Do plants grow only in one direction? If I take a cutting from a plant would it grow if I place it upside down or right side up?

Question

Specifically when I take a cutting and trying to root it, is there a right side and a wrong side to it?

In: 5

Answer 1

Plants can’t be inverted: the stem works differently in one direction than in the other.

That said, most plants *are* smart enough to try to twist themselves around if planted upside-down. (This is not an unusual problem for a seed to find itself with in nature.) So even though being planted upside-down is *bad* for your cutting, it won’t necessarily be *fatal*.

The resulting plant might end up shaped kind of like the letter “N”, with roots initially growing upward but then diving into the soil and shoots initially growing downward but then turning around and reaching for the sun.