Cuban Oregano Cutting Propagation

Finally, after Cat Grass, I finished a new plant article.

This cute round leaf plant is Cuban Oregano, or we can call it Plectranthus Amboinicus, Coleus Amboinicus, Indian Borage. It’s a semi-succulent perennial plant. This round leaf assortment of Cuban Oregano has sweet smell.

The reason of why I decided to grow the Cuban Oregano is because one of my faverite friends Alpha said that she wants to do handmade soap with Cuban Oregano.

Because I’m a responsible person, of course need to spend time on taking care of this small plant until it grows bigger and more lusher, then share some Cuban Oregano leaves to Alpha to do handmade soap. I didn’t expect it’s so easy to propagate and grow.

Cuban Oregano Cutting Propagation

I tried two ways to do cutting propagation:

1. Putting the Cuban Oregano cutting in the water first, after the roots grow up then put the cutting to the soil.
2. Putting the Cuban Oregano cutting to soil directly.

Base on my experience, for Cuban Oregano, put the cutting to soil directly is the better way to grow the roots.

Step 1: Cut a Cuban Oregano cutting like this long

Step 2: Pinch off the terminal bud of Cuban Oregano

Pinch off the terminal bud of Cuban Oregano can force the roots to grow stronger, and force the lateral buds to grow up. Then the Cuban Oregano will grow more lusher.

Step 3: Put the lowest node into soil

The roots come out from the node, so we bury one or two nodes into the soil. Don’t forget to pinch off the lateral buds and leaves of the nodes that you bury to soil.

3 steps done the cutting propagation. The last key point is how to take care of the Cuban Oregano. Cuban Oregano is semi-succulent perennial plant, it doesn’t need too much water.

How to take care of the Cuban Oregano:

1. Sunlight: Full sun or partial shade
2. Drainage: Drainage excess water immediately while watering.
3. Watering: Watering all soil until the excess water draining off the pot from the bottom drainage holes.
   • Hot day: Stop watering until third day.
   • Wet day: Stop watering for 3 to 4 days. If the surface of soil is too dry, then water the plants.
   • Few soil of pot: Increase watering frequency.
   • A lot soil of pot: Reduce watering frequency.
   • If the plants are placed in the area that the rain can’t pouring down, spray water on the leaves occasionally. If the leaf color turns yellow, that’s mean the plant maybe overwatered. Please stop watering for few days.
4. Fertilize: When finish milk or soy milk, use the milk bottle washing water to water the plants. Rice washing water is a good choice too.
5. Prune: Pinch off the terminal buds occasionally will let the lateral buds grow lush.

Is it easy? Cutting propagation is suitable for any kind of Cuban Oregano.

Last year, I shared some Cuban Oregano leaves to my aunt to do handmade soap. I received the end products this year. Thanks a lot dear aunt. Those are limited time products, because those soaps were made by my breast milk. hahaha~

This is what we put in the water for 2 weeks. I forgot to pinch off the terminal bud. That’s why the lateral buds grow up so slow.

Cuban Oregano can live in the water for a long time. One day I cut a cutting to one of my colleagues, he grows the cutting in the water for indoor landscaping.

In the end, Iet me share one interesting event:

I took part in a planting class last year, we planted vegetables in a junior high school. One day, I harvested some leaves and put to my refrigerator. 7 days passed, when I opened the bag, flew out a butterfly. I was sure there was no butterfly when I harvested those leaves, I guessed a cocoon hid in there. The key point was that after 7 cold days, he was still alive!

The butterfly seemed very cold let me feel a little guilty. Put it to refrigerator was not on purpose. I found a plant for it to take a rest. Because I didn’t want him lay any egg on the leaves, so I gave him a Cuban Oregano. After 10 minutes, it’s gone. Flew away.