Papyrus Propagation

Since we are enjoying some rainy days outside, I thought I'd post about a little indoor plant.  A couple months ago I was visiting someone at his workplace, and noticed a large papyrus plant growing by a desk.  I remembered how, years before, I'd been shown how to take a cutting and start one of my own... so I asked my colleague for a piece of the plant, to try again.  

     It is simply a matter of taking one of the umbrella-like ends, with a bit of stem, and trimming the leaves by about half.  I also trimmed off the floral/seed structures that were growing from this 'branch.'

Cyperus alternifolius

And yes, put it upside-down in a glass of water.  After a while, roots will appear, and little green buds for stems.  This is one of two papyrus species I see grown here in Nova Scotia.  Both need a home indoors to survive the winter.  This one is sometimes called Umbrella Plant.

I neglected to keep track of how long it took to root.  I think I got this cutting in mid-February, so it took about two months to get rooted to this stage.

April 19

 Once it starts to root and sprout, pot it up and keep it very moist.  

April 19

Below you see the little plant now, looking quite happy.  I'm glad we're off to a good start!  I will likely pot this up in a bigger container soon and let it flourish outside on the deck for the summer.

May 29

 Good luck with your own propagating projects.