I've heard that algae isn't toxic or anything to the plant. But you should try to keep it to a minimum because it competes for resources like oxygen and other nutrients so if it gets prevalent enough it can do harm. If you're really worried about it you can make like a cardboard sleeve to put around your transparent prop glasses to block sunlight hitting the water/perlite etc. I like to do this rather than use an opaque jar because it means I can still pull the jar out of the sleeve and check on the roots. Hope that helps!

"So far I've had 100 percent success rate" Me: drops the phone and puts all of my water props in perlite immediately

I make some small drainage holes in the bottom of a new bag of perlite and run water through the bag until rinsed. No more dust!

I love the sense of accomplishment that comes with successfully propagating plants. It's like creating new life

*Looks for victim* 😂 *Me when I'm standing back staring at my wall of plants with my hands on my hips like a proud dad wondering who's getting a hair cut next* 👁👄👁

I looked at many KZfaq videos about propagating with Perlite and this one is by far the most in-depth one I have found. Thank you for taking the time to teach us!

When I did a plant tour in Indonesia and Thailand a couple of years ago, pure perlite seemed to be the number one way that people were doing props. I started doing the same when I got back to the states! Another way to get rid of the algae is just watering with some hydrogen peroxide added to your water. H202 kills algae super fast!

Fern: **looks for victim** Plants: 👁 👄 👁

I feel like you are the only plant lover youtuber that exactly has the ups and downs that I am going through. ".. it started rotting on me, I don't know what is it with me ..." That was exactly my sentence today in the morning haha. My alocasia rotted and now its time to propagate it with only one root left, if at all. Thank you for always making videos that we actually need 😍

one BIG thing to add is that light and humidity matter WAY more than what medium you prop in. In my greenhouses with 1000+ FC of light, 75-95% humidity and good air flow - I’ve had cuttings root just sitting on a table with no medium at all. The problem with prop boxes is that they are good for humidity but can cause rot because there isn’t enough air flow. For $100-$150 you can get a small grow tent/plastic greenhouse, small humidifier, grow light, fan, and hygrometer and never have prop problems again Perlite is my fav propping medium simply because I prop 100+ cuttings per month and I can reuse the perlite easily, quickly, and more sanitary than anything else. One day I need to find time to make some videos because I think I could help a lot of people. KZfaq is full of people that don’t know what they’re doing, telling people how they should do things. I like Fern a lot though! She’s always learning, doesn’t act like a know it all, and does a great job putting her videos together. Keep up the good work Fern!

Hey plant friend 🪴❤️ I’m picking up a Thai constellation monstera later and I am so excited I had to share it with someone 🤩😩🥳

I just want to commend you for always trying new things and experimenting. To me, that’s part what makes having houseplants so fun. The trial and error. Thank you for consistently showing us new things!

I love perlite, every time I’ve had a plant rot or couldn’t get it to root in anything else I pop it in perlite & I have full roots within a month or two. It’s seriously amazing!

My first attempts to root in perlite was 4 days ago. When you did yours I ran to my props. I had put the cuttings in perlite and then added water. Came back after pouring out all the extra water. You see saved them . Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. 🌱❤️

You get algae growth from having it in the light. I think if it weren't a clear container you wouldn't get the algae growth. But it's so fun to watch the roots grow lol

Yes 👏🏼 perlite or pumice is my favorite prop method! So stoked you were able to save plants this way

Hello Fern, I just want to say that I love your videos! Snuggle in the bed with a cup of coffee and binge watch your videos is my morning routin these days hihi. You have such a good energy, makes me happy. Hugs from Sweden!!

