This fun and easy process will have you making free plants in no time! It's a very simple process that we've had success teaching to kids as young as 4.
Time: 10 minutes
Age: 4+
Materials: 2/10
Sensory friendly, class friendly (scroll to the bottom for class setup ideas)
I'm embarrassed to admit that I didn't learn about growing plants from cuttings of other plants until I was in college. But when I did, it blew my mind.
What exactly IS a plant cutting?
Most people know you can grow plants from seeds, but a lot of people don't know you can ALSO grow plants by cutting a piece of an existing plant and sticking it into the soil. It seems like it shouldn't work, right? But it does! Lots of plants are very easy to grow this way. And it's an easy way to get a jump start on the growing process because you are already working with a plant and not waiting on a tiny seed.
What plants are easiest?
Lots of plants are easy to grow from cuttings, so experiment! Take a walk in your neighborhood and look for plants you'd like to grow (ask permission first), look around your home, lots of indoor plants are great for cuttings.
My favorites to grow from cuttings:
Mint
Rosemary
Pothos
Jade
Tomatoes
Lemon Balm
Materials needed:
Sheers or scissors
Something to put your plant in for a few weeks. Examples: jar, cup, plastic container, milk carton cut in half, yogurt cups
Rooting hormone (optional)
Soil-less potting soil (optional)
Plain water
Some plant cuttings
Steps
Write your name on your container.
Use clean shears and trim off the top few inches of new plant growth from the plant you want to grow. A length about as long as your finger with about 4-5 leaves on it.
Pull off a few of the bottom leaves of the plant to expose more of the stem. You need some leaves for photosynthesis, but not too many or the plant will put too much energy into leaves and not into growing new roots.
Fill your jar with a handful of potting mix or clean water
If you're using soil and (optional) rooting hormone: dip the bare end of the cutting in the rooting hormone and then poke the bottom of your stem down into the soil almost up until the bottom of the first leaves. This stem will be where new roots start to form. If you don't have rooting hormone, you can simply poke your cutting into soil. Make sure at least an inch of the bare stem is in the soil. If you're using water: simply place your new cutting into the water. Make sure to keep the leaves from touching the water as this will cause bacteria to grow. You'll also want to change the water every day. You want at least an inch of the stem to be under water.
Place your new plant in a bright (but not sunny) location. Make sure the soil is just moist but not wet. After a week or two you can lift out your cutting to check for new roots. Be very gentle so you don’t break any roots! You’ve officially made a new plant! No seeds required! You can then plant it in a pot of soil and it will grow.
Caring for your new cuttings:
It's important to take care of your new plant, so on a piece of paper of in a journal have the student(s) write out these simple care instructions:
Plant needs: bright room, but not direct sun
Moist soil, not wet or replace the water daily
Be gentle!
2-3 weeks check for roots
Some useful tips:
If you have access to a large plant, take several cuttings so that if a few of them don't root, you have a better chance of success.
Make sure to cut new growth, older woody stems are harder to root.
Experiment with a few different plants around your neighborhood, home, or garden to see what will root from cuttings and what doesn’t
Put your cutting somewhere bright but not in direct sunlight
Don’t take cuttings with flowers on them, the plant is putting so much energy into the flower production that it won’t put as much into creating new roots
Classroom friendly project setup
We had success teaching this project in two ways:
Table stations: We had a couple of stations set up, one with jars, markers with tape, and the soil, the other had pre-cut plant cuttings resting in water. Students lined up and went through the first station to prepare their jar and then the second one to add their cuttings.
Small groups: We had students do another activity (watering, observing the garden, etc.) and then called a few over at a time to a table with materials to complete the project in groups of 5-6 until we worked through the whole class.
If you'd like to buy materials for this project:
Rooting Hormone (small bottle was enough for at least 70+ kids) https://amzn.to/3Sfbij7
Pruning Sheers https://amzn.to/3SdUVDB
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