Philodendron Melanochrysum Propagation In Soil

Welcome to our step by step guide to philodendron melanochrysum propagation in soil, with pictures form our propagations.

See also: Philodendron Melanochrysum Care for a full guide to caring for this plant, as well as our other prop guides: Philodendron Melanochrysum Propagation In Leca, Philodendron Melanochrysum Propagation In Moss, Philodendron Melanochrysum Propagation In Water and How To Propagate Philodendron.

What You’ll Need

You will need:

A melanochrysum big enough to take a cutting from
A glass jar or plastic cup
A sharp knife
Water (filtered tap water is ideal)
Soil (well draining, suitable for aroids, see Philodendron Soil).

How To Propagate Philodendron Melanochrysum In Soil

You can propagate these plants easily in soil. You can water propagate them first and then put them in soil.

Or you can put them directly in soil. I like to water prop them for a month first so they are already rooting. I very rarely lose any that way, they water prop well and transfer to soil well. When I have gone straight to soil I have lost one or two to rot. You can reduce the chances of this by making absolutely sure the cuttings have no open wounds before putting them in soil. I would leave them for a day to callous over first. If you’re doing this you can omit step 3 below which is water propping them first.

So follow these steps:

Step 1:

Take your cuttings, get one or two leaves and one node.

Step 2:

Leave them aside for a few hours for the wounds to heal.

Step 3:

Put them in a jar of filtered tap water and keep them in indirect sunlight and warm for a month until they root. Keep it topped up with water, only change the water if it gets rot and turns cloudy.

Step 4:

Get a pot filled with a well draining soil mix, and drainage holes at the bottom, half fill it with soil then add your cutting and fill in around the edges. Pat it down a bit to keep the cutting in place but do not compress the soil too much.

Tip: a really easy way to make a philodendron soil is to add 1 part perlite to 4 parts potting compost, to give a well draining mix that they like. If you want to go further then give them a mix of equal parts potting compost, perlite and orchid bark for a really chunky and airy well draining mix. For more on philodendron soil see our guide: P hilodendron Soil.

Step 5:

You then want to keep the soil moist but not soaking and keep the plant humid and in indirect sunlight until roots. You can keep it humid by keeping it close to other plants or by putting it in a sandwich bag that is big enough to cover the plant pot and the cutting. Keep the bag open so some air can circulate. Once it has taken to the soil after a month or two you should see it producing new growth from the top of the plant. You can then treat it as a normal plant.