How to Plant Senecio

Seeds

• 1

  Wash the starting containers in warm water and mild soap solution. Rinse the containers thoroughly, and dry them in the sun, if possible. The containers should be about 3 inches deep to allow the seedlings room to develop good root systems.

• 2

  Fill the starting containers with sterile planting medium.

• 3

  Plant senecio seeds allowing about one-inch spacing for small seeds and slightly more for larger seeds. Cover the seeds according to the species you are growing. If you are using cell trays, plant one or two seeds per cell, and thin to the strongest seedling after they sprout.

• 4

  Water the seeds gently with a sprinkler head just until the medium is moist. Place the containers in full sun or under plant lights that provide the light intensity necessary for the species you are growing. Provide a temperature appropriate for the species.

• 5

  Keep the planting medium evenly moist until the seeds germinate. As the seedlings grow, reduce but do not eliminate watering for senecio species that prefer arid growing conditions. Maintain high humidity for species that prefer tropical conditions.

Cuttings

• 6

  Fill clean pots or planting containers with sterile planting medium.

• 7

  Prepare cuttings of succulents, vines and bushy foliage and flowering senecio plants by cutting sections of established plants at least 4 inches long. Use a very sharp knife for a clean cut. Gently remove the leaves from the lower 2 inches of the stems of the cuttings, exposing the leaf nodes.

• 8

  Dip the leafless end of each cutting first into water then into rooting hormone powder. The water makes the rooting hormone powder stick to the cutting.

• 9

  Make a hole in the planting medium with your finger and insert the powdered end of the cutting, being careful not to scrape the powder off the stem. Press the medium firmly around the cutting so there is good contact all around the stem.

• 10

  Water the cuttings and keep the soil moist but not soggy. Place the cuttings in the correct light and temperature conditions for the species you are growing. Cuttings should root in seven to 10 days. Some cuttings may drop their upper leaves from planting shock; once roots are established, new leaves will appear.