A lush greenery spritz in any room may make it appear fresh and welcoming. Indoor succulents have grown quite popular in recent years.
Succulents, as adorable as they are, are not usually the ideal indoor house plants. This does not, however, preclude anyone from growing them.
Indoor plants also have the added benefit of filtering the air and making the environment healthier. Let’s start by defining succulents.
Caring For Your Indoor Succulents
An Overview of Succulents
Water-storing shrubs with fleshy, swollen leaves and/or swelling stems are known as succulents. Succulent is derived from the Latin term succus, which means juice or sap.
Succulents are a diversified category of plants with a wide range of shapes, colors, and flowers. Succulents are frequently associated with arid environments like deserts, although they may also be found in forests, high alpine locations, beaches, and dry tropical places.
Succulents and cacti are often combined and sometimes separated, causing some perplexity. Cacti are a distinct subsection of the succulent family.
Cactaceae, or the cactus family, is one of the world’s biggest succulent house plant families.
They have a diverse selection of ecosystems and are frequently found in otherwise unoccupied areas. The majority are found in arid environments, deserts, and semi-deserts from Africa to North and South America; some are found in mountainous areas and rainforests.
Succulents may be found almost anywhere. When you wish to grow succulents inside, below are key aspects you should keep in mind to ensure that they thrive.
9 Tips To Care For Your Succulents
We’ll go through what you can do to keep your indoor succulents healthy and what you should stay away from. Whether you’re new to the succulent scene or a seasoned pro, we have something for everyone here.
If you’re new to succulents, follow these steps to guarantee that your new plants thrive and are properly cared for.
Water The Plant
Watering is the most arduous aspect of keeping indoor succulents alive for novice succulent gardeners. Depending on the season, the volume of water succulents requires changes.
There are a few things to bear in mind, though, because the soil must dry quickly. Drainage space should be adequate in the plant pot, and the potting mixture should have big particles and adequate ventilation to dry fast.
Indoor succulents must be watered throughout the growing season whenever their soil completely dries up, and excess water should be avoided as succulents’ vitality improves when their roots have time to dry between waterings.
Succulents may go for weeks without watering because their leaves and stems hold a lot of water. Indoor succulents can survive for a time if they are minimally watered, but if you want them to flourish, you must follow the “soak and dry” method.
If your succulent house plants are not in direct sunlight, you may need to water them even less frequently. If your succulent’s newest or uppermost leaves are shriveling, be wary of fading leaves. If it’s simply the ones around the bottom of the stem that are close to the ground, you shouldn’t be concerned.
Sunlight Necessities
Indoor succulents require a minimum of six hours of direct sunlight every day. If you’re looking after succulents outside, this is a simple task.
Older succulents should get approximately six hours of direct sunlight first thing every morning, then moderate shade for the rest of the day. You’ll want to keep the succulents as close to a window as possible.
Low-light succulents, like snake plants and aloe vera, are also available. If direct placement beside a window isn’t practical, consider succulent houseplants that grow in shadow and low light.
Because indoor succulents incline toward the light, turning them will help plants stand upright. Freshly planted propagating succulents can blister in direct sunlight, so you might have to gradually expose them to the full sun or shade them with a transparent curtain.
Plants with insufficient light have reduced development. Your plants may grow slower indoors, which may be a good way to control their growth.
Artificial lights may mimic sunshine and give the nutrients that succulent houseplants require. You must select the most appropriate artificial light for the indoor plant’s requirements.
Grow lights are artificial lights that mimic the sun’s rays and stimulate photosynthesis in plants. Grow lights are used as extra illumination or as the major light source for the plants when there isn’t enough sunlight seeping in.
Pay Attention To The Containers
Whether you’re carrying the succulent home from a nursery or growing it yourself, the appropriate container and potting soil may make all the difference. Succulents have an unfavorable tendency to be in wet soil; therefore, drainage is essential to avoid rotting.
A drainage hole should be included in your container to let the excess water drain. Your succulent planter should feature a drainage hole for an outdoor succulent.
Drainage allows moisture to leave, allowing the bottom and soil to dry out and avoid rotting. Aeration can be improved by adding perlite or pumice to some potting mixes.
Glass containers, for example, aren’t the best long-term potting option for indoor succulents. They won’t thrive in damp soil, so a glass jar or terrarium with no drainage holes isn’t going to make the succulent happy.
Beginners should use terra-cotta pots. Should you have an indoor succulent, well-draining soil can be used instead of conventional soil since it is coarser, enabling more air to pass through and increasing evaporation rather than requiring to be drained.
If at all possible, avoid using glass unless you are very familiar with your succulent and are effective in order to water it. There are multiple articles explaining why terra cotta and coated ceramics are my preferred indoor pots.
Inspect Your Plants
Most indoor succulents will inevitably accumulate dust on their surfaces, which might stifle their development.
Bugs are normally not an issue if you utilize healthy practices such as indoor house plants for your succulents, such as adequate watering, well-draining soil, light, and ventilation. Inside, however, a succulent is more vulnerable to pests than outside.
Gnats and mealybugs are drawn to moist soil and fertilizer, making them unwanted visitors to your indoor succulents. Check your plants for gnats or mealybugs regularly; these insects indicate that your plants have been overwatered or fertilized.
