When I read the thread about propagating trees from leaves, I had to LOL. Then Alfred Falk mentioned that only certain plants can be propagated from leaf, and it reminded me of my Rex Begonias.
I adore them, and have tried to propagate them twice. I researched them on rex sites and read about a method where you slashed the veins on the leaf, and laid it on soil. It said to weigh it down with a pebble. I tried that with several leaves, in a terrarium, in indirect light. Nada. All the leaves shrivelled up and died. Then I read another article, by Martha Stewart this time, about how she and her grandma used to propagate dozens of rex begonias in the early spring for planting in the garden. So I was inspired to try again.
I took two juicy, perfect, youngish leaves, laid them on moistened soil, pegged with down with floral pins, slashed their roots, put a drop of liquid rooting compound on each cut and covered the tops of the china pots with stretch wrap.
Martha described another method, where you cut the leaf into triangular bits, each with a portion of vein, dipped it in rooting compound and inserted the dipped vein end into the ground. I split another leaf three ways and covered the pots with stretch wrap. These cuttings died within a few weeks.
The leaves that were pegged down, looked good, but nothing was happening ... and nothing happened for over 2 months. I gave up on them when the vegetable seed starts, and the garden beds, needed my attention. I shoved the plastic covered begonia pots aside to deal with later ... and promptly forgot about them for the entire season.
At the end of September, I decided to collect all the soil in pots from failed plants, and repottings, scattered hither and yon for recycling outside. I pulled the plastic off the first of the two begonia leaf attempts, and there was a dry leaf and bone dry soil. I dumped it. I popped the plastic off the second pot expecting to see the same thing ... but instead there were two little plants, close together. I totally freaked. They hadn't been watered in 5 months! The soil in their pot was very dry, but not quite as dry as the other pot, but the little plants looked pretty juicy. I have no idea at what point in those
5 months they'd started to grow, or how they managed to survive without water. Perhaps the plastic had deteriorated enough in that time to allow air in and out. But still, I'm amazed that they could grow under those conditions.I find Rex Begonias to be fussy plants, and prone to 'wearing out' in a few years. They're hard to come by, so that's why I'm keen on propagating them. Maybe the next time I attempt propagation, I'll prep them, cover them in plastic, and then just ignore them for half a year. ;)
Flora