How to Grow Saxifraga stolonifera (Strawberry Saxifrage)? Detailed Guide to Propagation and Hydroponics

Saxifraga stolonifera is also called golden-thread lotus leaf; its appearance is very small and delicate, it has strong adaptability and can grow even on poor soil, so it is also relatively easy to care for at home. So how do you grow Saxifraga stolonifera? How do you propagate it? Can it be grown hydroponically?

Saxifraga stolonifera is also known as stone lotus leaf, golden-thread hanging hibiscus, tiger ear, and so on. Its slender stolons are densely covered with curled long glandular hairs and bear scale-like leaves. It is produced in Hebei (Mount Xiaowutai), Shaanxi, southeastern Gansu, Jiangsu, Anhui, Zhejiang, and other places. The whole plant is used as medicine; slightly bitter, pungent, cold, slightly toxic; dispels wind and clears heat, cools the blood and removes toxins.

How do you grow Saxifraga stolonifera?

1. Soil selection for potted Saxifraga stolonifera

For potted Saxifraga stolonifera, the best soil choice is sandy soil rich in organic matter, and it must also have very good drainage; you can make your own potting mix and blend it with river sand.

2. Temperature and light

Temperature: Saxifraga stolonifera likes a warm environment, and the most suitable growing temperature is between 15°C and 25°C. Saxifraga stolonifera is also relatively cold-tolerant and can overwinter at a low temperature of 5°C.

However, the variegated tricolor Saxifraga stolonifera is not cold-tolerant; its overwintering temperature is 15°C, and if it is lower than this temperature it will die, so keeping it warm in winter is also very necessary.

Light: If light is insufficient, the leaf color will become dull. In summer, shade is also needed indoors, avoiding direct strong light. In winter, keep the room temperature above 5°C. Place it indoors near a south-facing window in a spot with ample sunlight.

3. Water and fertilizer management

Watering: During the growing period, Saxifraga stolonifera needs a large amount of water, keeping the potting soil fully moist, but the flowerpot must not be soaked in water. In the two weeks after the plant blooms, gradually reduce the amount of watering. When the plant enters dormancy, it is enough as long as the potting soil does not dry out completely.

When watering during the growing period, the potting soil should be kept moist; slight drought can easily cause the leaves to fall, and at the same time water accumulation in the pot must be prevented, otherwise the roots rot easily.

Fertilizing: Fertilizer should be applied from below the leaves of Saxifraga stolonifera to avoid soiling the leaf surface and affecting plant growth. During the vigorous growth period in spring, apply nitrogen fertilizer once every 20 days; do not fertilize during high temperatures in summer or low temperatures in winter.

4. Propagation methods

Saxifraga stolonifera can be propagated by sowing and division. Sowing is done in March-April, and division can be done in all four seasons, but spring and autumn are best.

Notes on keeping Saxifraga stolonifera at home

1. Repotting

Saxifraga stolonifera likes loose, breathable soil, and compacted soil easily makes the leaf color dull. Therefore, Saxifraga stolonifera should be repotted once every other year, in early spring.

2. Pest and disease control

Diseases mainly include gray mold and powdery mildew. Gray mold mainly damages the leaves. The spots often occur along the leaf margins, semicircular or circular to irregular, water-soaked, dark green to brown. When humidity is high, the diseased area spreads rapidly; in severe cases the entire leaf turns dark brown and rots, and a gray mold layer appears on the diseased area. You can use 28% gray mold wettable powder at 800 times dilution; for powdery mildew, use 50% carbendazim at 800 times dilution. Pests may include mealybugs and whiteflies.

Can Saxifraga stolonifera be grown hydroponically?

Saxifraga stolonifera likes a moist environment and can grow purple stolons from its base, making it a plant very suitable for hydroponics. Placed on a balcony or in a living room, or hung on a wall, it is a very unique and novel home decoration.

1. Plant selection

Spring and autumn are the growing seasons of Saxifraga stolonifera. Select 1 or 2 robust new Saxifraga stolonifera seedlings, wash the soil off the roots, and set them aside.

2. Specific operation

Put small stones into a transparent glass container to fix the plant in place, and it also serves as decoration. Then pour in clean water. Place the Saxifraga stolonifera in, and the water surface should be kept below the rhizome of the Saxifraga stolonifera.

What is the difference between Saxifraga stolonifera and cat ear herb?

1. Morphological characteristics

Saxifraga stolonifera: The slender stolons are densely covered with curled long glandular hairs and bear scale-like leaves. The basal leaves have long petioles, and the leaf blades are nearly heart-shaped, kidney-shaped to oblate, with the lobe margins bearing irregular teeth and glandular eyelashes; the upper surface is green and covered with glandular hairs, while the underside is usually red-purple and covered with glandular hairs, with spots, and has palmate marginal venation; the stem leaves are lanceolate. The cyme is paniculate, and the flowers are bilaterally symmetrical; the flowering and fruiting period is April-November.

Cat ear herb: The rhizome is thick and short, ascending obliquely, densely covered with linear brown scales. The leaves are nearly clustered; the petiole is 7-15 cm tall, brown-black, glossy; the pinnae on both sides are in 7-14 pairs, alternate, the pinnae ovate to ovate-oblong, entire; the lower pinnae are stalked, the upper ones sessile; the leaves are thickly papery, densely covered on both sides with slender rust-colored hairs, especially on the underside; the veins are fan-shaped.

2. Medicinal value

Saxifraga stolonifera: Dispels wind, clears heat, cools the blood and removes toxins. Treats rubella; eczema, otitis media, erysipelas, coughing with blood, lung abscess, abnormal uterine bleeding, and hemorrhoids.

Cat ear herb: Treats rheumatic joint pain, abdominal pain, malaria, and carbuncles.

What is the difference between Saxifraga stolonifera and cat ear herb? How do you distinguish Saxifraga stolonifera from cat ear herb?

3. Different families and genera

Saxifraga stolonifera: The whole plant of Saxifraga stolonifera, a plant in the genus Saxifraga, family Saxifragaceae.

Cat ear herb: The rhizome or whole plant of Aristolochia mollissima, a plant in the genus Aristolochia, family Aristolochiaceae.