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Dividing Ceph- Tips?

theyellowdart

sea bear returns!
hey guys

My cephalotus has turned into a giant tangled mess of pitchers that are growing upside down from lack of space.
There appears to be several growth points that I would like to divide and put into seperate pots.

Can someone give me some tips on doing this?

Any help is appreciated!

Thanks
-Matt
 
unpot the ceph. gently shake off the soil from the root. and peel. make sure when u peel off the other growth point they must have root attached to each division. with root its a 100% success. if u found a long and big heathly root try root cutting =] it works great also. at first some pitcher might turn brown and die off. this usually appear with in the 2 weeks btu this is normal. and this is how i do my division =D
 
My suggestion would be to carefully "excavate" around the pot with something akin to a coffee stirrer and attempt to expose a bit of the rhizome and where it divides without removing the entire plant. I routinely divide my Cephalotus every couple of years and take leaf cuttings at the same time; and I have had success removing portions of the Cephalotus without completely uprooting it. Considering that most of my mature plants are now in ceramic pots, there is little viable alternative that doesn't involve a hammer . . .

Cephalotus follicularis "Giant"
CFGIANT.jpg
 
Thanks BigBella. I'll try to do that.
 
I also don't unpot my Ceph. I've gone in for divisions twice, and I usually just try to coax the plant around gently until I find a good growth point, then gently get it out of there. If I get roots, great...if not, I treat it like a cutting, and still get good success. I only do this because I'm not adamant about saving all of the divisions, and my main purpose is just to thin out my main plant. So, I'll recommend BigBella's suggestion...i just do it a little more haphazardly, I think.
 
Thank you.

So should I try loosening up the soil before I try to get a growth point out? Or just go in with compacted dirt?
Do the growth points seperate easily?

Thanks again for all the help!
 
Thank you.

So should I try loosening up the soil before I try to get a growth point out? Or just go in with compacted dirt?
Do the growth points seperate easily?

Thanks again for all the help!

How compacted can it possibly be, if it is a peat-based compost? Dig around a bit and you'll find that many Cephalotus runners are quite shallow. Simply follow one or more to its source and separate it with an X-acto knife or razor blade . . .
 
Ok, I'll give it a shot. Thanks!
 
  • #10
Hey I was just trying to pull a "winter leaf' once and severed part of the plant at the base. I plunked it into live LFS and waited. It grew. That was just plain butchering!
 
  • #11
Good to hear, jimscott. That makes me feel a little better.
 
  • #12
Good to hear, jimscott. That makes me feel a little better.

The roughest divisions of Cephalotus and Heliamphora foliculata I experienced resulted from Bella chasing a cat at light-speed through the yard, careening and upending pots, and my sweeping up what was left.

Both large plants survived and I planted all of the separate bits successfully. We're not talking spun glass here. Just avoid boxing gloves and/ or Rottweiler /Husky crosses . . .
 
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