Hello everyone, Wondering if I can get some help with this plant?! It's an indoor plant. Was beautiful at one point, but never really stood up on its own. Always needed some support. This plant was my GREAT Grandmothers. My Grandmother inherited it to me and I haven't been able to really get it going again since we moved. I have no idea what the name of this plant is? More importantly, I'm wondering if there is a way I can possibly save it and propagate it somehow? The plant was beside a heater in the winter and our house guests blasted the heat so high that it dried out. Seems like it's fighting to go again? The rest of the roots seem dry but seem to be growing leaves or roots on the end of one of the dead stems? Can I cut this nub off and start fresh with a new plant? Thanks! Would love to try and save it since it was my great grandmothers and all!
Hi Sasha,..welcome to the Forum,..i am not sure about the name of your plant as there isn't enough of it to be seen,..it reminds me of 'Purple Heart' while at the green stage,..to save it you should take a section from just below the leaf,..say about two inches,..leave it in a glass of water for a spell,..leaving the leaf part above water until it shows roots then plant in soil within a pot,..looks like it was given far too much heat and not enough water.
I am thinking..Wandering Jew. Yes you can take a cutting of the stem. I myself would use sterile potting mix and a rooting homone. Dip the stem in the powder stick it in damp potting mix place the pot in a plastic bag and loosly close it. Place it somewhere warm and light but not in direct sun. Open it daily to check the cutting and remove the bag once you see growth. Take several cuttings at the same time, too.
It is not Tradescantia pallida or zebrina. It could be T. spathacea (oyster plant/Moses in a boat, formerly Rhoeo spathacea.) http://www.gardenstew.com/plantstew/505554
Purple... I am so glad you are here. I don't keep house plants and that was my first thought but I haven't seen one in years. are cutting instructions about the same, though? or should she do differently than my instructions?
Hi Sasha, Welcome to the Stew! So glad you have inherited this plant from your great grandmother! Let us hope you can save it. Could it be a diffenbachia? In the first photo, there is a part of a leaf....the photo unfortunately cuts off most of the leaf. Could you take a photo of that leaf? That might help us identify it. My suggestion is to simply give it TLC & see if it recovers. Don't kill in with kindness (ie overwater), just keep an eye on it & water it & give it a dilute application of fertilizer. If it seems to come back, it may still be a very ugly plant with leaves only on the ends. If so, I might try several prongs of attack, so to speak. How many branches seem to have some life in them? If you have several, how about trying to layer one of them? Nick the bottom surface, apply rooting powder if you have it & anchor it in the soil. See if it roots. Another possibility is to try rooting one in water. Keep it covered with a plastic bag, see what happens. Good luck!!
Happy to swap anecdotes! I don't usually put that much effort into propagating anything, but it sounds like a fine method for those who don't have as much natural humidity as I do in south AL. And agree, if it's a Tradescantia, they propagate similarly, with ease. Also agree, a pic of the top (and bottom) surface of a leaf could be helpful.
Could it be Callisia fragrans by any chance? the thick, bare stems remind me a lot of that one. I haven't rooted one myself, but they should root from cuttings just ok, also they do get leggy like that!
