How to clean off dust and make succulents fresh and lovely...

Dust removal

The fresh, lovely appearance of succulents is one of the reasons many plant lovers fell for them. But whether grown outdoors or indoors, there is no guarantee they can stay as spotless as a lotus rising from muddy water; watering, rain, wind, brushing against things, and moving pots will inevitably dirty the leaves and the plant. Especially in windy seasons, with the windows open at home, it takes only a few days for a bit of dust to settle on the tabletop, let alone on succulents that need good ventilation, so gathering dust becomes inevitable.

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How do you clean succulents to keep their fresh, lovely appearance? Here I will only roughly describe some cleaning methods for fellow plant lovers to refer to; this is only a very small part of the work of keeping succulents looking their best. Maintaining a succulent's appearance is not just a matter of whether it is clean; it also involves whether the plant is plump and healthy, whether care is appropriate, and whether light is sufficient. Below I will still talk about some cleaning methods that can make succulents instantly fresh and lovely:

Succulent cleaning method: brush, brush, brush with a small brush

The leaf surfaces of most Haworthia succulents have no fuzz and no waxy powder, so they are very easy to clean. When dry, you can choose to whisk away dust with a small brush, or you can choose to spray and wipe them with clean water. After wiping their "windows" with water, you will find they become even more crystalline and translucent, and many plant lovers also like to photograph them when wet. Some Crassulaceae plants also have very smooth leaf surfaces, such as most of the genus Aeonium, some of the genus Crassula, some of the genus Sempervivum, some of the genus Sedum, and so on. The above methods also apply to them.

Succulent cleaning method: dab, dab, dab with tape

There are quite a few fuzzy succulents too, such as bear's paw (Cotyledon tomentosa), silver moon (Crassula 'Silver Moon'), Jin Sihuang, silver arrow, Mengchun, moon halo, and so on, but how do you clean them? Blowing will not remove it, and brushing will not remove it either; I believe quite a few friends do it this way too! Before using tape to stick off the dirt on a succulent, remember to first dab the tape with your hand so that its stickiness is not so strong, to avoid the adhesive being too strong and damaging the epidermal layer of the leaves.

Succulent cleaning method: blow, blow, blow with an air blower

Succulents whose leaf surfaces are covered with waxy powder are the most troublesome, such as most of the genus Echeveria. You cannot touch them. You can only use an indirect cleaning method. How is it indirect? It is to use an air blower (rubber bulb) to clean them (a very handy little blower! Friends who like photography must know this thing!). This method can not only remove dust, but also blow away water droplets splashed onto the leaves or growth points when watering. If you have good lung capacity, you can also give it a try, haha! But you will end up splattered all over your face.

Finally, here is one more simplest, most forceful and effective method: give it a rinse with a spray bottle, then blow it dry with an air blower. It suits most succulents, especially those with smooth, powder-free leaf surfaces; for powdery ones, actually lightly spraying with water will not cause serious powder loss either. Think about it a little and you will understand. Do you envy those succulents grown outdoors in great conditions? Do you think they have never been rained on... What happened to them... As for some with thick powder and lots of fuzz, it is still better to use gentler methods.

PS: Sometimes some dust is too thick-skinned, and no matter how you try, it will not leave. At this point you can consider the way Leon in Leon: The Professional treated his Aglaonema (silver queen pothos), taking a clean wet cloth to wipe the leaves, but this only applies to some succulents whose leaves are so smooth they seem to have a layer of waterproof film, such as Black Prince... Black Mage...

Now you can try cleaning your own succulents right away.

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