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Succulents Care

Succulents. The blog world is clearly not getting enough of this darling species and for all the right reasons. Hardy, drought resistant and cute as buttons- Succulents do wonderful with very little care, which also makes them the decorators eye candy. Plus they grow fairly well on their own without having to tend to them too much. But then if that’s the case why do they often die at home?

Well, that’s probably because of a few things that we don’t do right! And plant nurseries often send us home with, “water every 3 days”. Point is, what might be the condition in the nursery might not be the condition indoors. So watering every 3 days might be the exact reason why your plant just died on you!

I have killed a few myself and I have learnt through plant-heartbreaks the hard way. Good for you, you don’t have to. Here are a few things that worked for me wonderfully when it comes to Succulents and I think {hope} that it works for you too.

Find a sunny spot for your succulents

No matter what people tell you, without atleast 3 hours in a sunny spot your succulent will not survive. Even if it does it will grow tall and the leaves will be spread out because they are looking for more sun.

Water once a week


Give your succulents a good soak once a week. Really, that is enough. These plants store water in their leaf and too much water will make the leaves drop.

Use a well draining soil


For your succulents, use a potting soil that drains well. Succulents are susceptible to rot if water doesn’t drain well. A gravely loose potting soil works well. I have seen these succulent pots with no drainage holes sold online and people think just a sprinkling of water is enough to make them thrive. No it’s not. Your succulents need water and it needs to drain through. so a drainage hole is a must.

Use a fertilizer monthly


For best results, use compost or a monthly fertilizer. I use only compost and it works pretty well.

Use a container that breathes


Honestly, pay attention to this. Succulents might be sold in plastic containers but for long term goodness, shift them to a terracotta or a ceramic container. Breathable materials will ensure less heating of the pot, easy water evaporation and better growth. Plastic is no good. I had these tiny succulents growing in a ceramic container, which actually died after I shifted them to a plastic pot. So I’d say no to plastic.

For a 2″ succulent buy a 2.5″ pot


Quite obvious because they like us need space to grow. And that is if you are planting them by themselves. For more variety added, add space for each variety.

Colors and textures of pots


Now honestly, this is not a rule. This is more like value add. But I think it’s important to pay attention to your planter because it’ll highlight your succulents properly if you choose them right. For succulents with a slightly faded tones {hens and chicks and likes} a bright pot works well. You could also get metallic planters for these though direct metal is not a good choice.

For mixed succulents arrangements, with green and tones of red and orange, choose either a simple terracotta pot or go maximalist and all out with vibrant colours. Trust me on this! They’ll look pretty fabulous.

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