One of the most popular succulents out there, the jade plant (Crassula ovata) is appreciated for its forgiving nature. And did you know that propagating a jade plant is also super easy? You can multiply your plant to give away or to expand you own collection!
Find out everything you need to know about propagation a jade plant to expand your Crassula army.
Propagating a jade plant | Stem method
When doing jade plant propagation, the stem cutting method is often the easiest and most successful way to go about it. This especially applies if you use larger, healthier stem cuttings.
Here’s how you do it:
- Take a sterilized knife or scissors and make a clean cut of the stem, making sure to choose a section with at least two nodes (bumps on the stem that leaves and roots can grow from). Also include a few healthy leaves. Any stem cutting size will do, but people usually have more success with larger cuttings.
- Carefully pluck away the leaves from the bottom of the cutting, leaving only a few healthy leaves at the very top. If you want even more jade plants, keep any leaves you pluck. We’ll tell you what to do with them below!
- Let the stem cutting (and any plucked leaves) sit out in a warm, dry area for about three days. This is so that the damaged edge from the cut has a chance to heal and callus, which will make it less susceptible to rot.
Now that your stem cutting is ready to go, what’s next? Well, you have two different methods to choose from, which we’ll discuss below.
Psst! Want to learn more about multiplying other types of succulents? Check out the article on how to propagate a succulent.
The soil method
You can root your jade plant stem cutting directly in soil. Succulents are very resilient, so this almost always works. The only downside is that you can’t really keep an eye on your cutting’s progress, at least not until new leaf growth starts to appear.
- Get a pot or tray with drainage holes. A standard plastic nursery planter works perfectly well.
- Fill the pot with well-draining, loose soil. Jade plants aren’t too picky, so you can just mix some standard potting soil with a good handful of perlite for added drainage.
- Moisten the soil with water. Just enough to be moist to the touch but not soggy.
- BONUS STEP: If you have some on hand, you can dip the cutting in rooting hormone powder to stimulate root production.
- Use your finger or stick to poke a hole in the soil. It only needs to be deep enough that the stem cutting can stand up.
- Move the stem cutting into bright, indirect light and water every few days.
Tip: Stem cuttings that haven’t grown roots yet can start to droop a bit. This is normal, but if yours looks like it’s about to fall over, you can use a stick or something similar to prop it up. Once it roots, it’ll start growing upright again.
The water method
The water method for propagating a jade plant is a favorite for many, since it’s often quicker and easier. And perhaps even more importantly, you get to see the roots growing in real time!
With the water method, once your stem cutting has healed, just pop it into a glass or vase of water. Then move the whole thing into bright, indirect sunlight.
The only thing you need to do from that point is change out the water once or twice a week. Once the roots have grown about two inches, you can repot your new little jade plant! Or not: you can leave it in water as long as you want for something a little different.
Propagating a jade plant | Leaf method
If you’ve ever propagated succulents before, you might know that for many species all you need is a single leaf. If you have leaves, whether freshly plucked or fallen, you can use these to create new jade plants to enjoy!
To get your leaves, you can gently pluck from the stems of a jade plant. Make sure the whole leaf comes off. Giving it a gentle twist can help.
Just like with the stem cuttings, you’ll want to give your leaves a few days to heal over to prepare them for the propagation process. Once you have them in hand, you can again choose between propagating in water or soil.
Did you know? Most plants can’t be propagated from just leaves. It’s something mostly limited to succulents and semi-succulents.
Gorelick, 2015.
The soil method
The soil method is the easiest way of propagating jade plant leaves. Literally all you have to do is lay the leaves on the soil in such a way that they touch it. That is all!
The great thing about using leaves is that you can put a lot of them into the same pot to increase your chances of success. The resulting plants will be extremely tiny at first and can be separated into individual planters once they’ve grown a bit.
Once you have all your leaves in the soil, move them into bright, indirect sunlight and spray every few days to keep the soil ever so lightly moist. When roots and baby plants have started appearing, you can slowly make the switch to a regular succulent watering schedule.
The water method
You can do the water method for your leaf cuttings. It tends to be more troublesome since you have to come up with ways of keeping the leaves upright.
It’s not impossible, though. Use mesh or toothpicks to suspend the leaf, preferably in a small shot glass.
How to care for jade plants
No matter what method you use, be prepared for a bit of a wait since it can take two to three weeks to start seeing roots. If you chose to propagate in soil things can be even slower, as you have no way of seeing what’s going on underground.
Once your new plants have successfully rooted and been repotted (if desired), here’s what you need to know to keep them alive and thriving.
Light
Jade plants need bright, direct sunlight to thrive. They naturally occur in arid areas of South-Africa where they’re blasted with plenty of sun every day, after all!
Make sure to acclimate your plant slowly if it wasn’t previously grown in direct sun. If your jade plants get around three to four hours of direct sunlight a day, they should do well.
Temperature
Jade plants like a bit of heat, doing well in the 70s (or 20s Celsius). That being said, these guys are pretty hardy.
As long as you keep them dry and absolutely avoid exposing them to frost, lower temperatures shouldn’t be too much of an issue.
Soil
When it comes to soil, a general succulent soil should work fine. Jade plants are not too picky, after all.
You can use general potting soil, too; tossing in some coarse sand or perlite will help keep things airy and make sure that excess water can drain.
Watering
Jade plants are succulents and like to be treated as such. That being said, during the summer months, you may need to water as often as once or twice a week. Do make sure the soil dries out between waterings.
Your exact watering schedule will depend on a number of factors. For instance, if your house is warm and dry, you may have to water more often. It’ll take some practice figuring out what works best for your plants.
If your jade’s leaves are looking a bit wrinkly, you’ve probably waited too long.
Fertilizing
Jade plants appreciate some extra nutrients during the growing season, although there seems to be some debate about just how often to fertilize.
While some recommend fertilizing often during the growing season, others recommend only fertilizing once a growing season.
In any case, you should be fine as long as you don’t use plant food during the winter months, as your jade plant won’t be actively growing and can’t use the nutrients you provide.
Are jade plants toxic to cats and dogs?
Unfortunately, jade plants are toxic to cats, dogs, and other animals. They should be kept out of reach of your beloved pets!
According to the ASPCA, symptoms of poisoning include depression, vomiting, and lack of coordination.