This is definitely my favorite method for propping if I have access to perlite (I can get pretty stingy with my plant supplies, but even crappy miracle gro perlite which is super tiny works!). I hate moss because it can be really difficult to get the moss off, and that can be a huge problem if you're putting it into soil. Plus avoiding moss means I avoid purchasing unethically sourced moss. Water is okay, but I think the plants transition a lot better to soil when you don't root them in pure water. Plus, perlite means you use less water overall since you don't need to fill the cup up to the cutting. My water props always leave funky little calcium/mineral deposits right around where I keep it filled, and perlite seems to mitigate that or at least keep it lower in the cup such that I only have to vinegar soak a small portion to remove it. Also, I feel a little odd trying to use systemic pest control granules in pure water, but it's very doable in perlite (great for if you're trying to save a plant from a severe pest issue by propping it!). Direct to soil can make it difficult to monitor roots. Even in a clear cup vs clear cup comparison, if you're trying to check on a very slow-rooter which doesn't show at the edge of the cups yet (and get impatient like me), in my experience it seems like removing a prop from the perlite and then putting it back quickly is a lot less shocking than uprooting a soil prop. My only qualm with perlite is that since it's white, it can show mineral buildup very easily. My tap water turns perlite a little orange over time lol.

I just bought a huge basket of satin pothos at my local grocery store, it is so beautiful and has huge leaves but it was starting to rot when I bought it so I cleaned it up, repotted it and took a ton of cuttings and I was so inspired by this video that I put all the cuttings in pearlite and pumice! I have like 8 baby scindapsus plants now 😂 I’m so excited to see them all grow hopefully!!

Oh my goodness if only you’re past self from this video knew how good some of these plant were gonna look two or three years down the road😊

Recently I've been rooting hoyas, raphidophora and alocasia bulbs in perlite. I use a ziplock bag and just leave it on a heat mat. It happens quick too!

100% agree! Perlite & pumice are by far the best prop methods in my experience. I’ve never had any rot & plants like monstera Peru that wouldn’t root at all in water or sphag, rooted in a couple weeks in perlite. It was a total game changer for me

I've been using perlite for propagations and as a permanent home for some of my plants that have delicate roots because I'm going semi-hydro. I honestly love it!

Yes! The GH nutrients are definitely a great way to keep plants rooting/growing in perlite. For ones I have growing longer term, I usually use something like a Starbucks cup with holes burned in the bottom so I can flush it from time to time and a cache pot over it. I love perlite and moss as well

As I’ve mentioned before, I’m new to this whole houseplant thing, therefore have propagated anything yet. However, I do have a few trailing plants that I want to propagate to get a fuller pot and this method looks ideal. Thanks for sharing this experience.

my favorite method currently is using vermiculite. I like vermiculite because it stays moist longer then perlite but like perlite is has a good aeration. So far I have noticed that plant cuttings root up faster then any other method I have tried =)

Yes, love using the Perlite for propagations so much faster.

I have never even used moss, only perlite, and I looove it. Peperomias love growing in my perlite propbox, also my hoya bella, a ton of wetsticks grew leaves this way, I love it

البيرلايت من افضل الاوساط الزراعيه التي استخدمتها جربت ان اجذر في الماء والبيرلايت في نفس الوقت وكان الامر جنوني من حيث الجذور لان الجذور في البيرلايت كانت اقوى واكثر حيويه ونشاط🤝🏻✨✨✨✨✨

I tried it and it rotted my cutting instead, I was SO stressed about it lmao. So I'm definitely going to try every single thing you say here, cuz it'll be a blessing if I can really get this to work

This really hit home for me i bought a beautiful rhaphidophora tetrasperma and after a few weeks it seemed not to be growing...so i had a look and every root was rotted so after contacting the seller (to no avail!!) Anyway i lopped all the roots off stuck it in perlite and.....3 weeks later she is growing and thriving...perlite is a life saver. Your looking great Fern xxx

Perlite is my favourite I'm glad more people are using it nowadays!

I started perlite propagation last Wednesday with my monstera variegata and it has roots already! I don't think I can ever go back to water propagation again 😅

I have been waiting for a perlite prop video. I have a Peru that’s just sitting there, I’m going to try this. Thank you so much 🥰

Never tried this method and have been going down a rabbit hole of your perlite prop videos, looking forward to giving it a go 🤙

am i the only one who cant stop staring at her silver swords :")

This is the exact video i needed! My clarinervium rotted as well and i was trying to save it in sphag, but it kept losing the remainder of the roots. I'm going to switch it to perlite! Thank you!

