Do succulents die after blooming? Handle it this way and you'll soon have a new pot of succulents

Most growers pinch off the flower stalks as soon as they appear on a succulent, to prevent the plant from dying after blooming or using up a lot of nutrients and losing its looks. But don't throw away the stalks you pinch off - just take cuttings and they'll quickly grow roots and soon become a pot of succulents.

The flower stalk draws a lot of nutrients from the mother plant as it prepares to bloom and set seed, so if you simply stick the stalk into soil, the survival rate is very high - basically 100 percent - and it will quickly grow roots and send up small shoots.

Of course, not all succulent flower stalks are suitable for cuttings. The stalks of most Crassulaceae succulents can be used, such as Echeveria derenbergii, Echeveria 'Tricolor', and Sedum 'Little Beauty'. After cutting off the stalk, leave it in a cool, ventilated place to let the wound dry. It's best to keep one or two leaves on the stalk so it can grow new shoots.

1. Soil

For the soil, you can mix river sand, vermiculite, pine needle soil and the like. Before taking the cutting, water the soil a little so it's slightly moist, then insert the flower stalk, not too deep - two or three cm is enough. The stalk can stand up on its own, and after that you can put it in a spot with bright, indirect light.

2. Watering

In general, when the soil is dry, water lightly, just enough to keep the potting soil slightly moist. New shoots usually emerge from the leaf veins in about two weeks, though the flower stalk roots more slowly and generally takes two or three weeks to root.

This method works for Crassulaceae succulents and Haworthia and similar succulents. If you have these two kinds of succulents at home, give it a try - stick the pinched-off flower stalk into the soil and you'll soon have another pot.

Of course, the small leaves on the flower stalk also accumulate a lot of nutrients. Although the leaves are rather small, they're still full of nutrients, and if you twist them off and take leaf cuttings, the survival rate is rock solid. The method is just like ordinary leaf propagation, and they'll quickly grow into a new pot of succulents.