Sure, you can pick up an Aloe Vera at just about any garden center, but there’s something so rewarding about growing your own from scratch! If you’ve got a little patience, you can start with seeds. But once you have a healthy “mother” plant established, expanding your collection is a breeze using offsets (those cute little babies that pop up in the soil) or cuttings.
Propagating Aloe Vera
There are two main ways to get more Aloe plants for your home: you can take leaf cuttings or separate the “pups” (offsets) that grow alongside the main plant.
Propagating with Cuttings
If you have an older, well-established mother plant, you can take cuttings any time of year. Here’s how to do it right:
- Use a clean, sterilized knife to slice off a side shoot from a healthy plant.
- You’ll notice some moisture leaking from the cut. To prevent rot, let the cutting sit out in a dry spot for a day or two until the wound callouses over.
- While you wait, prep some small pots with a mix of seed-starting soil and sand.
- Plant the cutting about an inch deep into the soil and firm it down gently.
- If your cutting is a bit top-heavy, feel free to use a small stake to keep it upright.
- Hold off on the watering! Wait until you see signs of new growth—that’s your signal that roots have formed.
- Once the roots have filled out the starter pot, your new Aloe is ready for its “forever home” in a larger container.
Propagating Aloe Vera via Pups (Offsets)
If you look closely at the base of a mature Aloe, you’ll often see tiny baby plants sprouting up. These are called “pups,” and they’re the easiest way to propagate because they already have their own root systems! To separate them, it’s best to take the whole plant out of the pot and gently tease the pup’s roots away from the mother plant with your fingers.
Let the little guy dry out for a few hours, then tuck it into a pot with sandy soil. Place it in a warm, bright spot. If you have a mini indoor greenhouse, that extra humidity can really help the roots settle in. Wait about a week before watering for the first time. After that, keep the soil just barely moist—never soggy. Aloe hates “wet feet,” so avoid standing water at all costs!
Propagating Aloe Vera from a Single Leaf
Believe it or not, you can even grow a whole new plant from just one leaf. Simply cut a healthy leaf from the bottom of a mature plant and slice it into a few sections. Let those pieces air-dry for a couple of days until the ends are dry to the touch. Prepare a tray or some pots with sandy soil, stick the leaf pieces in upright, and keep them in a warm, sunny spot. Keep the soil slightly damp (but again, watch out for overwatering!). Before long, those leaf chunks will sprout roots and start sending up brand-new shoots.
