This is the best way to propagate calatheas and bag yourself some free houseplants – and no, it isn’t from cuttings

I’ve been a calathea owner for several years now, and I’m hoping to expand my collection over the next few months. As luck would have it, learning how to propagate calatheas can bag you new plants for free.

I always thought you could grow these plants from cuttings, but according to houseplant experts, that isn’t an option for calatheas. Instead, you’ll need to divide them, which simply means splitting the plant up into smaller sections and repotting them. Then, it’s a case of figuring out where to place your calathea cuttings while they grow new plants.

‘The only way to propagate calatheas at home is through division,’ says Kelly Dyer, Plant Doctor at Patch Plants. ‘The best time to do this is early spring, so April and Maytime, as your plant is coming out of its winter dormancy and kicking back into active growth. This will give it the whole growing season to recover from the stress of division.’

If you’re keen to learn how to propagate calatheas, you’ll find everything you need to know in the step-by-step guide below (and better still, there are only two steps!).

What you'll need

1. Lift and divide

Learning how to propagate calatheas is really easy, because division is one of the most straightforward techniques. You can propagate ferns and spider plants through division, too.

‘Carefully lift the plant from its pot and gently separate the rootball into smaller sections, making sure each division has healthy roots and a few leaves,’ says Connor Towning, in-house lead horticulturist at online houseplant retailer Beards & Daisies.

Whether or not you need to use a tool to divide your calathea will depend on how rootbound your plant is.

‘This can either mean tearing them apart or cutting through the rootball, making sure that there is an equal amount of leaves to roots in each division,’ explains Kelly from Patch Plants.

If you do need to cut through the rootball, a garden knife like the Spear & Jackson Kew Gardens Collection Folding Garden Knife from Amazon is ideal.

2. Repot the divided sections

Once you’ve divided the rootball, you’ll just need to plant the new sections in separate pots.

Just as you would when repotting other houseplants, it’s best to use fresh, well-draining compost like the peat-free Growth Technology Houseplant Focus Repotting Mix, available at Amazon.

‘Make sure that the nursery pot size you choose leaves each plant a little room to grow, but not too much,’ advises Kelly.

Then, water the plants well and let them drain thoroughly before popping them in a spot with bright but indirect light.

‘Keep the new plants warm, humid, and evenly watered while they settle in,’ says Connor from Beards & Daisies. ‘Avoid direct sunlight at first, as calatheas prefer softer light, especially when newly divided.’

And it's as simple as that! You can quite literally split your calathea into brand-new plants.