If you've never taken this exam, you can't honestly say you've grown succulents

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Images and text: Qingmeng

EditorSince I started growing succulents, every day has felt like preparing for the college entrance exam. Learning and practicing all the way, how many succulents have I killed? Now I'm going to test everyone and see how many you can answer correctly.

1. Term explanations

1. Succulent plant: also called fleshy plant or succulent, referring to plants in which at least one of the three nutritional organs - root, stem, and leaf - is thick and juicy and has the function of storing a large amount of water. At present, according to rough statistics, there are more than 10,000 species of succulent plants worldwide, belonging to more than 100 families in classification.

2. Outdoor growing: placing succulents outdoors in an open-air environment is called outdoor growing. It is a cultivation method that allows succulent plants to grow naturally and receive sufficient light to obtain excellent appearance, but caution is needed in the rainy season, summer, and cold winter.

3. Leggy growth: when succulents lose their original short and sturdy shape and their stems and leaves elongate wildly, it is called "leggy growth." The main causes are lack of sunlight, overly dim light, and relatively frequent watering.

4. Dormancy: often refers to succulent plants stopping growth due to high or low temperatures, with slow growth. Depending on the variety, the characteristics of dormancy are not obvious, and the dormancy periods also differ.

5. Leaf propagation: placing succulent leaves facing upward on soil and waiting for them to take root and sprout. Another propagation method for succulents.

6. Monstrose: in monstrose succulents, the growth point means that a leaf does not have only one growth point. Irregular division and proliferation occur at the growth point, causing disorder and forming irregular leaf shapes.

7. Variegation: variegation, often called variegated markings, is a type of variation in plant color. Variegated variation refers to color changes in parts such as stems and leaves of a plant. For example, if the main color of the plant was originally green, and then variegated variation occurs, white or yellow markings grow from the center or edges of the leaves.

8. Rotting to water: stuffy, humid environment or pathogens cause leaves, roots, and stems to rot, become transparent, and finally disappear.

9. Black rot: most succulent black rot occurs because of a humid, stuffy, poorly ventilated environment, poor wound healing, pathogen infection, and so on.

10. Acclimation: for plants that have just been potted or repotted, light intensity and watering intensity are reduced in the early stage to let the plants slowly recover until they can grow normally.

11. Root trimming: for newly purchased succulents, remove some fibrous roots and rotten roots, leaving healthy roots.

2. Short-answer questions

1. What should be done after buying succulents online and receiving them?

Throw away the original soil.

Throw away all the soil that came with the succulents. Whether from a flower market or a greenhouse, the soil used has little nutrition and may also carry insects and eggs. Especially for succulents bought from flower markets, vendors often use yellow mud or sand to plant them. These soils are very unhealthy and must be thrown away.

Clean the roots and dead leaves.

Remove all the original old roots. Old roots have very poor respiration and absorption functions and easily cause the soil to clump, which is not conducive to growth. Whether newly purchased or being repotted, the old roots must be cleaned away.

Dry.

Succulents planted after being thoroughly dried are noticeably healthier in later growth than those planted directly without drying. The drying time is 2?3 days. During drying, avoid direct sunlight and place them in a well-ventilated, dry place.

Potting and watering.

Many people think that newly purchased succulents do not need watering in the first week after planting. This is actually not accurate; it depends on whether the soil is dry or wet. If the soil is moist, then indeed there is no need to water for 5 days or even a week after planting. Use spraying or a small amount of watering to give the soil near the roots some moisture, which makes it easier for roots to form.

2. What are the 4 key elements for getting succulents through summer?

Shade, rain protection, ventilation, water control!!!

How many of the above questions did you answer correctly?

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