How to Propagate a Chinese Evergreen – 2 Easy Methods to Multiply This Lush Houseplant Quickly

My Chinese evergreen, or aglaonema, is one of my favorite houseplants for one very good reason: it tolerates the most challenging conditions, ideal for shadier spots. That's why I've previously propagated my Chinese evergreen to multiply it and green up the darker corners of my home.

Chinese evergreen care is very straightforward. Not only will it tolerate lower light, but it only needs watering when the top two inches of soil have dried out, making it fairly low-maintenance. And it couldn't be easier to propagate a Chinese evergreen, too.

While you can grow these houseplants from cuttings, the easiest method is actually through division. It takes just 10 minutes and instantly leaves you with a new plant. But, if your plant is still fairly small, you may wish to take cuttings instead. Here, I talk through both methods.

How to Propagate a Chinese Evergreen – Two Methods to Try

Whether you decide to take Chinese evergreen cuttings to root or choose to divide these plants, it's important to avoid houseplant propagation mistakes.

This includes not providing plenty of light and warmth to help the new plants grow and settle.

How to Propagate a Chinese Evergreen by Division

This is my preferred method of propagating Chinese evergreens because it takes little time, has a higher success rate, and instantly leaves you with a new plant.

It's a particularly good method to choose if your Chinese evergreen is turning yellow from being pot-bound and needs more room to grow.

But, there are some caveats: you can only divide a Chinese evergreen if the plant is mature (i.e. around three years old with an established clump and multiple shoots), and you should only do so in the warmer months of spring and summer.

Attempting to divide a young Chinese evergreen in colder months hinders the likelihood of success.

With this in mind, you can follow these steps to divide these plants:

1. Remove Your Plant From its Pot

Gently lift the Chinese evergreen from its pot.

If it's root-bound, you might need to carefully twist the plant, holding the the base of its shoots. You can also employ the help of a garden trowel or garden knife (like this from Amazon) to tease it away from the sides of the pot.

You then want to remove as much potting soil as possible. Gently shake the plant and brush the roots to remove the dirt. I use a plant brush (like this from Amazon) to help clean roots without having to use water.

2. Loosen the Root Ball

You now need to make the root ball easier to divide by loosening it.

If you haven't ever repot your Chinese evergreen, its root ball may be particularly tight.

Using your hands, squeeze it gently and start to tease it apart. The aim is to start identifying natural separations, where individual shoots attach to their own root system.

3. Separate the Clumps

This is the point in which you divide your Chinese evergreen.

Separate the root ball where it naturally divides. Each clump should have its own shoot (or two) and a robust root system.

If the roots are tightly tangled and don't come apart easily, use your garden knife once again to make cuts between different sections.

You should, however, try to avoid too much damage to roots to improve chances of success.

4. Prune Damaged Roots and Foliage

Using a sharp pruning tool, like these pruning snips from Amazon, remove damaged plant material from each of your sections.

You can prune mushy roots and yellowed leaves, but take care to follow the one third pruning rule for each of the sections to avoid shocking the plant and stunting growth.

5. Pot Up Each Section

With each section in a fit, healthy condition, you can pot them up.

Use a standard, well-draining houseplant potting mix (like this from Amazon) and planters with drainage holes.

Ideally, the pots should be a couple of inches wider than the root ball of each plant.

If you're looking for a uniform look, this set of two embossed ceramic planters from Wayfair is a good choice.

You should then water each plant deeply and place them somewhere bright and warm to encourage recovery.

Keep the soil consistently moist (but not soggy) and hold off on fertilizing for a couple of months.

How to Propagate a Chinese Evergreen with Cuttings

You may choose to propagate a Chinese evergreen with cuttings if your plant is not oversized but you want more plants.

It's a good idea to wait to do this in spring and summer, to take advantage of the warmest temperatures, but it can be done in fall and winter too, with the help of tools like a heat mat (from Amazon) and grow light for houseplants.

Here's how to propagate a Chinese evergreen with cuttings:

1. Take a Healthy Cutting

Start by taking the plant cuttings.

You should choose healthy shoots that feel firm and have two or three leaves.

Use a sharp pruning tool to cut about an inch beneath a leaf node (where a leaf attaches to main shoot).

Chinese evergreens often have tougher stems, so you may find bypass pruning shears (like these from Amazon) work best.

Ideally, the stem should be four-six inches in length.

2. Prepare the Cutting

Before rooting your Chinese evergreen cutting, it's important to prepare it.

This includes stripping the lowest leaves on the stems, leaving the top couple of leaves attached.

I recommend using a rooting hormone at this point, which is a powder or gel with chemicals that replicate rooting hormones, triggering root growth on cuttings.

You can find a rooting hormone powder on Amazon. Simply dip the bottom of the Chinese evergreen in it, applying an even coating over the end of it.

3. Plant the Cutting in Soil

While it is possible to root Chinese evergreen cuttings in water (avoiding water propagation mistakes), it's often more reliable (and quicker) to root them in soil.

Fill a large nursery pot (like these from Amazon) with well-draining houseplant soil, and insert the bottom of the cutting in.

You should make sure the bottom leaf node is fully buried. Gently press down to secure it in place and it should stand upright without any support.

Give your cutting a thorough watering around the base of the stem. I find a houseplant watering can (like this from Wayfair) is best for this because they have narrow spout that directs water gently to the bottom of the stem without dislodging it.

Once again, keep the cuttings somewhere bright and warm and keep moisture levels up.

It should take just a few weeks for roots to develop. You can check how root development is progressing by gently tugging the stem and seeing if it easily lifts or if the roots are grounding it in the potting mix.

FAQs

Can You Use Leaf Cuttings to Propagate a Chinese Evergreen?

No, you can't propagate a Chinese evergreen from leaf cuttings alone. This is because this isn't the part of the plant where roots develop. Rather, you need to take a stem cutting, rooting from a leaf node. It's important that your stem cutting has a couple of healthy leaves on it.

These methods can be used for all Chinese evergreen varieties, from classic types like 'Crystal Bay' from Amazon to more colorful varieties like the salmon-hued 'Wishes' from The Sill.

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