Hello roots, hello colour! This rainbow-coloured propagation kit looks delicate but will survive the knocks and keep on growing. This kit comes with 6 x 50ml test tubes in jewel shades, 1 x black plastic test tube rack and 1 x free pipette all included.

What colours do you get?

One kit includes 6 plastic test tubes with one of every colour as shown below: lemon yellow, emerald green, sapphire blue, amethyst purple, neon pink and ruby red. The free 5ml pipette will be one of the assorted colours shown in the photos: barbie pink, pastel pink, royal blue, pastel blue, purple, yellow, white, orange, red or green (however if they are all sold out at the time, the free pipette will be a standard 5ml clear plastic one instead).

These kits look gorgeous on a windowsill with the light shining through and throw beautiful coloured rainbow shadows in bright light. Being plastic you don't need to worry about them rolling off the bench or breaking like you do with glass test tubes. Great for households like mine with cats on benches and curious kids! The base of the rack has indents that support each test tube, holding them in place while those roots get their grow on. 

A great price for a gorgeous way to water propagate your indoor plants.  Although the colours are intense jewel and neon shades, you can still easily see the roots inside (swipe through the photos for the close-ups showing the roots), so you can keep an eye on root growth without needing to pull out your cuttings constantly and risk damaging those delicate water roots.

What are the measurements?

The test tubes are wider than normal, a better size for roots than standard, smaller test tubes. They also hold enough water to avoid constant top-ups. Each tube holds 50mls and measures 11.5cms tall x 2.5cms wide.  The entire kit measures 23cm long x 4cms wide x 12.5cms tall. A perfect size to pop on a windowsill. 

The pipette measures 11.5cms long including the silicone squeezy top, and the pipette tube measures 1.5cms wide. The pipette has 5mls marked in 1ml increments including 1ml, 2ml, 3ml, 4ml and 5ml.  

Please note before you buy

As you can probably tell from the price, these are not coloured glass, they are plastic (the test tubes and the stand). Some test tubes have minor imperfections such as bubbles or minor surface scratches. Once filled with water and cuttings these won't detract from enjoying your gorgeous colourful new way to grow new plants from cuttings, but please do keep your expectations on quality in line with the great price :)

Tips for successful water propagation

Read the easy way to propagate in water guide. Lots of great tips there for beginners including photos showing where to cut, how many leaves to remove (and to keep on), and much more.  


A tip cutting from a healthy mother plant will have the best success rate for you as they are naturally higher in growth hormones and have more nutrients stored to keep the cutting alive until roots take over.  

Dip fresh cuttings in GT Clonex to kick start root growth sooner and help protect from stem rot. As a general rule, remove cuttings when the first root starts to branch and the main root is at least 5cms long. Leaving propagations in water too long can mean water roots have a harder time adapting to soil roots when potted up.


Once those first water roots appear, add 2 drops of GT CCS root fertiliser per test tube fill (50mls), or make up a jug of nutrient solution and add 5mls CCS per 1 litre water. Best made fresh but if stored sealed in a cool spot out of direct sunlight, you can store pre-made nutrient solution for about a week and top up as needed. 

Keep using CCS each time you top up the water, right up until your plant is potted up. CCS can also be used on plants needing extra root support, such as plants recovering from root rot and plants after repotting to reduce transplant stress and increase root recovery and growth, then continue with your usual fertiliser (such as GT Foliage Focus as usual).