Are you looking to mend a broken Spider plant stem?
The Spider plant has a softer stem structure, and it can easily break off with a bit of excess pressure.
The indoor plants often meet with such accidents, and you can't do much about it.
But as far as the plant is concerned, you should definitely think of fixing it immediately.
Otherwise, you won't be able to save your plant at all.
In the following guide, I have shared a step-by-step method through which you can fix the damaged Spider plant.
So, let's not waste more time and quickly check out the guide below.
How To Mend A Broken Spider Plant Stem
When the plant's stem gets damaged, you need to be quick in addressing this issue.
If you delay this process, you will have less probability of sticking the damaged part together.
Now, here is how you should go about this whole process -
1. Remove The Spider Plant From The Pot
Firstly, you should remove the plant from its pot.
This will allow you to see the actual damage to the plant.
While removing the plant, make sure you hold the broken part firmly.
Important: If the damage is heavy and you're unable to remove the plant, you should skip this step entirely.
It is an important step, but you don't want to damage the plant any further.
If you try to remove such a plant from the pot, you will break it completely.
2. Examine The Plant And Check The Root System
If you have managed to pull out the plant from the pot successfully, you should start examining the root system.
See if there is any damage to the root system or not.
Meanwhile, if the plant is overgrown, you might see excess growth in the root system.
You can trim some of these roots so that the plant can produce new growth in the coming weeks.
But don't overdo this task.
You just need to perform a light trimming on the unwanted and damaged roots.
3. Place The Plant Back In The Pot
Done with the trimming?
Now, place the plant back in the pot.
At this stage, you can also replenish the plant with a new soil mixture.
It will help provide enough nutrients to the plant, which might be useful during the revival phase.
However, do not add any fertilizers while repotting the Spider plant.
You should only add them when the plant begins to show some freshness in its leaves and overall structure.
4. Prune The Damaged Leaves From The Plant
Moving ahead, you will now have to remove the damaged leaves of the plant.
If the plant is met with an accident, there is a possibility that many of its leaves might have been damaged as well.
You don't have to keep those leaves on the plant because they will become droopy in a few days.
So, try to remove them from the plant at this stage.
The other benefit of this process is it will give you an idea of the extent of damage caused to the plant.
For the first time in this process, you will be able to see and evaluate whether the plant will make it or not.
Hence, it is quite a helpful step, and you shouldn't skip it at all.
5. Cover The Damaged Stem Using A Tape
It's time to get your hands dirty!
Once you know how much the stem of your Spider plant has been damaged, you can start the revival process.
Here, you can make use of plant tape or electrical tape to cover the Spider plant broken stem.
If you don't have any of these materials, you can also use a clean cotton cloth to cover the damaged part.
But what's the right way to patch the damaged stem?
Well, it's not too difficult either.
You just need to move the plant and stem to its previous position.
When you do that, hold the plant with one hand and place the tape with your other hand.
You can also take the help of someone while performing this task, as you need to patch the stem properly.
If you do it incorrectly, you won't be able to join the broken stem.
Note: You can perform this step even if the stem is broken into two pieces.
Of course, the chances of survival are not too high, but you should not give up on the plant.
The grafting technique is pretty much based on the same principle, so you can use the same thing for your damaged plant.
6. Support The Plant With Stake
Again, an important step!
You shouldn't just leave your plant after taping it nicely.
The plant will need support to stay in the same position.
If you let the plant be on its own, it won't survive for sure.
So, make sure you provide it some support for a week or two.
But how do you do that?
The right thing to do at this stage is to use some stakes or wooden sticks to support the stem.
Place them closely around the plant so that the plant gets adequate support.
If you don't have stakes, you can also support it using a wall and some tools in your home.
With this step, you are pretty much done with the process.
Now, there are a couple of more essential things to do, which I've discussed below.
7. Water The Plant
When you have taped and supported the plant properly, you can expect it to do well and get back to life in some time.
Meanwhile, you should move it away from the accident-prone areas in your home or garden.
After that, water the plant well.
If you have already water it recently, you may skip this process.
8. Keep It Indirect Sunlight
While moving the plant, make sure you choose a place that receives indirect sunlight.
