How to Grow Healthy Succulents: 5 Tips

There are a lot of examples of them in interior design magazines, in wedding centerpieces, and even on Instagram. Presently, succulents seem to be all the rage. The popular notion that succulents are easy to grow is false. There is no doubt it can be done, but it requires mental adjustment. It's not easy to have some good luck in the desert: Imagine endless sun, downpours like monsoons, and the shifts in the temperature that mark the desert's days.

You can follow these practical tips if you question why your jade plant is dropping leaves or is getting more wrinkled by the day, despite regular waterings. We have listed five of the most common mistakes succulent newcomers make, along with tips for success.

Giving Them Not Enough Light
Perhaps the most difficult environmental variable to reproduce indoors is natural light from the native habitat. It is easier for us to take care of common houseplants. Many of them are native to tropical jungles and accustomed to changing periods of shade and sunlight in your home. This happens naturally as the sun moves over the forest canopy.

On the other hand, if you place a plant that has been exposed to sun for 12 hours in the afternoon on an east-facing sill, you're asking for trouble. If your only window faces elsewhere, pick a more forgiving succulent, like aloe, or let your fears guide your choice and go with a pothos instead.

Not Understanding Their Watering Needs
During the Chihuahuan Desert's relatively short growing season, the desert receives a little more than 9 inches of rain a drop in the bucket when compared to the lush landscapes around us. When it rains in the desert, it pours. Consider copying the rain patterns of the desert-dweller's native habitat for your own desert-dweller. Make sure your cacti receive a deluge, not a trickle.

To get the best results from succulents (and all types of plants), they should be completely submerged until the water starts to run out of the bottom of the pot. The soil should be bone dry before watering succulents again.

Picking a Standard Potting Soil
There is a standard soil mix used for almost every kind of potted plant, from ferns to fiddle-leaf figs. Succulents can withstand one of the most extreme environments on Earth, which means the soil recommended for potting plants won't work for them.

If you already have a baby succulent, start by changing the soil to a desert-dweller mix that combines potting soil with something inorganic like perlite. No matter if your succulents come from the Andes, the Death Valley, or the dry and hot highlands, this soil will work perfectly for them.

Overcrowding Them
Succulents commonly come in teeny little pots, all stuffed together cheek by jowl. Many plants do not like this arrangement, including succulents. Overcrowding is one of the leading causes of mold and insect infestations.

Another problem is that succulents can do well without much food or water, but they still need both. There is  huernia macrocarpa care , so they may not succeed. Pick out your succulents individually from a crowded arrangement and give them each their own mini desert dunes.

Growing Impractical Types
Saguaros grow indoors are very hard to resist, but please don't. Even when their flowers are pretty or they have beguiling forms, some wild things just aren't meant to be tamed. Stick instead to the tough little cookies who will happily live on the windowsill.

When you're working in indoor conditions, Crossula is an excellent choice, as is Sansevieria (also known as Echinacea). snake plant). For another prickly plant, try the Mammillaria (see above) cacti (known for their woolly hair).