Rooting Herbs in Water

June 21, 2022 Bill Hageman

Time To Your Feet Wet in the Propagation Pool

Instead of kissing your perennial herbs goodnight for the long dormancy, you could invite their progeny into your house for a fresh herb supply all through the winter. Many herbs will root readily from stem cuttings and often don't require anything fancier than a glass of tap water.

Once you've got them good and rooted our Growing Herbs Indoors video shows you the basics of keeping those herbs thriving and flavorful through the winter.

The Process

A great time to gather cuttings to root is between August and October, but any time of the year when the herbs are actively growing will produce excellent cuttings. Late summer is an advantageous time to root cuttings since the herbs are still growing strong and cuttings rooted in summer will be established plants by the time the mothers have nodded off into dormancy.

There are many types of cuttings but the simplest one to use for herbs is a stem cutting. To take a stem cutting you'll need some very sharp snips or a knife. The cleaner the cut, the better the chance the cutting will root. Find a nice sturdy shoot with no flowers on a plant that is actively growing and free of pests and diseases. Make your cut three to six inches down and a quarter to half inch below a leaf node. It's a good idea to take three or four cuttings from each plant to make sure at least one cutting roots. Remove half of the leaves on the bottom of the cutting with your snips or knife.

A clean cut is the best so don't tear or pinch the leaves. Place the cuttings in sterilized jars, or drinking glasses. Clear jars or glasses work best because you can easily tell when the cuttings have rooted. The water should come up to, but not touch, the lowest set of leaves on the cutting. Replace the water every one to two days to avoid bacterial growth in the water. Use room temperature water when you refresh the water to avoid shocking the cutting.

Once your little cuttings have sprouted roots that are a quarter to half inch long transfer the cutting to a pot. It's important not to let the roots get too long before you plant the cutting because this can make them difficult to plant without damaging the roots.