How a Pool Noodle Can Easily Help You Propagate Succulents

Pool noodles aren’t just summer accessories anymore. Thanks to the work of clever DIYers, there are plenty of easy, accessible ways to repurpose these pool toys within your home, from turning them into crease-preventing hangers to ergonomic wrist rests to paint brush dryers. Pool noodles can also be particularly useful when it comes to gardening, as the TikTok account Succulents Box (@succulentsbox) recently demonstrated in a viral video, which explains how you can use these noodles to propagate succulents.

“Water propagation has never been fun this way,” the video’s caption reads.

Want to try out this hack for yourself? First, use a kitchen knife to cut pieces of your pool noodle into small, donut-shaped pieces. Then, simply place your succulent cuttings in the hole at the center and place them in a bowl of water. As the video notes, if you need more space for your cutting to fit, don’t be afraid to cut the noodle and wrap it around the plant.

Since sharing the hack, Succulent Box’s video has racked up over 11,700 likes and 405,200 views.

“I have some extra pool noodles left. Oh, yeah!” one TikToker commented.

Another wrote: “I never thought that I needed a pool noodle until now.”

In another comment, Succulent Box recommended letting the cuttings callous — allowing the cut you made to separate them from the plant they grew out of to close — for a few days before sticking them in water. And as some commenters pointed out, watch your succulents closely and don’t leave them in the water indefinitely to avoid root rot.