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Problem

I currently have an AeroGarden which I keep in my basement for me to enjoy some greenery in my workshop. I want to propagate plants as successfully as possible in this environment.

Conditions

Usual Temperature: ~72-74 °F Usual Relative Humidity: ~50% No major sun exposure, only ambient

AeroGarden in a cement wall basement sitting on a workbench with lights shining on it.

Plants

I'm trying to currently propagate 6 different plants:

  1. Two succulents (left side)
  2. Two ferns (right side)
  3. Spider Plant
  4. Christmas cactus

Question

While this is an experiment, what conditions can I modify to have the best success for propagation to take place?

Example thoughts

  • Fertilizer or no?
  • Length of Light time.
  • Water-only or soil?
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  • 1
    You are considering rooting cactus and succulents in water? Rooting ferns from fronds? Spider plants, sure.
    – Yosef Baskin
    Commented Aug 25 at 12:40
  • 1
    @YosefBaskin I’m definitely new and may be trying incorrect plants. I have done those succulents outside in water before and was successful. The fern and cactus are experiments. Do ferns propagate from another piece of their foliage?
    – Avogadro ♦
    Commented Aug 25 at 22:09
  • 1
    Bravo on rooting succulents in water. Ferns root from dividing crowns with ... roots.
    – Yosef Baskin
    Commented Aug 25 at 22:15
  • @Avogadro nice setup! Is that spider plant pup still attached to the umbilical vine?
    – MackM
    Commented Sep 2 at 17:59
  • @MackM Thanks! It's simple and brings me some joy in a place of wood, cement, metal, and grime. The spider plant is still on the vine itself. I think I started to see some white roots forming today (~14 days)
    – Avogadro ♦
    Commented Sep 4 at 0:29

2 Answers 2

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+50

I would upgrade your temperature and humidity control with a curtain or cover. The smaller the organism the harder homeostasis is for it. They can be better looking than this example image:

an aero garden with a black cover over it, showing some light shining through the black fabric

The curtain lets the plants live in a hothouse-ish environment separate from your living environment. If you get a monitor you can control the environment using the lights to add heat and venting to reject heat and humidity.

a temperature and humidity readout showing 23.5C 30%

And also, Succulents and Christmas cactus like drier feet, ferns and spider plants like wetter feet. The Christmas cactus likes it warmer than a fern would. If everything is working out then you don't need to worry about it, that's a super fun garden mix, but if something is struggling you would be faced with a balancing act. In that case you might be more successful if you chose a propagation paradigm for your aero garden and then chose plants that match it.

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2
  • This gives me a lot more information to know how to proceed in the best pathway I'm able to. So far, it seems that they all are getting along. The fern is not doing much (as others have alluded) but everything else (even Christmas cactus) has at least one root showing. Let's see how the next week or so goes.
    – Avogadro ♦
    Commented Sep 4 at 0:31
  • Want to answer this new question?
    – Avogadro ♦
    Commented Sep 4 at 0:38
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Right, firstly, the ferns will not grow, unless you took a piece of the rhizome with the frond. Secondly, the cactus, spider plant and succulents may root, but in my opinion, I'd take the AeroGarden, throw it over my shoulder them insert the cuttings into a pot of soil that is kept in indirect light and watered gently while the cuttings root.

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