My spider plant

[Shule]

Here's my largest spider plant. It's in a 13-inch pot. My sister got it for me on 15 Nov 2021. It's grown a lot! It was originally in probably a 3-inch pot (but a tall plant for the pot size).

[worth1]

Also known as airplane plants.

[Shule]

The first cutting I took from my spider plant is pretty big, now. The original plant is big enough that I'm encouraged a single spider plant could fill any sized pot given enough sun and time.

I decided to plant 16 spiderettes (4 per container, in 4 containers; I planted 8 of them today, and the other 8 maybe a few weeks ago). My oldest plant had a lot of spiderettes, so I figured I might as well do multiples per pot. The pots are maybe 4" in diameter, and are fairly deep; they're black.

I've decided that although these are easy to root in water, they seem even easier to root in soil. Just take the cutting and plant it. It actually works.

Of course, for any rootless plant, you'll probably want to keep it out of bright sun for better results. And, you'll want to gently water it every day or two for a while (so the new soil can get used to absorbing water and not dry out too much on top).

Pros for rooting in soil:
- Success rates seem high
- You don't have to wait for it to root; you plant it and you're done
- You don't have to worry about algae forming around the roots, due to sunlight exposure
- You don't have to worry about nutrient-depletion during rooting
- The plant can start growing faster
- It requires less equipment

Cons for rooting in soil:
- You don't actually see the roots grow
- It's probably less safe to put it in bright sun (although I don't particularly recommend rooting them in water in bright sun, either, since that can encourage algae and bleach the leaves)
- It takes a certain amount of faith to plant a cutting without roots (don't worry; it works)

All in all, whether you root in water or soil, they're one of the easier houseplants to root.

Lest I deceive you, I've rooted plenty of other things in soil and water in the past. So, I'm not new to this sort of thing (even if I haven't rooted spider plants in soil until recently), but don't be afraid to try it if you never have. The same principles work for many species of plants, but some species are easier than others (and more sensitive about light, damping off, etc.)

I only really recommend rooting in water if you don't have a pot and soil, yet.

I normally used seed-starting mix for rooting vegetable cuttings when I did that, but you don't need to do that for spider plants. The final potting soil seems great.

[Shule]

The first cutting I took from my spider plant is pretty big, now. . . .

That cutting is growing it's first flower stalk, now. It's too early to tell how many spiderettes are on it.

[Shule]

It looks like my original picture is no longer available. So, here's an updated one (it's bigger now and has so many growth points I stopped counting). If you click on the picture, you'll see a clearer, bigger picture.

big spider plant.jpg

In the pot to the left of the big spider plant is its first pup.

All the pots you see in this picture are 13" pots.

Those are our tomatoes out the window. They're huge (I'm not sure if you can tell).

I need to get some new scissors to trim the tips of my big spider plant. I haven't done it in a number of months.

[MissS]

A spider plant was the very first plant that I ever grew. I really enjoyed that plant and it started me on a lifelong journey of gardening.

[TomatoNut95]

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Here's part of my houseplant collection. 2 spider plant pups, a lithops and a leaflet off a succulent species I've been raising for years and never could remember the name of it.

[TomatoNut95]

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Eeeekkk!!! My plant's dirt is moldy! What should I do? That's new dirt! I haven't overwatered!!

[Shule]

@TomatoNut95

Well, it probably just means that the potting soil wasn't completely composted, and it additionally had a nitrogen supply in it. Mold seems to be pretty common on potting soil with wood chips in it after you fertilize. It shouldn't actually hurt your spider plants, though, unless it's a problematic kind of mold.

Wood and such needs nitrogen to break down. I wouldn't fear to fertilize; it should free up more nutrients for your plant from the wood chips. It might, however, attract fungus gnats.

However, if you want to reduce mold, you might try giving the soil more light, and increasing ventillation. Plus, use a different kind of potting soil in future. Maybe even put a layer of perlite on top.

[TomatoNut95]

I used Miracle Gro. That's the #1 brand pushed around here. What do you use?
Perlite...I keep telling myself to buy some of that!

[Shule]

I used Miracle Gro. That's the #1 brand pushed around here. What do you use?
Perlite...I keep telling myself to buy some of that!

Miracle Gro potting soil shouldn't have a lot of wood chips in it. So, I'm kind of surprised. Oh well.

I just use whatever I can manage to get, but I have a preference for Miracle Gro, due to fewer wood chips in it than the other stuff I've tried. I use 24-8-16 Miracle Gro fertilizer, too.

[TomatoNut95]

Miracle gro does have some wood chips. Not as bad as some other brands like StaGreen though. StaGreen is TERRIBLE. I wonder if potting soil could be sifted like flour to clean out some bigger chips?

[Shule]

@TomatoNut95

If you want the nutrients that wood chips provide without draining nitrogen from your soil and causing mold, you can always add a little wood ash. Our houseplants seem to like it on occasion (I don't add it very often, because it can raise the soil pH—except for on our White Pearl Poinsettia, which seems to demand it once every 5 or 6 months).

So, for non-Poinsettias, I usually only add wood ash once, and then maybe again a long time later if the plants look like they need something that regular fertilizer isn't giving them. Spider plants thrive fine without wood ash, though. I don't think I gave any to mine.

[TomatoNut95]

I don't have a fireplace but my neighbor does. How much wood ash per area or pot could be used? Like a 1/2 cup to a pot of dirt for a houseplant? I wonder if I could use it on my tomatoes.
Also you're so lucky to have a poinsettia to live past Christmas!! Any secrets?

[Shule]

I don't have a fireplace but my neighbor does. How much wood ash per area or pot could be used? Like a 1/2 cup to a pot of dirt for a houseplant? I wonder if I could use it on my tomatoes.
Also you're so lucky to have a poinsettia to live past Christmas!! Any secrets?

A half a cup is possibly too much. Maybe a fourth or less for a decent sized pot. I usually just sprinkle a handful in, if that. If you don't give it enough, you can always add more later. Better too little than too much.

[Shule]

I don't have a fireplace but my neighbor does. How much wood ash per area or pot could be used? Like a 1/2 cup to a pot of dirt for a houseplant? I wonder if I could use it on my tomatoes.
Also you're so lucky to have a poinsettia to live past Christmas!! Any secrets?

The secret to poinsettias is to give them a north window, and lots of fertilizer. Also, give them wood ash right away and again every 5 to 6 months. You'll want to fertilize them as soon as you get them. Don't wait at all. The longer you wait, the more likely they are to die. Don't heed conventional advice about not fertilizing in winter. Water them regularly just like other houseplants. The calcium from the wood ash seems to make them a whole lot more cold-tolerant, so you don't have to worry about them being particularly finnicky about temperature (but if you don't give them wood ash, you need to make sure it's warm).

You may want to give them some Epsom salt initially, too.