For fun I stuck 5 ZZ leaves.............pulled one out tonight and check out that root system with the caudex............is that cool or what...................
**********Lin, I have to show you................hope you are lurking around this forum soon.........
is that all you did--stuck the leaf into the dirt? i have a zz and never thought of doing that
remember though that you have to get a razor blade and make a petiole...........each leaf is attached to the stem..........so get a razor and look what i cut so I could stick the leaf........it may not be necessary........you might be able to cut across the leaf with a razor giving it more growing points................I might try that next...........
Would gladly adopt any extra ZZ leafs left over. Been looking to aquire this for a while.......(keeping fingers crossed)
Anaid, I would run to your rescue except that the last trip from my daughter and son in law........brought about them taking home my ZZ plant with them.............I was just at their house and it has grown wild...................
I told him he could take the plant if he would let me cut off one stem..........that is how I got my leaves.........but I haven't replaced the plant yet...............Lowes always carries them.........and also Green Gate nursery on 123 loop around Seguin has a great selection at reasonable prices of ZZ plant and everything else, too..................good luck
So you just have to make those two little cuts in the leaf before trying to root it? I have some ZZs that I have bought from the big box store but this would be a cheap way of making some to give away!
David
Great Growin as usual Gail! Love it! I have one ZZ plant that I got at Home Depot a couple of months ago. Might just have to propagate a leaf or two in the near future if I can make the time!
How long did it take to get all those roots?
All I did was turn the leaf over so I was cutting from the back side.........I just made a slit right up next to the main vein of the leaf on either side about 1/2"..........and then just cut the leaf straight on either side.......I will take a closer pic.........
I think they make great trading plants and are fun to grow............
when I took the pic I realized I hadn't cut the leaf straight across after I took the razor cut
Hi, Lin......i think they have been in their solo cups about 6 or 8 weeks.........David, I use 1 part african soil-less mix, 1 part perlite and 1/2 part big vermiculite mixed together...
This is what they look like growing in a solo cup........I kept mine under a dome or baggie for a month.....they have been out of the dome for a good month now..........(I had to cut the top of the leaf only because my dome wasn't tall enough)
So, you just use the same mix that you use for the African Violets? I use the same mix also for everything I grow except sometimes I buy the big bags of Miracle Grow potting soil because I can't find the African Violet potting soil in big enough bags! I still mix in a lot of perlite and some vermiculite too.
Yeah Susan ... Gessie just forgot to say African Violet mix. I get real confused when people talk about soil less - sounds like it's not soil! I inquired once about that and someone did tell me the ingredients and why it's referred to as soil less but I don't remember what it was! LOL.
I just refer to it as African Violet Potting Soil or African Violet Potting Mix.
edited to say: I purchase the bags of Schultz African Violet Potting Soil/Mix at Wal-Mart Garden Center
This message was edited Oct 24, 2007 11:31 AM
For 40 years I have used the same mixture of Potting Soil, Perlite and Vermiculite. I have used Miracle Grow Potting Soil as well as other brands, or African Violet Potting Soil and then mix in the perlite and vermiculite. Nowadays I buy the Miracle Grow soil because it's all I can find in really large bags.
hmmm .... I haven't looked at the label on the AV potting mix but I don't think it has fertilizer or anything in it for acidity. I thought it was just a lighter soil (with added perlite) for use with AV's. I still add a lot more perlite to mine as well as a little vermiculite.
I haven't seen the new MG soil for citrus and succulents. My only problem with MG is they now add the plant food/fertilizer to the soil. I would much rather have it plain since I use liquid fertilizer myself.
Ideally a lot of people order Volkman's mix to grow everything as it doesn't have any fertilizer in it like Schultz, AV potting mix, and the other mixes...........but I think it is too expensive...........I bought (already mixed and you add nothing to it) 41 quarts for 28.00.......that is too high for me...........i will mix my own and put up with the fertilizer that comes with it...............unless I can find Sunshine #5 which professionals use...............it is only about 20 bucks for a 40 lb bag...............then I add my own perlite and vermiculite to it for everything..............
I only use this mix for starting new things.......or rooting new things.............so I have to be careful not to start fertilizing for about a month...........(I also use for anything that will come in the house for the winter)
Great info, great thread!
Thanks! Now I have to choose some volunteer leaves.....
good! Go for it! Propagating gets addictive as you see results and many new plants.
Be sure and find a dome of some kind for high humidity. People often get those plastic containers from the bakery products sold to use for domes. You can always use those big gallon zip lock bags, too.
Good Luck
gail
Very impressive. I've always heard you could root them this way... from a leaf... but never knew about the cutting part.
Congrats!!
The only reason I cut a piece of petiole for the leaf was that i was afraid to take a straight cut across and made just a wedge like you can do. This particular plant has that caudex so making a lot of babies from a wedge didn't seem like a good idea.
When you cut to make a stem, you usually on get that one growing point......thus one good strong plant.
I really like ZZs. I've had a small one for about a yr now, that hasn't grown a bit in that time. Gets plenty of light, not too much water, etc... all the right conditions... it will grow toward the light, so I rotate it regularly.
I recently read that they thrive when pot bound... So my hope is mine is in a too large pot, and will eventually take off.
I always use the smallest flattest pot I can find for ZZ's. Mine now is in a 8" bulb pan. They just like to dry out in a hurry. Your plant should be growing , stogeo, by leaps and bounds. Can you find a bulb pan somewhere? They are very shallow.
I suspect you're right... a simple repotting would get this guy growing like mad... I guess I've just decided to let it fill its pot in its own time. I trust with time it will reward me with abundant new growth
Hello All,
I have to ask and I know a few may laugh but you don't know if you don't ask so here goes... No laughing now ... What is a ZZ?
Thanks,
Susan
I was wondering the same thing!
If you look in the botany section under the Zs you can find the real name for a ZZ plant.
Here is mine (i had to replace as my son in law fell in love with mine). She isn't getting quite enough light but she seems to be growing all the time. I have her in a bulb pan as they don't like to stay wet.
ZZ means Zamioculcas zamiifolia, see here http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/2142/
Very tough plant!
Thankyou!
I love the ZZ plant. Here's a pic I took of mine at the beginning of this month. I forgot and left it sitting out by the pool and we had a lot of rain a few days ago ... the pot was sitting inside another pot with no drainage! It was floating when I found it but doesn't seem to be any worse for the dunking it took! I drained the outer pot and the plant has dried out so it's okay thank goodness. I would have kicked myself if this plant had died. Sure glad I found it before it sat in that pot of water a few days! LOL.
Lin, how beautiful! I need to get mine out of the house and out on the porch. It is growing fine for a houseplant, but i want even more foliage (LOL)
