caring – CAL Farms Succulents

How to Care for the Crassula Baby Necklace

February 3, 2021February 3, 2021by Giancarlo Perlas

What’s the first thing that comes into your mind when you hear the word “babies”? They are adorable and cute little creatures. These are the things that you can associate with Crassula Baby Necklace succulent plants.

The Crassula Baby Necklace belongs in the Crassulaceae or Stonecrop family. It is also known for its other names such as Chinese jade, vine baby necklace, and worm plant. By now you must have figured out that, as the names say, the plant has an elongated shape. However, that’s not always the case. The succulent actually starts really small but it can grow up to a foot tall upon maturity. It has puffy green leaves with red tips that are stacked on top of each other like a bead or necklace. White flowers bloom from the plant during late spring to early summer too.

Here are the things you must remember if you want to make sure that your Crassula Baby Necklace grows in tiptop shape:

Temperature

The Crassula genus of succulents can be found in many parts of the world but the ones usually bought by collectors and people fond of gardening mostly come from South Africa. Winters in the region can be as low as 59 degrees Fahrenheit. Summers can be as warm as 68 degrees Fahrenheit but there are times when the climate can go scorching hot when the desert air from the eastern part is blown towards it.

Basing on its natural habitat, it is safe to assume that the Crassula Baby Necklace can thrive within the mentioned temperatures, which makes it a good outdoor plant. However, it would be safe to bring it indoors if you start to notice that the low or high temperature outside is damaging your succulent.

Propagation

The Crassula Baby Necklace can be propagated via its offsets, leaf cuttings, or division. The best time to do this is during the warm season.

The easiest way to propagate the succulent plant is thru its offsets and division, but if you are looking to maximize your output, simply do it using its leaf cuttings. For this process, carefully cut a leaf using a clean pair of scissors or a cutter. Place the leaf in a dish and pour a potting mix over it. When it starts rooting, transfer it into a pot with well-draining soil and drainage at the bottom.

Watering

The Crassula Baby Necklace only requires little water, and overwatering can result in wilting. It is recommended to water the plant only once a week during summer and once every three weeks during winter.

Pest Extermination

This succulent is susceptible to pest infestation, particularly mealybugs. These pests can reproduce really fast, and not only will they drain your plant of its needed nutrients, but they also have the tendency to dig their way into the flesh of the plant. These may cause the plant to decay over time.

These pale white insects can be easily removed using running water or a brush with soft bristles. For serious infestation problems, use pesticides or better cut the infected portion. A more detailed discussion on how to remove mealybugs from your succulent plants can be found here.

5 Tips On Caring For Succulents in Winter

July 25, 2018July 25, 2018by Giancarlo Perlas

When the temperature drops to below 30 degrees Fahrenheit, it might be a signal for you to bring your succulent plants indoors. This will allow the plants like CAL Farms 2″ Beautiful Assorted Variety Succulents to grow healthily without being subjected to the harsh weather conditions that winter brings. Though you can choose to grow cold-hardy succulents if you live in areas that have cold weather all-year-round, the lack of diversity might bore you.

Start deciding which succulent plants you want to bring in around August or September. Of course, transferring your plants inside is not as easy as it sounds. We don’t have as much space indoors as we have outdoors and it might even be a logical nightmare to bring the plants indoors, water them there, and find enough sunlight for them.

Here are 5 tips on providing proper care to your succulents in winter:

1. Water the Plants Outside Before Bringing Them In

It will be a hassle to water the plants indoors because where will the water go once it drains? It will take a lot of your time to bring the plants to the sink and wait for them to stop dripping. What you can do is to water them outside for one last time before bringing them indoors. That way, you’ve saved one water cycle and your house will stay nice and dry.

2. Use a Well-Draining Soil

To make it easier for the plants to transition from your outdoor garden to the insides of your home, you must use a well-draining soil and ensure that your container has drainage holes. Succulents will grow better indoors if they have the right soil and the right container. You can mix your own well-draining soil or you can use some premixed ones, so you won’t have to slave for hours finding the right balance.

3. Prepare the Pot for Inside Use

You are not only bringing the succulents inside, you’re bringing the pots and containers, too. Prepare the pots by removing any leaves or debris from the pot. If the pots and containers have dried out leaves in them, remove those and reapply your top dressing. This will make sure that the pot looks nice; as if it is new again.

4. Use the Right Amount of Water

Many succulents are dormant during the winter, so they don’t really need that much water. Some can grow actively and demand less attention during the winter. Isn’t that the best? Before winter even comes, you need to check the variety of succulents you have, so you can read about the best way to care for them during the season. If your succulents grow during the winter, they will most likely need water more often. But keep in mind that the general rule is to water the plants only when the soil is completely dried.

5. Get Plenty of Sunlight

The most difficult thing to provide to your plants during the winter is sunlight. Place your succulents near a window that gets the most light. Ideally, the window should get the brightest light all day. The winter days are shorter, so you need to make sure that the succulents are exposed to whatever kind of sunlight there is for at least six hours a day. You can also use grow lights, though that will be a lot of work.

How to Successfully Take Care of Succulent Plants in Winter

September 30, 2017by Giancarlo Perlas

Many people don’t consider the rising and dropping temperatures in their areas when they decide to take care of succulent plants. This could be your biggest mistake. In order to better take care and maintain these plants, you have to understand that subjecting them to varying degrees of temperature will invariably affect their growth and their aesthetics.

Basically, there are winter-hardy plants, which means these succulents can take care of themselves even in the lowest of temperatures. If you have Sedum (Sedum sp.), Hens and Chicks (Sempervivum sp.), Ice Plant (Delosperma sp.), Lewisia (Lewisia sp.), or Yucca (Yucca sp.) in your collection, there is no need to worry at all. You may notice them wither, shrink, and change color during the colder months, but this is part of their process in preparation for the winter temperature.

For less hardy varieties of succulent plants, the problem remains to be their capacity to survive in the combination of cold weather and wet and soggy soil. One of the few true enemies of succulent plants like CAL Farms 20 of 2” Beautiful Rosettes Succulents is wet soil, and this is not impossible during the winter season because the land and the surroundings are wet with melted snow and rain.

Don’t fret, though, because succulent plants can still live through the winter season as long as you can keep the soil somehow dry. Here are some other tips on how you can take care of succulent plants in winter at freezing temperatures:

1. Keep the soil dry.

When you are about to enter the winter season, you should keep the soil dry by not supplementing with water and feeding around fall. Remember that once the winter season starts, there is a very good chance that the air, the soil, and the surroundings will be damp and moist. This is certainly not something succulent plants need. Since they hate too much water, feeding them with it when the soil they are planted in is about to be damp and moist will not help with their health.

2. Make sure of adequate air circulation.

Place the succulent plants in areas where they can get as much air as possible. Prevent putting them in dark, dingy, and cramped spaces because they won’t be able to grow and survive the cold temperature there. Adequate air circulation means there is enough “room” for your plants to breath.

3. Put the plants in sheltered areas.

If your winter season is a rainy one, it is best to look for a shaded area where you can place your succulent plants. There might be a sunny location in your porch. This is a good place for your succulents because they can get the needed vitamins from the sun even amid the harsh conditions of winter.

4. Improve the soil’s drainage.

All succulent plants require the kind of soil with good drainage. This means that your succulents’ soil must have proper drainage in order for the soil not to get soggy and wet. You need to improve the conditions of your succulents’ soil because this can determine the overall health of the plant. Not only that, during the colder months, a soil with proper drainage will allow the succulents to survive. You can add sand or Perma-Till to improve the drainage conditions of the soil.