Can lucky bamboo be propagated

9 Comments

1. admin - February 13, 2009 at 9:59 am

   Propagating lucky bamboo
   The leaves at the top of the stalk are getting high. Can I cut them off and new ones will re-grow out of the stalk? Or do I just trim them?

   Once your lucky bamboo gets too tall you can trim it. For example, if the stem is 12 inches above the cane, you can trim back 8-9 inches leaving 3-4 inches of green leaves. You should cut just above a leaf bract. The new cuts can be placed in water and rooted for new plants. Or cut the cane below the lowest leaf and above a node (circular marking on the cane), this will encourage new shoots to grow out of the stalk.

   Reply
2. admin - February 13, 2009 at 10:02 am

   Shoot propagation
   Rosie ( star_gurlie04@hotmail.com / )
   i have a clear glass vase with glass rocks holding 3 stalks of lucky bamboo about 2 feet tall. about 1 foot is nothing but leaves and the whole plant is very green. I would like to trim the plant so its not quite so leafy, but I’m not sure if i should just trim the leaves themselves or if i should just take off the entire stalk and leaves stemming from the original plant. if possible i would love to cut these off and re pot them for gifts but I’m not sure how thick around they should be before i detach them from the main stalk. any suggestions?

   It sounds like they are large enough to root. The leaf shoot should be 4-6 inches and can be cut off, placed in water. Once rooted plant it in soil. Be aware that they will not produce the stalks but a leafy plant.

   Reply
3. Sharan - May 6, 2009 at 8:32 pm

   Hi there,
   I was fascinated by these lucky bamboo as they call it and wanted to keep one for us and bought one. Its very small one only about 10 Cms in height. I had about 19 of them nicely tied in a red thread. 2 of them died after becoming yellow. Now the third one is almost dead. When i had a look at that the top part of the stem is very much yellow and is spoongy. So after reading all the above i kind of assuming that it is dead but the bottom part is strong and there is a leaf coming out as well but it just started. I didn’t like the thought that its dying so i used my knife and cut the top part and the bottom part leaving just about 1/2 a cm of stem with the leaves coming out. I have placed them in water for the roots to grow. Am i right in doing this. I understand that if it grows it will be a leafy plant. I have 2 questions for you. 1. Will it survive? 2. How do we grow the stem if possible and if not why doesn’t the stem grow?

   Yes, it’s possible that your cutting will root and survive. You can also plant it in soil and grow it as a houseplant.
   It takes a long time to grow the stem. First it starts out as a leafy plant and then as the plant matures and looses its lower leaves, it will produce the bamboo-like stem

   Reply
4. Tina - July 28, 2009 at 5:29 am

   hi I was given a lucky bamboo as a gift it is in a 3×5 glass vase with small rocks it has 6 shoots in the vase I was wondering do I need to transplant it into something larger or leave it in the same vase..it seems to be growing quite well and am not sure what to do with it I really like it and want to take good care of it. would appriciate any suggestions…thanks Tina

   Hi Tina
   If its fixed don’t try to break it. Leave it in its container and enjoy your luck bamboo.

   Reply
5. Lily - August 6, 2009 at 12:39 pm

   I have a large bamboo plants with layers of shoots. It was so beautiful. We just returned from vacation to find out that the water is smelly and the green leaves are turning yellow and are soggy. I changed the water twice since and they still get rotted from the bottom. Can I cut the bottom and take out the dead bamboos? Or what do you advise me to do.

   Reply
6. Omar F. Hamad - April 9, 2010 at 3:30 am

   Cutting the stem
   Dear sir,
   Please accept my best wishes.
   I’ve one of lucky bamboo I’ve been just gifted from a friend it’s more than 3 feet and has a spiral on the top and along leave too. so I want to cut it off and make it two is it possible? and If i cut it off and sealed it with wax I was wondering if it will grow the new one and get high?
   so I woul a greatly appreciate helping me by advicing me
   waiting your generous reply thanks

   Hi Omar
   You can cut your bamboo stem and root the cut off part in water to make a new stem. Once rooted the new stem will grow new shoots of leaves but the stem will remain the same size.

   Reply
7. RandomPerson - August 2, 2011 at 12:41 pm

   About how long does it take for a cutting to become a stalk so it can have sprouts
   Just wondering because I’ve had 2 cuttings for almost 2-3 years or do you have YO do something

   I don’t know what the technique is to get the stalk. perhaps someone out there knows.

   Reply
8. Eleni - March 25, 2012 at 11:12 am

   I moved three months ago to a new place. I have two cats and they chew on the few leaves my lucky bamboo had. It fell on the floor a few times as a result. I kept moving it, but they got it. Then, I put it in the fridge for a few days. It became yellow, the top, and had white spots. I cut the upper two thirds and placed the rest in a container with an aspirin. Shall I leave it in water or plant it? It is just the stem with healthy roots. There is a black spot near the roots.

   Hi Eleni
   It sounds like your lucky bamboo isn’t doing so well. Once the stems starts to turn yellow, there’s nothing you can do. Since you cut off the diseased part, you can either leave it in water or plant it in soil. If it survives it may send out new leaves from the joints. Make sure you clean the container with a 10% bleach solution to get rid of any pathogens that are causing it to yellow.

   Reply
9. brittany - December 12, 2014 at 8:01 pm

   so i bought this plant at pet smart and the stem is all mushy and it wont stand up stright. you said there was nothing you could do.. so how do i cut if off? what is a shoot?

   HI Brittany
   A shoot is new leafy growth on the stem which when large enough can be cut off and rooted. Usually, when the stem is mushy it is rotting and won’t survive.

   Reply