How come many houseplants will rot if their roots sit in waterlogged soil but when you propagate plants you let the roots sit in water to grow?

Question

How come many houseplants will rot if their roots sit in waterlogged soil but when you propagate plants you let the roots sit in water to grow?

In: Biology

Answer 1

Hey, horticulturalist here. When you’re propagating in water, or growing something hydroponically, you don’t have any of the yucky soil germs or bugs that lead to rot. Rot isn’t just the plant getting too wet, it’s the bacteria and fungus in that pot that eats away at it.

If you propagate in soil, rot’s pretty much the most common problem you’ll get.