Bouquet Cutting Grew!

Hello everyone! Four months ago, we got some flowers with some nice shiny green leaves as part of the whole design. After 2 weeks, everything else died except for the leaves, so I placed the stalks in a vodka bottle filled with water.

Now it has roots and has new leaves. I don't know what it is, or how to put it in soil since it started out in water. I hear plants grown in water have a lot of adaptation to do when they are planted in soil, an yet they would'nt last too long in water.

I'd like to have this as a memoir plant that would last for years. It was for a very special occasion - the birth of our new baby boy - Dagat! (means 'Sea' in our language). Thanks so much!!!

Do you remember what the flowers looked like? The leaves sort of look like gardenia to me, but there are probably a million other things with leaves like that too.

The leaves do look like Gardenia but as ecrane said, it could be any number of things. Did the flowers have a strong and wonderful smell? Were they white?

I love the name of your child.

Unfortunately Ecrane, I don't know what the flowers looked like. They were leafy stalks without flowers grouped together with a bunch of roses - I think to give the bunch a... fluffy feel of fullness (lol that's a lot of F's there).

If it helps, the stem is hard, and dark, I'll see if I can get another picture later.

Aww, thanks Kwanjin! We love the beach (who doesn't!) hence the name and we can't wait to begin surfing lessons!

I haven't been surfing in years. I used to do a lot of body-surfing in SoCal when I was a kid. ☺ I love the ocean and all things beachy.

Congratulations on your new baby boy! That's a beautiful name you have chosen for him!

The leaves look very much like Gardenia to me also. I think you should try potting up one of the cuttings into a well draining potting soil and see what happens. I too have heard that sometimes plants rooted in water don't do well when transplanted to soil but it won't hurt to try. You may end up with some very beautiful potted plants.

Here's the link to Plant Files for Gardenia jasminoides: http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/198/

and Gardenia jasminoides radicans: http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/93689/

I can't swear it will work with your rooted plant (which I also think looks like gardenia), but I have rooted quite a few plants over the past 40+ years and have had very good success rates (a few failures too). I pot the rooting in a small pot and keep it fairly moist but not soggy (seems appropriate since it's been sitting in plain water for a prolonged period) and sit it in only indirect sun until it begins to put on some new leaves. Then I gradually move it into more light until I have it in the appropriate type of light situation for whatever type plant it is. I use this method only for cuttings of woody stemmed plants (soft wood cuttings are bad about rotting if you keep them too moist). I agree with plantladylin--just try one first and see what happens. Hope this works for you--it looks like it will be a beautiful plant.

Look how sweet :)

Your little man is a very handsome fellow! What a Blessing!

He's so cute!!!

Don't worry about rhe roots. They are tougher than they look. Just be gentle and you'll be rewarded.

Oh he's so much more handsome than the plant! I hope you can get it to live too. It would be so special since it's the same age as Dagat.

Haha! This happened to me with some gardenia flowers I had placed in a vase. I forgot about them, and by the time I went to throw them out, one was still green and growing roots!