There you are at the grocery store check-out, tempted to buy a bouquet of roses. They’re beautiful and cheery and so easy to grab and go. Only, you opt out. Sure, they’re beautiful, but they don’t usually last more than a week, making it tough to rationalize the spending.
But what if that weren’t true? The popular social media handle known as Jeff & Lauren (@Jeff&Lauren) have a clip making the rounds wherein Jeff shows that something magical can be done with a single “store-bought” rose. By simply using a few household food items, he is able to turn one rose into an entire rose bush.
Honey, potatoes, and water
In the clip, we see Jeff dipping a bright pink rose into a jar of honey. The top chyron reads, “I did this for my wife.” He then takes the honey-dipped flower and sticks it firmly into a pre-cut hole in a russet potato. He takes the entire potato/flower hybrid and buries it into a potted plant. Lastly, he cuts the bulb and leaves off, leaving just the stem, and waters it heavily. In time (at least according to the simulated video), it re-grows into a rose plant.
On the YouTube account My Garden Channel (which is self-described as a channel that “focuses on houseplants and gardening, run by a team of experienced gardeners and horticulturists”), they note a super interesting tidbit. The flowers and the spores of the potato are in direct competition with one another. In other words, sometimes the experiment yields, well…potatoes instead of flowers.
To avoid this, the expert in the video suggests shaving the skin off the potato. “The skin of the potato is where the shoots will most likely develop. You’re not trying to grow a potato. You’re simply trying to feed the rose cutting, as it tries to root.”
How to do it
Under the clip, they explain how it’s done, and they spare no detail. “Rooting roses in a potato is an unconventional yet intriguing method of propagation. The idea is simple: the moisture and nutrients from the potato can help nourish the rose cutting as it develops roots. To try this, you start by selecting a healthy rose cutting, about 6-8 inches long, with at least a couple of leaf nodes. After trimming the bottom of the cutting at a 45-degree angle, remove any leaves near the base.”
Now it’s time for the potato. “Next, you poke a hole in a medium-sized potato, just large enough to insert the cutting without wiggling. Push the drill bit through the potato to make sure the stem comes out of the bottom of the potato just a little bit. The potato acts like a natural nutrient sponge, keeping the cutting hydrated. After placing the cutting into the potato, you can plant the entire potato in soil, burying it a few inches deep in a pot or directly in the garden. Keep the soil moist but not waterlogged, and cover the cutting with a plastic bag or bottle to create a humid greenhouse effect.
Over the next few weeks, with care and patience, roots may form as the rose cutting absorbs moisture and nutrients from the potato, potentially growing into a new plant. While not guaranteed, this method combines natural elements in a creative attempt to root roses in a novel, supportive environment.”
Why a potato?
In an article for The Spruce, author Ashlyn Needham explains why, in fact, a potato is used. “In essence, you’re using the potato to speed up the rooting process, which is crucial for producing established roses. It’s important to note that you won’t actually be growing roses in potatoes, just starting the process.”
Does it work?
Commenters have weighed in. Under Jeff&Lauren’s Facebook post, there are over a quarter of a million likes and thousands of comments. One shares, “My grandmother did that. Back in the seventies, she came for a visit. I had many different rose bushes. She cut stems from every bush. She wrapped them in damp paper towels and then wrapped them in plastic. She flew home to Oregon and planted the stems. She had rose bushes the next year.”
Another wound up with what we knew could happen: “I tried this… and I wound up with potatoes.” This comment alone got a lot of support.
This Facebooker gives the surprising tip that, perhaps, you don’t even need the potato, writing, “I just cut off part of a stem and stuck it in the dirt. Then watered it regularly. I have several new rose plants from doing just that. They took almost immediately.”
