The flower stall at the end of our road began selling tiny succulents for £1 each back in the summer. He isn't open every day (thank goodness or I'd be broke) but when he is its rare for me to walk past without stopping to browse and walking away with at least one plant and recently these have been succulents. The result being we now have 21 new succulents (plus dozens more baby succulents - they multiply fast!) sharing our home. This makes me very happy (my son less so as he says they are taking over!) All the plants are unique and different. I haven't a clue what most of them are even called yet so I'm in the process of researching them all. It could take a while though as there are A LOT of succulent varieties out there...
So for the minute they are all getting the same basic treatment that has worked for the succulents I already own. There is a wealth of information out there on how to grow healthy succulents, some of it complicated and/or costly, and often a bit overwhelming for anyone new to looking after plants. So below I have distilled down what I have read and what I have learnt through trial and error in simple terms to provide a basic introduction on caring for succulents:
1) Pots. I must confess my first ever jade plant went in a pot with no drainage holes. I knew nothing about succulent, clearly because anyone who knew even the tiniest amount about succulents would know this is a massive mistake. So the first rule is you must have drainage holes in your pots. I always try to keep the pots quite small (unless I'm planting multiple succulents as part of a display) and only re-pot up one size (a cm or so) each time. Soil in bigger pots with smaller plants (and therefore smaller root systems) can stay wet/damp too long and make the plant vulnerable to root rot. Just imagine the succulent breaths through its roots - when there is too much water around their roots they suffocate. When possible I also use terracotta pots instead of plastic. These draw out the moisture from the soil again helping prevent the plants roots sitting too long in damp soil (and personally I think they're really attractive too).
2) Light. The myth seems to be succulents need full strong sunshine all day but actually mine seem pretty satisfied with bright indirect light. They are scattered throughout the house but all get bright light for 4+ hours a day either in or near east, south or west facing windows.
3) Humidity. Getting this right is absolutely essential for some of the house plants I own but thankfully succulents are not among this demanding group. Some live happily in the bathroom where the humidity is higher and others in the hall where its at its lowest. A few live in amongst humidity loving tropical plants so they sit surrounded by saucers of water and get misted daily. None seem to show any positive or ill effects from humidity levels. Light and water are definitely the defining factors for succulents.
4) Water. Succulents are wonderfully tolerant of neglect but less forgiving of over enthusiastic care. Too much watering will be far more harmful to your succulents than under-watering. So err on the side of caution if in doubt. Less is more etc. Most experts recommend the 'soak and dry' watering approach. I have found the easiest way to achieve this (given how many succulents I have) is to put them en masse in the bath and thoroughly soak them. I leave them ten minutes and then soak again until the water is freely draining out of the bottom of the pot. I then leave them in the bath to drain for a while (or until my son goes to run his bath and reminds me that they're in there and the bath is dirty!). I make a note on my kitchen calendar of when I water my succulents. I also write in a reminder for a few weeks time to check them. This isn't a watering schedule and I would strongly recommend you don't try to create a set regime. However, I have a terrible memory so need to jot these things down in writing. I check whether my succulents need watering by pushing my finger an inch or two into the soil from the surface. If the soil is completely dry it needs watering but if it comes out with any damp dirt at all I'll be cautious and leave it another few days before checking again. I wait until there is only very dry soil before watering. Remember less is more and if in doubt don't water yet.
5) Soil. If I'm honest, I just used bog standard compost for my first few succulents. That was about five years ago and whilst they have survived and grown I wouldn't say they have thrived until recently. I suspect some of their survival was down to the fact I often forgot to water them for months at a time. (Until the last two years I have been a thoroughly neglectful plant owner and killed far more plants than I managed to keep alive; my green fingered dad used to despair of me.) So the lack of free-draining compost wasn't really a problem for my first few succulents since they rarely got watered anyway! However being a more knowledgeable, caring and responsible plant owner these days I have been slightly more thoughtful to my new succulents and brought perlite to mix in with the compost. By chance the soil in my back garden is also quite sandy so I've also scooped up a little of that to mix in too. Perlite, for those who don't know, is a mineral used in potting mixtures to lighten the soil and allow more air around the roots thereby improving drainage. It looks like small white balls of Styrofoam but is completely natural. Its widely sold and not expensive. I brought a big bag from B&Q for £8. But sand or grit would work equally as well. Basically try to create soil with good drainage. However, if for whatever reason you only have soil or compost then go with it. Just pay extra attention that you're not watering too regularly.
6) Propagation. Succulents are amazing things. Some in particular seem to have very robust survival plans! Mother of Thousands being an obvious one (the name is a bit of a giveaway!) I have baby succulents from her appearing in all sorts of other plants pots as well as the ones I am deliberately growing on. I'll do a separate post on propagating succulents but suffice to say its easy, satisfying and slightly addictive. Something even the most novice house plant owner can try.
I hope this quick run through of the basics of succulent care was useful for you. Let me know if there are aspects you would like to know more about. If I don't already know I'm happy to experiment myself and research. One of the lovely things about plant care is you're always learning!
So if you're someone who just 'cant' keep house plants alive give succulents a go. Follow the above advice and you'll be surprised at how easy and satisfying having houseplants can be!
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