Oooh what a great idea!! I'm going to try a side by side comparison on sphagnum and perlite prop boxes (cuttings of the same plant in both boxes) to see how they do in each! If I get really ambitious, I might try with and without rooting powder in each, too. We shall see how much energy I have after work today. Also, your eyes are so beautiful!!

Philo micans is the easiest to root for me, it is also the fastest growing among all my plants, along with my raphidopora tetrasperma. Philo micans and mini monstera like high temperatures, humidity and sunlight. My philo micans that started from cuttings grow like weed.

Omg I’ve never been so early, but just what I needed! Really got into your videos lately ❤️

I use a mix of perlite and vermiculite for my cuttings and it works so so great. I also root some of my cuttings in seramis and it works as well.

Yay I knew it would! Glad you tried it girl 😉🤩💖🤗

SO glad perlite is so good for propagating!! Since moss is so unsustainable.

💞💞💞 i absolutely love your videos!!! sending love and blessings to you and your Perlite plant babies from Sacramento CA!!! 💞💞💞 i am now inspired to get some of my plant babies in Perlite!!!

I use the same Crofters jelly jars, lol, so cute!!!🌱💖🌱💖

the way it cut from the wet perlite to you drinking made it seem like you drank the perlite HAHAHA I LITERALLY GASPED

Thank you for this programme! Getting ready now to use perlite to root outdoor plants for the next growing season and wanted to see what you had to offer. Glad I did so. What I have learned from experience is that you can do more than root with perlite, you can grow in perlite. Another think learned about perlite is that it can be reused. For me that helped a lot when deciding to use it. Two winters of rooting cuttings indoors with perlite have produced amazingly healthy plants for outdoors. That is why I am going to do it again. The algae can be taken to task with hydrogen peroxide; don't know what proportion and if I do give it a go I would use food grade. Best to you and all of your endeavours in growing!

I just root my micans in soil, super chill 🙊. Deffinetly ging to try more Perlit prapagation soon 💪🏼. Always fun to try new ways🥳.

Perfectly on time😍! I just cut up my PPP. Love your videos and you're doing great😊

So cool! Nice to see an alternative way to propegate, which is cheap as well!

I’ve never used it for porpagation before but now I want to give it a try! 😍

It’s the best. I’ve saved so many baby plants using perlite!

I have started using perlite for my props as well!

I’ve done a free plants in perlite; Hoya compacta in particular seem to enjoy it. Micans are so hard to root! Best luck I’ve had is straight in pons so it might like perlite

Exotica looks amazing and perfect. Can you do a exotica care video.

I've been trying this method for a while since I saw you were doing it and it's been working well so far

Thank you for showing how to set up this kind of prop, now I feel like I could try it and somewhat know what I'm doing :)

Very nice video I will try some of these methods on my plants thanks for sharing

I propagated a hoya obovata in perlite (using a ziploc bag) and in just 3 weeks I had a full root system, it was magical! I did exactly the same as you shown in this video, but with a bag instead of a box :)

I never knew it was possible to propagate in perlite. Thanks for info.

Love this 👏 hope to see an update on the exotica cutting 😋 made a prop box with perlite yesterday, for some of my hoya cuttings, so excited 🤞💚

Yes thanks I saw your video on this a while back but I never tried it now I am trying it with a heating mat and it’s covered with a plastic bin for humidity. I’m also propagating Succulents in there! Wish me luck 🍀!

I love propagating with perlite, especially for Alocasia corms.

Yaaaas leca and perlite/pumice superiority!

i do this exact same thing but I use coco coir instead. It works 100% of the time as well. I will have to try perlite next! Thank you!

Thanks for sharing , I will try this perlite method. Hope it work for me.🌱🪴

I found a pot of scindapsus pictus exotica from my local supermarket for dirt cheap including a beautiful pot. Three of the stems had amazing roots but two had none so I’m attempting to root them in perlite 🤞🏻

perfect, love it. what about lilac tree branch or rose?

