Air Layering a Corn Plant

A corn plant in my office was getting quite tall and the owner wanted to re-pot one or two of the stems to be shorter. This can be accomplished by air layering. Air layering is a method of encouraging root growth in the middle of a plant stem of a tall plant that wouldn’t generate roots by simply making a cutting. A major advantage of air rooting over other propagation methods is that the top of the plant remains attached to the original stem and is able to receive nutrients Here are some photos of the process completed by my friend Amber. You can also check out this helpful step-by-step guide from Iowa State University. I’ll post a report of the results later when some roots begin to show through the moss, should take a couple of months.