Don't panic if you bought a fake variegated succulent; with timely handling, it can still be saved

Many succulent growers have had this experience: a variegated succulent they just bought turns out to have lost its variegation!

Could it be that they bought a pot of fake variegation? Let's talk about these matters of succulent variegation.

Succulent variegation refers to color changes in parts of the plant such as the stem and leaves, such as turning white, yellow, red and various other colors. Most variegated spot mutations are not a change of the entire area's color, but a change in part of the color of the leaves or stem.Compared with the original color, the plant's main body has more color types and is more ornamental, and because it is relatively rare, its value is also higher.

Temperature differences, environment, light, artificial application of chemicals, and the plant's own genetic factors are all reasons that cause succulent variegation. These factors cause their genes to recombine or mutate, so the colors also become white, yellow, red and other colors.

Moreover, in order to achieve a "yin-yang variegation" effect, some vendors drip chemicals on some side shoots to produce variegation. A dropper is used to drip the chemical onto the leaf core of the side shoot, so that other side shoots not treated with the chemical will not have a variegated effect. After the old leaves of the treated side shoot fade, only the variegated leaves remain, producing a "yin-yang variegation" effect.

In the case of chemically induced variegation, the color generally changes from the center outward, with variegation around the new leaf position at the leaf core, slowly reaching the old leaves. A large dosage will cause leaf drop, and chemically induced variegation always appears as a horizontal band of variegation, and it is difficult for it to produce rich whorled variegation.

In order to make succulents show a fully variegated state, some vendors start applying chemicals from the seedling and leaf-cutting seedling stage.

You must learn to distinguish true and fake chemically induced variegation.

If any one of the following features is present, you should be vigilant: the variegated spots differ in color, with great variation in shade; the variegated spots are blurry and basically have no dividing line; some leaves suddenly become fully variegated, while some leaves retain a little of their original color at the tip; new leaves are fully variegated while old leaves still retain their original color; some varieties are fully variegated or have variegation on side shoots.

If you plan to buy variegated succulent plants soon, pay attention to distinguishing them. In addition, any variegated variety carries the risk of losing its variegation, which is called reversion. But chemically induced variegation will definitely fade, and quickly. Judging from the results, succulent variegation is still uncontrollable; it can be encountered but not forced.

Chemically variegated succulents have low resistance, and the stronger the sun, the faster they die. If you have already bought chemically variegated succulents, while they are still doing well now, behead them quickly, cut off the chemically variegated parts, pull off the leaves for leaf propagation, and try to let the cut-off heads re-root, so that the original plant will not be harmed.

True succulent plant variegation