The gathering of friends and family at Thanksgiving, and throughout the holiday season, is about sharing the bounty you have harvested throughout the year. Your tablescape will set the scene. Whether you’re planning a casual get-together or a formal dinner party, you can set the mood with the right choice of seasonal decor.
Pumpkins, gourds, mums and pepper plants are excellent options for a Thanksgiving– or fall-themed tablescape. Carve out your pumpkin or gourd vessels and fill them with the cutting from your favorite plants. Line the center of your table with colorful cuttings, planted in low planters and give them as gifts at the end of the evening. Each of these lasts a long time and creates a gorgeous arrangement of color on any table.
Fresh greenery is a tablescape go-to during the Christmas season. A fresh wreath in the middle of the dinner table with some candles is a simple, stunning and elegant way to adorn a holiday table. Implementing cedar and juniper berries also adds layers of texture and color to a winter tablescape.
Traditionally we share turkey and stuffing, family recipes and the joy of gathering. What about adding to the tradition by sharing a cutting from your favorite plant this year? Your gift will grow and prosper spreading the bounty to those you have gifted. Some plants take up to 4 weeks to propagate so, if you want to give a potted plant it’s time to start now.
At Re-Leaf we have a few favorites:
ZZ Plants
ZZ plants have a tuber-like rhizome at the base of each stem where the roots grow.
- To propagate a ZZ plant, you’ll need to take a stem cutting and place it in water in a sunny location. It takes around 3-4 weeks for the stem to grow a new bulbous rhizome at its base and start putting out roots.
- Once you’ve got a new rhizome on the bottom of the cutting and the roots are over an inch long, your baby ZZ plant is ready to be potted in a well draining potting mix.
- For an in-depth look at how to propagate the ZZ plant, check out this article, How to Proagate a ZZ Plant, by Wild Interiors, here.
Photo credit: feey | Unsplash.com
Snake Plants
Sword plant, devil’s tongue, mother-in-law’s tongue, whatever you call it, snake plants are a great choice. They are easy to propagate because half the time, they propagate all by themselves. A healthy snake plant will produce tiny little snake plants that grow at the base of the parent plant.
- To propagate them, you’ll need to cut them from the main plant. You can even do this without disturbing the parent plant.
- Once cut, rinse off the soil, and let it callous over for a day or two before repotting.
- Plant them in a quality cactus potting mix.
You can also propagate snake plants by taking one of the long leaves and cutting it into smaller sections. Each section can be rooted to make new plants either in water or soil. Propagating by leaf cutting is easy to do but can take a couple of months to see new growth. It’s important to be patient. For more details there’s a great article 4 Easy Ways to Propagate Snake Plants, by Rural Sprout, here.
Photo credit: Ravi Kant | Pexels.co
Pothos
Pothos do best when rooted in water, although you can propagate them in soil too.
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- To propagate a pothos, you need to take a stem cutting right below a leaf node. Leaf nodes are where the leaf meets the stem. Often, small ariel nodes can be seen beginning to grow at these sections.
- Ensure your stem cutting is at least 4″ long. Remove the lower leaves from your cutting before placing it in water. In a few weeks, your pothos will begin to put out roots and be ready for planting.
All other philodendrons can be propagated in the same way, including monstera. For more information on propagating pothos, look at 3 Steps to Propagate Pothos & 7 Mistakes Most People Make, by Madison Moulton on Blooming Backyard here.
Photo credit: Nick Quan | Unsplash.
Remember, caring for any living thing takes time and patience. Armed with the knowledge of how to care for your plants and how to help them produce more versions of themselves, gives you the opportunity to share a piece of your world with the people around you. A gift of a plant brings lasting joy, that they will carry with them throughout the year. Every glimpse will remind them of you.
Don’t have the time to propagate your own plants? Come visit us at Re-Leaf and pick up a plant that has had time to grow on its own. No matter how the plant entered the world, the gift of a plant will have lasting impact.
