Night blooming cereus, also known as Queen of the Night or Selenicereus grandiflorus, is a unique and beautiful plant that blooms only once a year for one night. The fascinating part is that it blooms at night and withers away by dawn – leaving behind an enchanting fragrance in the air. If you are a fan of this plant and want to propagate it in your garden or yard, then keep reading!
Choosing the Right Method
There are different methods to propagate night blooming cereus. You can use seeds, cuttings or grafting techniques.
Seed Propagation Technique
This method involves planting seeds from fresh fruits that you have collected from mature plants. You should make sure to remove any pulp before washing them thoroughly with water.
Next, soak the seeds overnight in warm water (around 80°F) before sowing them into pots filled with suitable soil mixtures like peat moss and perlite mixed with vermiculite or sand.
Keep these pots well-drained and moist until they germinate – which may take anywhere from three weeks up to six months depending on temperature conditions.
Cutting Propagation Technique
The cutting propagation technique involves dividing parts of mature plants into smaller pieces to grow new ones. Cuttings around 8-10 inches long should be taken at least two months after flowering when stems start getting woody.
These cuttings should be dried for several days so they can form calluses – protective tissue where roots will sprout out eventually – before being planted in containers filled with appropriate soil mixtures similar to seed propagation method mentioned above.
Place these containers under diffused light conditions until growth starts showing signs like leaves emergence after which point they could be moved over time towards brighter light sources such as windowsills if desired while continuing watering regularly so roots don’t dry out completely but aren’t soaked either!
Grafting Techniques
Another way would be through grafting techniques which involve taking small sections of fresh growth from your desired plant and attaching them to a more established rootstock, usually taken from another plant.
This method is often used to propagate species that are difficult or impossible to grow directly from seed.
Preparing the Plant for Propagation
Before starting any propagation method, it is important to ensure that the mother plant is as healthy as possible. This can be done by providing adequate light, water and nutrients such as compost tea or organic fertilizer.
Also, avoid propagating plants suffering damage or disease symptoms like brown lesions on leaves since these may indicate fungal infections which could spread quickly among newly propagated night blooming cereus plants – especially if humidity levels are high indoors where most people keep their propagated cuttings in jars with lids over moistened paper towels until roots appear.
Conclusion
Propagation of night blooming cereus is an exciting way to add beauty in your home’s landscape. While there are different methods available, including seed propagation technique, cutting propagation technique and grafting techniques, always make sure you prepare the plant properly before initiating any procedure. With proper care and attention during propagation period , success rate should be quite high! Enjoy watching these unique blooms at night time after all that hard work has paid off!
