Cloning Your Bamboo

In this instructable I will show you how to take a cutting of a lucky bamboo plant and use it to start a new plant. It doesn't take much, and is really easy to do.

I had a lucky bamboo plant that was growing out of control. It seemed like every day there was a new branch starting. I decided to shape my plant into something a little bit nicer looking and in the process I would start a new plant.

You will need

• A lucky bamboo plant with new growth
• A spare container filled with water
• scissors
• tea light (optional)
• lighter (optional)
• plant food (optional)

Start by lighting your tea light for mood. We'll use the wax in a second. Then identify which branch you want to remove. In my case I wanted to get rid of a crazy sideways branch that liked to try and tip the vase over. You should choose a branch that has some of these brown nodules near the base. Those are where the new roots will eventually emerge. Choose a spot close to the main part of the plant and use your scissors to cut your branch. Your scissors should be clean. You don't want to introduce any bacteria or anything that could infect your plant.

After you make the cut, blow out your candle and dip the stubby part of your main plant in the
wax to seal the cut you just made. This will help keep any bacteria out of your plant so it doesn't get sick. Don't do this for the branch you'd like to turn into a new plant.

Place the branch you just cut into your container of water. Then remove a majority of the leaves, leaving some of the larger ones at the top. The leaves you remove will eventually grow into the main stalk of your plant. Add some plant food according to the directions on your bottle.

After about a week you should start to see the beginnings of some roots emerging from the brown nodules I mentioned earlier. Congratulations, you've started a new plant that can live on its own! I keep mine in standing water 100% of the time and they seem to like it just fine. After a few months you will probably have to increase the size of your container if you want your plant to keep growing.

Now that you have 2 plants, there's nothing stopping you from having as many as you want! I find that shortly after I take a cutting from my plant, it starts to put off new growth that I can cut for more plants.

Thanks for reading, if you found this helpful please vote for me in the indoor gardening contest!

If you have any questions, I'd be happy to answer them in the comments.