That'll work. It would be a good Idea to stick the cutting in a solid medium (potting soil) rather than water. Also, it would be a good idea to dust the cut end with powdered sulfur (for its fungicidal properties) before sticking it. Cinnamon can be used in a pinch, but it's not as effective as sulfur. "Damp" or "moist" are the operational words. The soil should never be wet or soggy as those conditions limit the oxygen supply essential to getting the cutting to strike (grow roots).

To help head off the entire propagule collapsing, you should remove all the leaves except the one which is unfurling. Remove the others by cutting through the petiole (leaf stem) anywhere between the leaf proper and its attachment point. Never try to pull leaves from a plant as it can damage the row of latent buds above the leaf/bundle scars (where leaves were formerly attached). There is no way the propagule will be able to supply enough moisture to keep that much leaf mass sufficiently hydrated.

Al

Wow! That is great information! Thank you so much. It will kill me to cut those beautiful leaves off, but it sounds like you REALLY know what you are talking about. Since it will be in soil, I should just expect to see that one leaf continue to grow, then in time, new growth? ( time frame )

You have what is called a tip cutting, even though it originated as an offset to the parent plant. Because extension (growing longer) growth occurs in an area called the apical meristem, located near the very tip of the branch, your plant will continue to extend normally, as it would if it was allowed to grow in the pot it came from. You are propagating a stem, so the leaf is only the first of many to grow along the stem as the stem continues to extend. There is another type of cutting called an internodal cutting. This type of cutting is one from which the growing tip of the branch or stem has been removed. This cutting is used when you wish to produce multiple stems.

This is a ficus cutting rooted in a Rx medicine container. The growing tip of the stem has been removed, as is evidenced by the stub I left to prevent the top part from drying out. The new growth in the leaf axils (crotches) are branches/ stems. Like your cutting, they will extend indefinitely, until the area where extension growth occurs (apical meristem) is damaged or removed. Even though this is an internodal cutting that produced 2 new trunks, there are 2 ways to force it to grow a single trunk. Prune the cutting immediately above the lower leaf and branch in the crotch (Mother Nature has conveniently provided a line to show us where the plant should be pruned); or, simply snip the lower leaf and branch off flush to the trunk.

Unprepared F benjamina propagule:

Cutting prepared for sticking:

Note that, because the first order branches (attached to main stem) and second order branches (branches you can see forming on the first order branches) have all their apical meristems (growing tip of the branch) intact, every bud on this propagule ^^^ will produce a new branch, so it will almost immediately look like a miniature tree once it strikes and enjoys a bit of growth.

Warning: Propagating becomes habit-forming once you get the hang of it. Your friends will either love you or hate you for your efforts; though it will provide good reason to make more friends.

Al

Thank you! If I’m successful I will continue to try my hand at all kinds of plants! 😃 I appreciate your skilled advice.

Good luck, Lisa. Thanks for the kind words.

Al