Coleus is perhaps the most wonderful addition to a summer garden. Easy to grow and low-maintenance, the burst of colours it brings to a garden is almost unbeatable! Unlike flowers, where you need to wait for blooms for a splash of colour, coleus is instant!

Propagating Coleus in water – Easy 7 steps

1. Cuttings: Snip pieces from an existing plant that are 4″-6″ long. It is ok to take them from any part of the plant but avoid stems that are too thin.
2. Clean: Remove the bottom leaves to reveal 2″-3″ of stem. Leaves in water will cause mold and rot the cutting.
3. Container: Use a clear glass jar, preferably so that you can check the status of roots without disturbing them. Fill the jar with only 3″ water not more.
4. Plant: Place the coleus cuttings in water and keep near a window indoors or a shaded spot outdoors.
5. Water level: Check that the water level remains constant and clean. Replace with fresh water, if needed.
6. Fresh growth: You should see new leaves forming within a week and roots will follow.
7. Give time: Do not be in a hurry to transplant. Let the roots develop properly and keep changing water. Place near more sunlight. Move them only after there is significant growth.

The ways of mother nature are incredible.. Even after years and years of gardening and sowing seeds it still amazes me how a tiny seed or cutting can sprout into a massive form of beauty! I do not know why but i get a particular thrill from growing coleus cuttings in water. It is just so easy and incredible to watch that sometimes I just snip off a cutting to root in water.. just that like. Of-course, the extra plant is an additional delight for the garden.

Mine actually happened unintentionally and then I got hooked onto it!

So from the plant growing in my garden, I’d brought some clippings indoors for a flower vase in our kitchen. Then, we left for Diwali holidays and I came back to discover the cuttings as fresh as ever unlike the wilted roses next to them. I had a hunch that they might have rooted while sitting in water and look what I discovered..

Indeed!! Being a soft stem plant it sprouted roots easily and quickly! I do feel that it is easier to root plant cuttings in water than doing so in soil because you don’t have to worry about the cuttings wilting with lack of water or drying up from the direct sun outdoors.

Notice the size of the roots.. It is the best to propagate a coleus cutting in water instead of soil as it quite fail-proof.

I love the thrill of rooting plants in water having experimented with portulaca, tulsi, geranium and coleus! I think i am now going to plant some clippings in the small transparent vases on our dining table and capture the process. Also, i am curious to see how long they survive indoors.

Stay updated if you are curious too!

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