I’m glad you did this, cuz I’ve been more curious about propagating lately. I’m still learning about the different methods of doing such, and still learning about how to successfully propagate. Only successful water propagation I’ve had is with a tradescantia recently, and the other day I put a pathos in sphag moss since it hadn’t been doing anything for me as far as growing, and I put some other tradescantia cuttings in sphag also. I have another small pathos that I have that isn’t doing much as well so I’m debating on putting it in sphag also, and maybe I’ll try the perlite method with a cutting too.

Thank you for posting this! I have had issues with certain plant propagation. I definitely am going to try this today and I'll share the results with you!

Just the video I was looking for. I'm rehabbing a leggy philodendron brandtianum. I put cuttings in water and already one is rotting. I'll try the perlite. Thanks for the demo.😀

OUU I am gonna have to try this method! I've only ever worked with moss and pons

I have loved using BioCanna BioRhizotonic for rooting. It is an organic root stimulator with vitamins. Since using it, I have noticed more robust root systems; lots of secondary roots. I use it for all propagation methods. Highly recommend it.

Looks for victim 🤣 Thank you for the laugh and the info! Much appreciated.

Thanks so much for this vid! I’m hoping to start rooting in perlite this summer

girl i feel ya on those dang monstera peru’s. i’ve come to the conclusion that they just don’t want to live😅

The Claranervium is amazing. I love the nice big leaves ❤😊

I propagate in perlite too. Love it. Wish I could show you a pic

Haven’t tried propagating in peralite yet. It looks like it’s working great for you. 💚

could you make a video of you potting some of your propagations?

Did my first propagation and perlite with this video instead of water did it monstera swiss cheese and golden pothos.

Reusing a Starbucks cup is genius 👌🏼

i would love a video about hoya propation 😍 i‘m so scared to do it

This is exactly what I needed. I’m trying to root a clipping I just bought in perlite and I added a little of the hydroponic liquid I use in my leca plants. I wasn’t sure if that was right but Fern got me😅

I`ll take that Exotica when it's rooted up 😉 thanks for sharing 😁

Cinnamon will take care of the algae. It also doubles as a rooting hormone. I think the algae could eventually cause rot too.

i am so excited you made this video! i've been trying to root a few cuttings for 4 - 6 months now in water, and i either don't get any or just a few little stubby ones. it's been frustrating. i was wanting to try sphagnum but i don't have any and $$ but i have lots and lots of perlite so my cuttings better get ready. thanks so much for the video!!

I was having great luck propping in leca until I tried to root an Obscura and Anncajanoe hoya. I killed them and am working on killing the second try of obscura. So decided to try perlite and do the method where you add a little water to the perlite. All I've seen before today is to soak perlite overnight, dump the excess water, stick your props in or lay leaves on the damp perlite and cover the entire propagation in a prop box or cup with a lid or saran wrap. Today I saw to add water and leave the top leaves exposed outside the saran wrap. I'm sure hoping this works! I'm out of obscura hoya to try. I've been trying to root in leca using no saran or covering over the top. I feel like I'm propagating th es same in way, but just using perlite instead of leca. I'm hoping using the saran wrap will make a huge difference.

Perlite is my next prop adventure. Thanks for sharing.

I love this hairstyle on you! It looks so cute❤️

I think I know what I'm doing this weekend!

Thanks! I have a problem with my begonia and I've just put in sfagnum moss and if it doesn't work I will probably try perlite

My anthurium thrive in leca highly recommend 💕

I'm so impatient when propagating and have to keep myself from digging around to see if there is some root growth

Much cheaper than leca!!! Smart move...🤗🌱💖

I will have to give this a try.

I just started a perlite box a day before you uploaded this and DAMN. I didn’t rinse the perlite. I just dumped it in there and added water 😳

Shout Out to Crofters preserves jar ….it’s the best jam

Needed this! I have a Phil. Billitae with no nodes/roots.going to try your method. Thank you much!

Just started my first the other day when I noticed you had a couple in one of your other videos. A spider plant I’m trying to save (again) 🤦🏾‍♀️