My Story with Succulents: How to Buy Succulents the Right Way

It has been over a year since I fell down the rabbit hole. With the cycle of spring, summer, autumn and winter, succulents keep cycling between beautiful and ugly, and it is a truly heart-wrenching process, hahahaha.

I am a standard homebody. When I rest, the two main things I do at home are hang out with my cat and tend my succulents.

When I first fell down the rabbit hole, I bought a big batch on Taobao for 9.9 yuan, and for some unknown reason countless succulents died. Although they were all common varieties at first, it still hurt my heart. Later a friend recommended a friend of hers who grows succulents herself, and only then did I learn what tissue culture is, what rapid propagation is, and what insufficient hardening off is. You get what you pay for. I cannot blame others, only myself for being greedy for bargains.

Whenever I have time, I ask this friend how to grow succulents, since she is someone who has her own succulent propagation greenhouse and can be called a professional. Every time she patiently answers one question after another. Look at the succulents I am growing now, are they not much prettier? (The earlier ones were too ugly, I had no desire to photograph them at all.)

How about it, not bad, right? I feel pretty good about them myself...

This lady is a girl from Northeast China, and Northeastern girls really are so genuine. Every time I buy succulents, the express packaging really uses paper and cotton so generously, and the damage to the succulents is almost zero. I count as a regular customer too, and she often gives me some succulents and little ornaments. Her flower pots are great, all handmade by herself. Although a bit expensive, they are truly special. It is said that firing a batch of flower pots takes about a month from starting production to selling (there are many steps in between, but it is too complicated and I do not know those professional terms, hehe, you all get the idea!). So I think as long as something is good, a little more expensive is still acceptable. Also, what I think is most important is that her soil is very good. It is said that the greenhouse owner lady formulated it herself through long practical experience. I definitely do not know the formula, but it is much better value than what I bought on Taobao. 20 yuan for 5 jin with free shipping (excluding remote areas), that is already very economical and affordable, right? Hers are basically all Korean goods, the varieties are guaranteed, and the quality is beyond words. There are also many succulents whose names even the greenhouse owners cannot call out, super beautiful, and most importantly not expensive. Um... let me go scroll through my WeChat Moments and find some pictures for everyone.

Let me find just these few for you to look at, there are too many beautiful ones.