Xeramtheum said:Both propagate with stem cuttings. Prayer Plant - Cut off that stem as close to the soil as you can and stick it in some dirt just past the knobby bit so it's underneath the soil. That's where the new roots will form. Teddy Bear - Root it the same way you'd root Tradescantia fluminensis. Cut off a long stem and divide it into pieces with at least 2, preferably 3 leaf nodes. Bury the stems covering at least 1 leaf node. Keep the soil moist and the cuttings in bright but not direct light. Prayer Plant should start pushing out roots in about a couple of weeks - soil temperature will determine the swiftness. The Teddy Bear within a day or 2.
I just found this again--thanks again for posting it! -- and I'm going to try a couple more cuttings to see how they do. My teddy bear plant is very fickle. Some of the tendrils are doing great while others are turning brown and dying. The tricky part is that it browns from the base instead of the tips, so I don't know it's struggling until it's too late. That happened to a number of the tendrils this past winter, so I took the healthy tips and tried to plant them, but I'm 0:5. I probably did a lot of things wrong with the first 5, though:
1) I cut it right where the bad, brown/withering part met the good (I probably should have cut higher to ensure the cells and veins really were healthy where I cut)
2) I might not have planted them as deeply as you suggested...I had forgotten about your instructions to bury a leaf node
3) I planted a couple of them in containers I didn't sanitize (which previously held small orchids) as a quick fix because it was winter and I didn't have my pots prepared yet.
4) my hand was forced to do those in winter, a less optimal time period
I think I was just hoping that if they were as vigorous as their cousin (the purple inch plant/wandering jew), none of that would matter.
With spring here, I'm hoping to have more success.
@Purpleinopp - I just planted two new cuttings and I'm hoping they take so I can send you one or both this spring or summer. Keep your fingers crossed. I put them in a seed starting mix as part of a kit and I buried the stems pay a leaf node just as Xeramtheum instructed, so with a little luck, care, and patience, I hope they will thrive.
