How to Grow Common Succulent Plants as Houseplants and What to Watch Out For

Growing succulents always comes down to light and heat, water, temperature and soil. So no matter which succulent you grow, you need to combine and choose among these aspects in different ways. At the same time, for the health and beauty of the succulents, there are many measures we can take. Why not take a look together!

How to Grow Common Succulent Plants

1. Growing plants always comes down to three things: water, medium and light, and succulents are no exception. Light mainly affects how well a plant grows, and belongs to the advanced level. But water and medium can directly affect whether a plant lives or dies. Many beginners, when they first grow something, always casually use some soil, and then enthusiastically and lovingly water the plant every day… and then… there is no then…

2. The soil should be loose and breathable, with good drainage, but with a certain water-holding capacity, and neutral or slightly acidic. There are many media suitable for growing succulents, but a very important point is that they must be sterile. The direct cause of succulent death is often rot, and the one direct cause of plant rot is fungal infection. During the transplanting process, if the medium itself carries various pathogens, plus improper care afterwards (such as frequent watering), it is very easy to cause fungal infection.

3. Therefore, when choosing soil at the very beginning, you should choose sterile soil, or soil that has been sterilized. There are two common ways to sterilize: one is to use a fungicide such as carbendazim and the like. The other is to use high temperature sterilization; for example, I have heard of someone stir-frying it in a pan, and also heard of someone putting soil into a microwave to bake it. A good medium means a good start.

4. The watering principle is "dry then wet", which means that when the soil has dried out completely, water thoroughly. If it is hard to tell whether the soil has dried out, you can stick a toothpick into the soil, and when it is normally time to water, just check how dry or moist the toothpick is. "Dry then wet" is a commonly used term in flower growing, meaning to water thoroughly at one time, and then wait until the soil is almost completely dry before watering a second time. Its purpose is to prevent root rot caused by overwatering and pests and diseases caused by dampness. Of course, it does not need to be so strict; as long as you do not water too frequently, it generally will not cause succulent death.

5. Succulents all love sunlight, and with a certain amount of light they will grow better. Growing succulents is actually not difficult; in fact, just grow them roughly! Many beginners kill their succulents because they water too frequently.

Methods and Precautions for Growing Succulents as Houseplants

1. About watering

Watering is the most frequent, most important, and most telling task when it comes to showing your growing skill, but the question of watering is also the hardest to explain clearly. I have also seen some books that teach you how to water succulents, drawing 2 water drops to indicate watering once after how long, and 3 water drops to indicate watering once after how long. But watering is very closely related to the texture and size of the pot, the variety and size of the plant, the composition of the growing medium, and the local climate characteristics. It is very hard to generalize, and you still have to figure it out slowly. For other flowers, you can generally judge by looking at how dry or moist the surface of the potting soil is, but succulents are different. If you water as soon as the surface of the potting soil dries, the succulent will definitely die! Here is a simple method called inserting a bamboo skewer: insert a bamboo skewer into the potting soil and pull it out often to look at it, so you can know fairly accurately how dry or moist the lower part of the potting soil is.

There are two principles of watering you can keep in mind:

1. The watering frequency should be low. Control your hands and water as little as possible. Do not water until dry, and when you do water, water thoroughly. Many beginners do not kill their succulents from drought, but from waterlogging.

2. Do not water succulents at noon, and do not pour water onto the leaves of succulents, because after sunlight exposure it is easy to cause leaf burn.

2. About fertilizer

Generally, you just ferment bean dregs until rotted and then dilute them with water to pour on the plants. Chinese medicine residue is a very good growing medium. After composting, the residue both has fertility and is loose and breathable, and is especially suitable for growing succulents. This stuff is very easy to find in a hospital of traditional Chinese medicine, but be sure to remember that the residue cannot be used directly; it must be fully composted. Eggshells are also a good growing medium. After washing them clean, put them in the sun to dry thoroughly, then crush them and mix them into the growing medium to supplement the phosphorus for plant growth. Things like plant ash, carbonized rice husk and bone meal can all be added to the growing medium.

3. Sun exposure and ventilation

No matter which type of succulent it is, it needs sufficient sunlight, so that its shape and color will be more beautiful. Lack of light easily leads to leggy growth and fading. Many people put their succulents on a closed balcony, where ventilation is insufficient. In the humid and hot summer, it is very easy for the roots to lack air and the whole plant to rot, so ventilation must be ensured.

4. Precautions

Succulents are generally very slow-growing plants. You need to be patient and wait for them to grow. Do not, right after planting them, keep worrying about why they still have not grown, and casually poke at the roots to see whether they have grown well. That way you will not grow succulents well. Many people say that succulents are plants that only lazy people can grow well: leave them there without disturbing them, water them occasionally, and suddenly one day you will find that they have grown so big.

What Growing Medium and Flower Pots Should Be Used for Planting Succulents

If you are a beginner at growing succulents, it is recommended to use peat + coarse sand, peat + perlite + vermiculite, peat + akadama + hyuga, or garden soil + coarse sand. The ratios are not strict; as long as the growing medium is loose and has good water permeability, that is fine. As for flower pots, whether plastic pots, porcelain pots, ceramic pots, clay pots or even foam boxes, no matter what material the pot is made of, be sure to remember that it must have drainage holes.

What to Do When Succulents Grow Leggy

One option is to behead them, let the wound dry, and then learn to take cuttings yourself. As long as the wound is dried, the rest of the process is the same as potting up a purchased plant. The other option is to leave them alone and let them grow into a very old plant; the long stem will slowly bend down, fall over, produce side branches, and the side branches will produce more side branches.

Leggy growth in succulents seriously affects their appearance and health, and is also a protest and warning from the succulent to the grower. At such times we need to take certain measures. Of course, letting it develop freely is also one way to deal with it, but you must make the most correct choice according to the situation.