How to Grow Silver Star Succulent So It Quickly Fills Its Pot: Care Methods and Precautions
The Silver Star succulent is a fleshy plant in the Crassulaceae family, delicate and compact, with extremely high ornamental value, and it can also purify the air. Many people like to grow Silver Star succulents on their home balconies. The cultivation techniques for Silver Star are relatively simple. Below, the editor will introduce in detail how to grow Silver Star!
How to Grow Silver Star Succulent So It Quickly Fills Its Pot
Potting soil: Repot every spring, using a mix of peat soil, potting soil and coarse sand, plus a small amount of bone meal. During the growing season in spring and summer, keep the potting soil moist.
Fertilizing: Fertilize once a month, or use fertilizer specially made for succulents. During summer dormancy, stop fertilizing and keep the potting soil slightly dry.
Leaf rosette: It blooms in spring and summer, sending up a flower stalk from the center of the rosette-shaped leaf disc, and after flowering the leaf disc gradually withers and dies. To protect the leaf disc, promptly cut off the emerging stalk.
Silver Star Succulent Cultivation Methods and Precautions
Cultivation methods:
1. Soil. When planting Silver Star, you can use soil mixed with peat, perlite and coal cinder, with clean granular river sand spread on the surface, which can isolate the plant from contact with the soil surface and also make it more breathable.
2. Watering. Water Silver Star according to the principle of watering thoroughly only after the soil has dried out; water thoroughly only when dry, and do not water when it is not dry. In summer, water less or not at all. In winter, never mist or give a lot of water. During the growing seasons of spring and autumn, water thoroughly after the soil dries out and just keep it appropriately dry; you can water once a week.
3. Light. Silver Star likes plenty of sunlight. When temperatures are high in summer, the plant goes into brief dormancy, and at this time it should be properly shaded. Spring, autumn and early summer are the plant's main growing seasons, so it can be given plenty of light.
4. Fertilizing. Silver Star can be fertilized once a month. During high-temperature summer dormancy, stop fertilizing and keep the potting soil slightly dry.
Precautions
1. Propagation method. Silver Star can be propagated by cuttings, which can be done throughout the year, preferably in spring and autumn. When taking cuttings, you can use stem cuttings or leaf cuttings. Ventilation is very important; good ventilation in normal times makes it less prone to pest problems. Repot every spring.
2. In winter, do not pour water into the center of the leaves when watering, as this can easily cause the leaves to rot, though the leaves can be cleaned in normal times.
Silver Star Propagation Methods
1. Cuttings
Silver Star can generally be propagated by cuttings. Silver Star cuttings can be taken throughout the year, and of course the best time to propagate is spring and autumn, because this is when succulents are in their growing season, Silver Star grows well, and the leaves are relatively plump, so the survival rate of cuttings is also relatively high. For Silver Star cuttings, you can use the rosette-shaped top shoot. Remove this part and insert it into prepared soil. Keep the temperature at 20-24°C; generally, roots will form 15-20 days after insertion.
2. Leaf cuttings. Silver Star can also be propagated by leaf cuttings. Choose thick, plump leaves, cut off mature fleshy leaves at the base, place them in a cool, ventilated place to let the wounds dry, then lay them flat or insert them obliquely into prepared soil. Keep the cutting medium slightly moist; generally, about 10 days after insertion, adventitious roots and small plantlets will grow from the leaf base, and then they can be transplanted.
3. Division. Silver Star can also be propagated by division. When propagating Silver Star by division, you can use the side shoots at the base of the plant, the new shoots that grow from the remaining stem and roots after beheading, or you can divide clustered offsets.
Silver Star Water Management
Succulents like Silver Star are very sensitive to water, and uneven or excessive watering can cause rot. Basically, when watering these succulents, follow the principle of watering thoroughly only after the soil has dried out.
When watering Silver Star, water thoroughly once, and wait until the potting soil has dried out before watering a second time. If it is difficult to water thoroughly, you can use the soaking method: put the whole pot into water, with the water level not exceeding the rim of the pot, and wait until the potting soil is completely soaked through.
Silver Star dislikes excessive moisture, so during high-temperature and rainy summer weather, gradually cut off watering. When the temperature is above 35°C, start reducing water. When temperatures drop in autumn, slowly resume watering.
In winter, because temperatures are low, watering may cause Silver Star to suffer frost damage, which is not good for overwintering, but you cannot cut off water completely either; without water, Silver Star's growth will be affected, so you can water a little appropriately. When temperatures rise in spring, normal watering can be resumed.
During the main growing seasons of spring, autumn and early summer, you can water once a week.
Silver Star likes a dry, warm and nostalgic setting, especially an environment with plenty of sunlight, but it should not be exposed to strong sun; a semi-shaded place is best. At the same time, the Silver Star succulent is not cold-tolerant, so in winter be sure to place it somewhere relatively warm, and Silver Star is drought-tolerant, so it does not need a lot of water!