Do not keep it in direct sunlight because you don't want to put your plant under stress again.
The partial sunlight is good enough for the plant to thrive in.
9. Observe The Plant For A Week Or Two
Next, just sit back and see how your plant does over a week or two.
If you have followed this correctly, the plant will come back to life.
I have followed the same technique many times on my broken plants, and it has worked well to save my plants.
So, do follow the process.
In the meantime, you can check out the few things that you can do to prevent your plant from such accidents.
Things You Can Do To Keep Your Spider Plant Stem From Breaking
Here are some guidelines to follow -
1. Do Not Keep Your Plant On A Table Or Desk
The Spider plant grows pretty quickly if it gets decent conditions.
Once it gets bigger, the leaves of this plant grow like ribbons.
And yes, it's also known as a ribbon plant.
These leaves can get pulled by any moving object, especially if you keep it on a table or desk in your home.
As you know, it can damage the leaves and stem unnecessarily.
So, move the plant from such a place.
2. Keep It Away From Your Pets And Children
As I said earlier, you shouldn't keep this plant in a busy place in your home.
If you do, the kids and pets will definitely pull the leaves when they play around in the room.
Find a place in your home where the plant will be far away from them.
3. Use A Hanging Pot For The Spider Plant
Yes, hanging pots are the safest way to keep this plant from any accidents.
But the only thing you need to take care of is you shouldn't place it near your head or eye level.
The leaves of this plant are reasonably sharp, and they may hurt someone while passing by.
4. Use A Small-Medium Size Pot For The Plant
Don't want to use hanging pots?
No problem!
Use the small or medium-sized pots to grow your Spider plant in.
These pots will limit the growth of your plant, and they will also keep the leaves shorter.
With this simple strategy, you will be able to avoid possible accidents around the plant.
Also, the indoor plants look pretty in small pots, so that's an added bonus too.
Moreover, try to follow these things because it's always better to prevent the damage than to work on saving the plant later.
In the next section, I have shared some FAQs and answers.
Have a look at them if you have any more similar queries.
FAQs
Yes, you must tape a broken plant stem.
It will help save your plant from damage.
It depends on the damage caused to the plant.
If the plant is suffering from internal issues, you can simply repot or transplant it to a new medium.
This will help bring your Spider plant back to life.
Apart from that, you will need to follow some standard guidelines to grow this plant at home.
No, the broken leaves cannot grow back.
You should remove such leaves from the plant.
Yes, you can reattach a broken branch of your plant, but there is a low probability of reviving the branch from damage.
If it's just a single damaged branch, you shouldn't go ahead with the process.
Instead, eradicate it.
You can use stakes or some kind of tool to get the stem back to its original position.
Once you do that, you can let the plant grow in this position for a couple of weeks.
In the end, you won't see any bent on the stem.
Over To You
When you see a broken Spider plant stem, it can be a frightening scene for sure.
But there is no need to panic here.
If you follow the steps suggested above, you will be able to revive the plant from this type of damage.
In case you're still not sure or have any further queries, please drop a comment below.
I'd be glad to guide you in this process.
If you liked this guide, do share it with your friends and family.
Alicia says
I’ve been growing spider plants for many years, and I feel like I always learn something new each time I read new articles. I do have a question about the stems. Once you take the baby from the stem, can it reproduce another baby? Can the small flowers produce babies that are up and down the stem? I have A spider that produced several stems a few months ago but did not produce babies. Should I just cut them, or will they eventually develop? I usually just cut them off and throw them away but it occurred to me that they could be reused or replanted. If you have some free time I would appreciate a response. Thank you so much.
Harshad says
Hi Alicia,
If you cut the entire stem, it won't produce any new babies.
As for the small flowers, they can come up with the spiderettes. But there are quite a few factors you need to take into consideration. For e.g., if the plant is fairly young, it won't have the strength to produce new babies. So, you may not see further growth in the plant.
Similarly, environmental factors can also impact this process in your plant.
Therefore, it's better to cut them off. You can keep the ones that look relatively better in shape and size, as they might produce new babies in the future.