What should you do when succulents "wear skirts" in summer? Learn to use bamboo skewers, and they will grow upright without root rot

Huahua recently browsed our community and found that quite a few flower lovers' succulents have already "worn skirts" and "spread into big pancakes." We are all growing succulents in the same high temperatures, so why have other people's succulents turned into plump little buns? It must be because you did not do the following things. Take a quick look and grow your succulents plump!

Succulents "wearing skirts" and "spreading into big pancakes"

Grow Flowers Complete Guide

When you leave in the morning, your succulent still looks like a little lotus, but when you come back in the afternoon, the leaves suddenly droop downward. Especially succulents with stems look as if they have put on little skirts, with only the few leaves at the top still normal.

Do you think only old-stem succulents "wear skirts"? Even ordinary succulents can show this situation: the leaves flip downward, like a round giant pancake. We call it "spreading into a big pancake." Do flower lovers know what is going on?

Reasons succulents "wear skirts" and "spread into big pancakes":

1. Variety: Among succulents, Echeveria glauca, Sempervivum tectorum, Echeveria runyonii, Pachyveria 'Blue Bird,' and so on. These succulents have many leaves and a lotus-like shape. When the weather gets hot, the lower old leaves easily wilt and naturally flip downward.

2. Too much water and too little light: Summer sunlight is too strong, so many flower lovers do not dare let their succulents bask in the sun. When they see the soil is dry, they want to water. The water in the succulent leaves cannot evaporate, so they easily droop.

3. Too little water and drought: Too little water can also make them "wear skirts," but this is more like normal metabolism. The old leaves gradually dehydrate, droop, and slowly dry up.

Summer is a dangerous gate for succulents. Flower lovers who cherish their succulents should pay attention to every signal they send, or they will not make it through the dog days!

A specific cure for succulents "wearing skirts" and "spreading into big pancakes"

Grow Flowers Complete Guide

Method 1: Sun in the morning and evening, control water reasonably!

Once you find that your succulent leaves have flipped downward, quickly look for the cause: Have they not gotten sun recently? Or have you also watered too much? After finding the cause, first correct it in your care routine~

The morning and evening sun in summer is still fine for succulents. Just shade them at noon or move them indoors for a bit. Flower lovers who do not know how to control water can insert 2 bamboo skewers beside the flowerpot. Be careful not to get close to the succulent roots, to avoid injuring the roots.

Pull out the bamboo skewers once every 1-2 days and check the length that is dark near the roots and has soil sticking to it. If it is less than 1 cm, it means the flowerpot is almost very dry, so you can water; if it exceeds 1 cm as shown in the picture below, then there is no need to water~

This method is the gentlest. It takes effect in about a week. Look at Huahua's Echeveria. Aren't all the leaves standing up~

Method 2: Wrap with cloth to shape

If your succulent used to be a little bun and suddenly spread into a big pancake, then you must be on guard. Once it deforms, it is very hard to recover later, so you must use a tough measure!

Use the waterproof tape for wrapping water pipes at home and gently wrap the succulent. Note: if your succulent leaves are loose and falling, do not keep trying. Keeping it alive is more important!

You can also use toilet paper to wrap it. It is more breathable, and the effect is the same~

After about a week of wrapping, it will mostly hold its shape. After finally fixing it into a little bun, you must care for it carefully afterward!

Method 3: Remove the lower old leaves

Many flower lovers think the downward-flipped leaves look bad, so they casually pick them off. This easily causes wound infection and leads to fungal diseases such as anthracnose and rot.

It is best to water less and wait until the lower old leaves dry up, then carefully peel them off. This way they can also become old stems!

Method 4: Behead and regrow

For succulents with many downward-flipped leaves, you can directly choose to behead them and let them regrow. In the picture below, Huahua chooses to cut at the red line. Cotton thread, a small knife, or scissors are all fine. It is best to first scald the cutting tool with boiling water to disinfect it (let it cool before use).

The cut flower head and the leaves you pull off are best soaked for 10-20 minutes in carbendazim solution to disinfect. After drying, insert them into a small-mouthed bottle for water propagation to root. Note: the stem does not need to touch the water surface. It mainly relies on the water vapor in the bottle to root.

Do not give up on the stem after beheading either. Apply a little carbendazim to the wound, place it in a cool and ventilated place, and be sure to water less. Later it will slowly sprout more small buds. Just wait to grow a multi-headed old stem!

Do your succulents "wear skirts"?

Quickly take an ugly photo of them

Post it in our Grow Flowers Complete Guide's flower show

Let everyone have a good laugh together~

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