How to make cuttings from what was once a houseplant, now a tree!?!

So a few decades or so ago, this was a medium sized houseplant and over the years grew into a crazy tree:



It's about 10 feet vertical and chest high now, with all these beutiful branches:



Isn't there a way to make new houseplants from this mother of a plant? I don't know much about cuttings and dependencies on plant types and all of that. But I am a fast learner Thx!

 

You can root Schefflera cuttings very easily. Using a clean knife cut 3 inch tender green soft wood end of the branch, at an angle. Remove all but the end leaf off. Dip in rooting hormone and poke a hole in new clean potting soil and place the clipping in the hole. I put many clippings in the pot. Water and put it in a zip lock or any clear plastic bag to hold moisture in. It will be rooted in just a few weeks. I open the bag every few days to see if the plant needs water and to exchange air, then close again.

You can also air layer hard wood branches but most people don't like doing that...

 

thx @waretrop ! The only catch is that I don't have rooting hormone, and I doubt any shop run Kathmandu would. Can I make it? I also have a 30 ft. rubber tree that has a lot of branches that would make good houseplants, me thinks. Is it the same process for that? Also, what's air layer hard wood branches? I might like it, dunno

 

I've never put that much effort into Schefflera (or Ficus elastica) cuttings, just snip or break off a piece and put it in a pot, as deeply as it can go without burying the leaves. I've never owned any root hormone, and propagate plants constantly.

 

@Jigs Gaton I like the idea of all the vinegar instead of rooting hormone... I am going to try that.... When you air layer, it is for getting rid of the hard wood is too much out of control...that is when I use that method... It is a pain in the neck but can save an older branch...go look it up...it may work for you. I use a insulin needle to add water to the air layer package so I don't have to open it up all the time. works great..

 

Hi @Jigs Gaton I don't know if these video's will help besides other members advice

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Rooting hormone just keeps fungus from attacking the roots ! The vinegar mix should work fine or if you have any type of willow tree, just stick a twig or two in water and let it sit a few days,,, then the water has the same rooting hormone as what you can buy but cheaper ! Put the schefflera twigs in that for a day or so before planting !

 

Ha! That sounds easy, thx.

 

I once was handed a “bouquet” of schefflera stems that had been pruned away from a big plant.
I planted them in regular potting mix that day. I didn’t even use rooting hormone. Must’ve been the time of year/ light exposure/ luck... but they took off quickly and grew into a nice plant.

 

Kay, I did the same with mine..they seem pretty easy to propagate..wishing all of you a happy Wednesday

 

To this I would add that while the acid part is anti fungal, the phytohormone part, called auxin, promotes vertical cellular growth. Later in life Charles Darwin and his son identified this primary hormone type as the cause of a plant bending toward the sun. It is active in the shade, elongating, and disappears in the sun, slowing growth and thus the bending the meristem to the sun or promoting outreaching growth down in the soil.

 

@Kay and @Deana Tankersley , " I call it, an extreme will to continue their species. "

 

Barb, have you done airlayering? how long does this generally take? I have a citronella plant that I get about 1 in 10 cuttings to take.I have no idea why. age of the stem doesn't seem to male a difference. dry ish medium? rot, damp medium?, rot. covered? rot. uncovered? rot... they just rot. I have resorted to trying air layering but its been a month and I am not seeing roots yet.

 

I do air layering. bit citronella plant is so easy...oh the will to live....I just take the clippings and stick them in soil in a pot and tent them in a zip lock bag and keep them moist at the beginning, opening and closing when needed. In
6 weeks you have tons of roots...