11 Houseplants That Are Easy to Propagate, Even for Beginner Gardeners

Pothos

Pothos (Epipremnum aureum) is a go-to beginner houseplant for good reason—it’s not only very forgiving, but propagating it is a breeze. 

To propagate, Samantha Adler, owner of Houseplant Concierge, suggests cutting anywhere along the stem below a node, and placing the stem in water or on moist soil—ensure at least one node is submerged.

Need help identifying a node? Hamell suggests looking for the swollen parts of the stem where leaves, flowers, and roots emerge. “Pothos have so many nodes along their stems and grow easily from any of them,” Adler adds.

• Size: 20 to 40 feet in length (fully matured)
• Growing Conditions: Low to bright, indirect light; well-draining soil

Philodendron

Philodendrons have a similar node structure to pothos, so propagating them is almost the same.

If it’s a non-trailing philodendron, however, Adler suggests sticking the cutting in water or soil. For trailing varieties, rest the stem with its nodes on the soil surface.

• Size: 30 to 70 feet in length (fully matured, depending on variety)
• Growing Conditions: Medium to bright, indirect light; well-draining soil

Monstera

These tropical giants are surprisingly easy to clone. Take a cutting with at least three nodes, suggests Hamell. Then, place at least one node under water, wait for roots, and pot it in damp soil.

You can even combine multiple rooted cuttings in one pot for a fuller look.

• Size: 10 to 15 feet (fully matured)
• Growing Conditions: Medium to bright, indirect light; well-draining soil

Inch Plant

Inch plant (Tradescantia) propagates quickly, and you can follow the same methods as listed above. “They grow roots even faster than pothos and philodendron,” Hamell notes.

• Size: 6 to 12 inches tall by 1 foot wide
• Growing conditions: Low to bright, indirect light; well-draining soil

Spider Plant

Known for their spider-like offshoots, spider plants (Chlorophytum comosum) are famously prolific. They create little plantlets that can be cut off and rooted in water or soil, Adler says. “If you look closely, you can usually see the baby plants starting to grow roots of their own,” Hamell notes.

Lisa Eldred Steinkopf, founder of The Houseplant Guru, says you could also pin the baby plant to a pot of soil while it’s still attached to the mother plant for an even gentler propagation method. Then, once the baby plant is rooted, you can cut it loose.

“Every little spider is a potential new plant,” Steinkopf notes.

• Size: Up to 18 inches tall by 2 feet wide
• Growing Conditions: Low to bright, indirect light; well-draining soil

String of Hearts

This delicate trailing plant is easy to propagate. Adler says they root best if you cut the vine above one of the plant’s tubers, and place the tuber on moist soil in a sunny spot.

• Size: 1 to 2 inches tall, 1 to 2 inches wide 
• Growing Conditions: Bright indirect light; well-draining soil

Coleus

“I love these colorful plants and feel they are very easy to propagate,” Adler says.

Coleus (Plectranthus scutellarioides) grows from multiple nodes along its stem, so Adler recommends cutting just below a node, removing any leaves that touch the soil, and then planting that stem in regular potting soil in a sunny location. Just be sure to water regularly, as they can be thirsty.

• Size: 2 to 3 feet tall by 1 to 3 feet wide
• Growing Conditions: Bright, indirect light; regular potting mix

ZZ Plant

ZZ plant (Zamioculcas zamiifolia) might grow slowly, but it has a unique advantage over the previous houseplants: It can root from just a single leaf.

To do this, simply put a tip cutting or leaf in water. Once the roots are at least an inch long, you can transplant them into soil or keep them growing in water, according to Steinkopf.

• Size: 2 to 4 feet tall
• Growing Conditions: Low to bright indirect light; well-draining soil

African Violet

Like the ZZ plant, “violets are easy—all you need is one leaf,” says Steinkopf. 

She recommends cutting a leaf stem to 1 inch at a 45-degree angle, making a hole in moist soil with a pencil or dowel, and placing the stem in it, ensuring the leaf doesn’t touch the soil. Small plants should grow within a few weeks if you keep the soil moist. 

• Size: 6 to 12 inches tall by 6 to 12 inches wide
• Growing conditions: Bright, indirect light; well-draining soil

Jade Plant

According to Hamell, jade (Crassula ovata) is forgiving and easy to grow, and you can use either stem or leaf cuttings to propagate the succulent. “Stem cuttings are easier, but leaf cuttings let you make more baby plants from smaller pieces of the parent plant,” they note.

After you take a cutting from jade, let it dry and callus over for a few days, then place the cut side down in cactus or succulent soil, keeping the soil damp, but not soggy.

While stem cuttings should resume growing almost immediately, leaf cuttings will take longer to propagate, since they are working to produce a whole new tiny plant. “But it’s so fun to watch,” Hamell says.

• Size: 5 feet tall by 5 feet wide
• Growing Conditions: Bright, indirect light; cacti or succulent soil

Echeveria

This pretty rosette succulent is another beginner-friendly option, and you can use the same propagation method as with jade plants. “All you need is one leaf to propagate [them],” says Steinkopf.

• Size: 1 to 12 inches tall by 4 to 8 inches wide
• Growing Conditions: Bright, indirect light; cacti or succulent soil