From our point of view, you call us "spiderettes" or "pups," but to us, we are stolons—vital survival mechanisms. Our mother plant sends us out on long, arching stems to find new territory. In the wild, this is how we colonize new patches of ground, ensuring the genetic line continues far from the original root system. When you see us dangling, we are essentially scouting for soil. We are complete, miniature plants, equipped with nascent root nodes (those little brown nubs) just waiting for the signal to dig in and grow. Our existence is not a flaw or simple decoration; it is our primary reproductive strategy.
Patience is key. Please do not sever us from our mother prematurely. The ideal time for you to intervene is when we have developed our own root initials. Look for us; we will have small, protuberant bumps at our base, often white or brownish. These are our starter roots. Furthermore, we should be of a substantial size, typically having at least 4-5 small leaves of our own. This size indicates we have achieved sufficient photosynthetic capability to sustain ourselves independently. Cutting us off before this point causes immense stress and drastically reduces our chances of successful establishment, wasting the energy our mother plant invested in us.
When the time is right, the act of separation must be clean and respectful. Use a sharp, sterile pair of scissors or pruning shears. Blunt or dirty tools can crush our tender stem tissue and introduce pathogens that could harm both us and our mother plant. Make the cut as close to our base (the spiderette) as possible, leaving a short piece of the stolon attached to us. There is no need to cut the entire stolon from the mother plant unless it is brown and withered; she will often recycle the nutrients from it and may even produce more of us from the same node.
You have two main choices for helping us root, and we have preferences for each. The first is water propagation. Placing our base in a vessel of clean, room-temperature water is highly effective. It allows us to quickly develop long, aquatic roots while you can observe our progress. Change the water every few days to keep it oxygenated and prevent bacterial growth. The second method is direct soil propagation. Plant us in a small pot with a well-draining potting mix, ensuring the base where the roots will form is in contact with the moist soil. From our perspective, this is a more natural transition, as we do not have to shift from water roots to soil roots later. Keep the soil consistently moist (but not soggy) for the first few weeks to encourage root establishment.
Once we are potted, whether from water or directly into soil, we require a period of gentle care. Place us in a location with bright, indirect light. Direct, harsh sunlight will scorch our leaves and add undue stress as we work beneath the soil to build our root system. Water us judiciously, allowing the top inch of soil to dry out slightly between waterings. The sign that we have successfully become independent is the appearance of new growth—a fresh, bright green leaf emerging from our center. This is our way of telling you that our roots are established and we are officially a self-sustaining plant, ready to continue the cycle and eventually produce our own spiderettes.
