The Easiest Way To Propagate Snake Plants To Grow Your Houseplant Collection

Whether you're new to owning houseplants or have an advanced green thumb, you're probably familiar with the snake plant (Dracaena trifasciata). This evergreen perennial comes in many species offering various shapes, hues, and heights, but is a fairly common starter plant. It's quite recognizable with its long, slender leaves that resemble a snake's shape and skin. In addition to being low maintenance and forgiving, this succulent thrives in low to indirect light and can live for more than 20 years.  This makes it one of those houseplants that are pretty much unkillable. 

Because of all these positive attributes, many plant owners choose to propagate their snake plants when they want to grow their collections. We reached out to plant expert and owner of House + Plant, Samantha Hermann, who spoke exclusively to Hunker. She offered advice on how to clone this plant and whether it's easy enough for a beginner. Although Hermann is now a plant expert and teacher, she remembers what it was like not knowing how to care for her plants. Now, she has 250,000 social media followers and offers advice and consultations on the topic of "plant parenthood".

Hermann assures us that snake plant is the perfect choice for propagation for beginners. "Snake plants are a very popular houseplant for their low care needs," she says. "They are readily available and inexpensive, making them a great plant for a beginner to dip their toes into propagating." In case you're unfamiliar with propagation, it's simply the process of using cuttings from an existing plant to make new plant clones. It's an easy and affordable way to add plants to your collection at little to no cost.

Speaking exclusively to Hunker, plant expert Samantha Hermann says that snake plants can be propagated in either soil or water. It's a personal preference in choosing which method you'd like to try. Either way, start by taking a cutting of your existing plant. Hermann says to use clean shears and cut a piece off about 5 inches long. "Let the cut callous over on the counter for a day or so. Then place it in a vase of water or pot of damp soil." She says it's important to keep it in a bright and warm spot — and that a common mistake people make is to skip the callous stage, which could lead to rot.

Although snake plant is simple to propagate, it does require one skill from the plant owner: patience. Hermann says that it can take a very long time to propagate and in some cases even up to six months. "The leaf you take the cutting from will not continue to grow, but it will push new leaves from the base of the plant," Hermann says. Because of the time it takes, you might try doing multiple cuttings at once. It's fine to put them in the same pot together. If you're feeling a little crafty, you can DIY a wood and glass propagation station.

Keep your cuttings moist, of course. If you propagated in water, the container should be filled enough to cover the roots. For soil propagation, keep the soil moist but not waterlogged. From there, just let nature run its course and you can grow a whole new family of this beautiful and resilient plant.