Last updated on October 23rd, 2023 at 09:03 pm
A leaf cactus you can propagate yourself. To do this, you only need a healthy plant, from which you can cut cuttings, or seeds, which you can buy from a specialty store. How to propagate leaf cactus.
How to propagate a leaf cactus easily
You can propagate a leaf cactus in two ways. Either you cut cuttings or you sow seeds. Propagation from cuttings is much easier and is therefore usually preferred.
In addition, the cuttings produce completely identical young plants, while in the case of propagation from seed is not certain what the future leaf cactus will look like and what colors of flowers it will bear.
Grow leaf cactus from cuttings
Cut cuttings in spring or summer
Let the cuttings dry out
put them into prepared pots
place them in a bright and warm place
keep moist
Shoots of about 15 centimeters in length are suitable as cuttings. Cut them with a sharp knife. Let the cuttings dry for at least a day to prevent mold from forming later.
Prepare pots with soil for leaf cacti. Ideally, the substrate should be a mixture of two-thirds garden soil and one-third quartz sand.(14,00€ at Amazon*) In any case, it must be well permeable to water.
Insert the cuttings about three to four centimeters deep into the soil. So that they grow straight, stabilize them with small wooden sticks. As soon as new leaves form, continue to care for the cuttings as adult plants.
Propagation from seed is tedious
A small indoor greenhouse is best for propagating foliage cacti from seed. Spread the seed thinly on coco soil. Leaf cactus is a light germinator, so do not cover the seed with soil.
Keep the surface moist but not wet. Place the closed greenhouse in a bright and warm location. Avoid direct sunlight.
After emergence, carefully prick out the seedlings and later transplant them into suitable pots.
Tips
Leaf cacti are also called epiphyllum. This means that in nature they grow almost exclusively on the leaves of other plants. Depending on the species, they bear flowers in a wide variety of colors and sizes, some of which are strongly fragrant.