues, and it is because of this property that its leaves are distinguished by "fleshy".
Money tree or crassula
There is a belief that only the presence of this tree-like plant in the house will bring wealth and money to its owners. Accordingly, the better it looks and the larger it is, the more money will "fall on the head" of the owner of the money tree.
Many signs and superstitions are associated with Crassula.
When you need to propagate Crassula, the main ways
Be that as it may, at a certain period there is an urgent need to multiply Crassula. The reasons for this can be completely different: for example, to bring a sprout to work or give it to someone.
There are exactly three ways to reproduce a small tree:
- using cuttings;
- rooting of leaves;
- the good old way of propagating with seeds.
Inside plants, as in all living organisms, there is a kind of built-in "biological clock" in accordance with which all processes take place inside. This clock also controls reproduction.
The "biological clock" is best observed with the example of dandelion flowers: they open and close depending on the time of day.
It is best to start the breeding process in the spring, when the plant enters a phase of active growth. In principle, there is nothing wrong if a florist wants to grow another copy of Crassula at another time of the year. The only caveat is that you should never do this at the height of summer. It has been noticed that the bastard, which reproduces at this time, grows much worse.
Reproduction of the money tree by cuttings
The easiest and most reliable way to propagate a fat woman is by cuttings. The essence of this method is to cut off the top of the trunk and transplant it into a separate container, thus giving rise to a new plant. It is best to cut a plant older than 3 years.
Selection and preparation of cuttings for rooting
The stalk chosen for transplantation must be healthy in appearance: light, with smooth skin, without damage. It is cut off with a length of about ten cm. The trunk of the money tree is not solid, but consists of segments.The cut of the cutting must necessarily pass between them, but in no case along the border of the segment, since it is from it that the roots will grow in the future.
Cut off cuttings of a fat woman
Soil preparation
A drainage layer of expanded clay or pieces of polystyrene is poured into a small pot. Then an earthen mixture for succulents and cacti is poured there, mixed with sand in a ratio of 1 to 2.
After that, the surface of the soil is moistened with a rooting solution. It is made as follows: 1 tablet of succinic acid is dissolved in a glass of hot water. When the water cools down, a pinch of Kornevin or Heteroauxin is added.
How to root properly
Now it is time to directly root the cuttings. A cotton swab dipped in the prepared solution is moistened with a section of the cutting, which will be located underground: from the cut point to the 1-2 nearest trunk segment, from those that are located above.
After that, the offshoot of the money tree is stuck into the ground and sprinkled with sand: it will protect the plant from moisture loss and mold.
Rooted cuttings care
The pot with the propagated plant is placed in a hot and shaded place until new leaves appear on it. This is a sign that the fat woman has successfully rooted and can be rearranged in a bright place, but protected from direct sunlight.
In the first 7 to 8 months, it will not require any additional feeding. Then you can add half the amount of fertilizer for succulents and cacti. Watering is necessary after the soil dries out from the previous watering.
The money tree requires very little space for its root system, so you need to transplant it into a larger pot after roots appear above the ground.
Small pot promotes flowering of the plant
Reproduction of the money tree by leaves
If Crassula is still young and does not have a sufficiently strong and thick trunk, then there is an opportunity to propagate it with leaves.
How to choose the right sheet
For rooting, the most "fleshy" leaf is selected, preferably located at the bottom of the plant. It can be cut off with a knife, or you can simply tear it off by gently pulling to the side.
The cut site is treated with an antiseptic, after which the leaf is dried for several hours. But even this is not the end of the preparation of the sheet. It must first be treated with a solution that activates the growth of roots.
For rooting, take a glass or a very small pot. Drainage is laid at its bottom, and a soil mixture is poured on top, prepared according to the same recipe as for propagation by cuttings: ready-made soil for cacti and succulents, mixed with river sand. The surface of the soil is sprinkled with crushed charcoal and sprayed with water.
Rooting methods
The main principle of leaf rooting is that it does not interfere with the sprout in the future. Therefore, it is shallowly stuck into the ground and fixed in this position with some kind of device. After the sprout has appeared, it can be removed.
The easiest way of fixing when propagating by a leaf
Another way to plant a leaf in the ground is to stick it at an angle, perhaps even almost lying down. This method is especially relevant if you need to plant several leaves.
Planting a leaf in the ground and subsequent care
The container is covered from above with a piece of glass or transparent film. In conditions created in this way, the sprouts should be within a month.
Leaves require even less water for irrigation than cuttings. The main difficulty here is that the leaf is very close to the ground and can rot from excessive soil moisture. After the emergence of the sprout and its strengthening, the mother leaf is cut off.
At first, it is not worth adding top dressing: it is better to wait a few months, after which they begin to add organic and mineral substances in small portions to improve the growth and health of the plant.
Propagation of a fat woman by seeds
If the florist wants to get new varieties of the money tree, or if there is no adult plant at hand, then you can use the seed.
You can go to the store or go to the Internet and buy seeds there, or you can try very hard and wait for the harvest of your own money plant. In the latter case, it is very difficult to achieve flowering of the plant in an ordinary apartment. Flowers appear in spring. When the flower withers away, only a box will remain, inside which there will be ripe seeds.
How to germinate seeds correctly
In order to germinate crassula seeds, you need a wide, but shallow container. So that excess moisture does not accumulate at the bottom, the bottom is laid with expanded clay. A ready-made mixture for succulent plants, mixed with sand, is taken as a soil. For one piece of sand, you need to take two pieces of land.
Wood ash is applied on top of the soil with a thin layer and moistened with a disinfection solution: warm water with potassium permanganate crystals dissolved in it. The seeds are pressed into the ground, but they are not sprinkled on top. The container is covered with glass, but it is ventilated daily and water is sprayed.
The latter condition is necessary, since only with this method of irrigation can uniform soil moisture be ensured.
When sprouts appear in a few weeks, they need to be planted away from each other.
Plastic glasses are suitable as a container for a young Crassula.
In the future, they are looked after in the same way as for transplanted cuttings and leaves: a lot of sunlight, but without direct rays, timely watering, feeding for only 8 months.
Possible growing problems
It is not always possible to plant a money tree without problems, since when the fat woman reproduces, then she is especially demanding on the conditions of detention.
The most obvious problem is that the process, as they say, "did not go" and the roots do not appear. The reasons can be very different:
- the planting material is not treated with a root growth activator;
- the plant is in a highly shaded place and does not have enough sunlight;
- the room is too cold.
Therefore, in order to avoid such annoying incidents, it is worth taking a closer look at the creation of optimal conditions for the emergence of sprouts.
But let us assume that rooting has taken place and the plant has begun to grow. This does not mean at all that you can calm down on this. The money tree still requires increased attention and self-care. What is evil for an adult plant turns out to be a hundred times worse for a baby:
- If the leaves begin to turn yellow, then this is a sign of over-watering. It is necessary to stop "water procedures" until the earth is completely dry.
- When the leaves dry out, you need to water the sprout without flooding it with water, otherwise it will finally destroy Crassula.
- Pests are not very annoying to the fat woman, her main enemies are diseases caused by fungus or bacteria. The affected leaves are removed and the houseplant is treated with some complex agent against pathogens.
The step-by-step implementation of the fatty breeding procedure will allow you to share this beauty with friends or create a green corner at work.