They consume the fluids of their host organism and can produce hundreds of eggs, causing long-term damage to your plant.
How do you look after it? Mealybugs and their eggs may be effectively killed by spraying and rubbing alcohol on the foliage or soil of the succulent. Gnats may usually be avoided if you use a well-draining soil mix and let your soil dry out between waterings.
If you’re taking a succulent home from the nursery, inspect the branches and soil first to help ensure there are no bugs.
Understand The Soil You Are Using
If you use the wrong type of soil, you’ll spend a lot of time troubleshooting care for indoor succulent complications. Fertilization is beneficial to even low-maintenance desert plants.
Succulents require a different type of soil than other plants to survive. Several elements determine the best soil for healthy, attractive plants, whether indoors or out. It’s critical to use the correct succulent potting mix.
For a succulent, good soil achieves three things: It offers stability, nutrients, and provides moisture. To dig in and gain a hold for stability, the roots require soil with substance. It is a source of nutrients, mostly nitrogen and phosphorus. It absorbs and provides moisture to the plant. Water is held in different soil types for varying amounts of time.
Root rot is the most serious hazard to succulent life. It affects the plant’s major water and nutrient absorption pathway, causing it to become weak and shriveled.
To minimize this, give your succulents a boost a couple of times a year using a diluted, water-soluble all-purpose fertilizer. It’s not required, but apply some fertilizer if your soil seems like it might use some help.
Growth and rot are both supported by the correct ratio of natural to mineral material. This will also enable you to water your succulents carefully.
Depending on the climatic circumstances and the kinds cultivated, the mineral content might range from 40% to 80% by volume. Most experts advise against using nitrogen-rich fertilizers and compost.
However, a minority do advocate applying a balanced fertilizer once a month.
Fertilize Succulents In The Summer
Feeding your succulent plant immediately during and throughout its growing season is necessary. Propagating succulents don’t require much fertilizer; however, you may give them modest feedings throughout the springtime and summertime growing seasons.
According to experts, fertilizing should be done from early spring through late summer. If you own a plant that blooms in the winter, fertilize it at that time.
Indoor succulents require roughly half the amount of liquid fertilizer specified on the package. It doesn’t matter what brand you choose; the ratios of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium should all be the same.
Avoid over-fertilizing your succulent since it will grow too rapidly and become weak. Overfertilization causes additional growth to be weak and spindly, which encourages the dreaded etiolation that we all strive to avoid.
Other experts point out that nurseries nourish with every watering throughout the development phase, a practice known as fertigation, in which a small quantity of food is introduced into the irrigation system.
Understand The Right Succulent For You
There are dozens of distinct types, and almost anybody, including beginners, can grow them. You’ll want to choose numerous different plants according to how you will care for succulents and where you reside.
Haworthia fasciata, for example, is an excellent choice for indoor gardeners. It’s crucial to get succulents from local nurseries or farmers’ markets if you already have them. They’re usually of better quality and are less prone to be overwatered.
Avoid buying damaged plants from a neighborhood store. This implies there will be no lumps, scars, bugs, or squishy areas. You may gently nudge the leaves to keep them from falling off.
Make sure you handle it gently, although this is one of the first symptoms that a succulent is being overwatered. The leaves have to be stiff, not mushy or squishy. Any succulent you see that has been painted should be avoided.
Purchasing them is a terrible idea. They may appear to be entertaining, but in the long run, a healthy bush that has not been painted will develop faster without being contagious.
Don’t Throw Away Fallen Leaves
As the plant grows and generates new leaves from the center, the bottom leaves eventually wither and die. Dead leaves are readily removed or will fall off on their own. Succulents are experts of propagation, and lost leaves can grow a completely new plant.
Alternatively, take any fallen leaves from the succulents or remove any dead leaves that have fallen into the soil to keep insects and pests out.
If the leaves are falling off due to natural causes, you may utilize them to make organic manure for your plants. This may be the greatest technique to make use of the fallen leaves.
Leave the leaves to be callous over the area where it was linked to the parent plant for a few days. Then, after the soil is dry, spread it atop the layer of the soil of the plant and spritz with water.
Monitor The Temperature
Indoor succulents enjoy a moderate climate with temperatures spanning from 60°F to 80°F. Some people can withstand temperatures as low as 40°F and as high as 90°F.
Extreme temperatures are occasionally used by gardeners to “stress” their succulents into changing color. High temperatures of 80°F to 90°F can assist many succulents, especially soft succulents, preserve their vivid hues. Here’s how to keep the temperature consistent through the various seasons:
Summer
The combination of high temperatures and prolonged sun exposure in the summer can cause sunburn in your succulents, causing damage to both the leaves and root systems.
You should move your indoor succulents to a shady place or wrap them with covers during the warmest hours of the day.
Winter
In the winter, maintain the temperature above freezing to prevent the indoor succulents from frost damage. You may accomplish this by covering them with a cloth or bringing them inside.
Some cold-hardy plants, such as Sempervivum, can resist frost and thrive in temperatures as low as 30°F, but tropical plants, such as Euphorbia and Lithops, require at least 50°F.
The Best Indoor Succulents
If you’re a rookie plant parent, here are some essential and gorgeous indoor succulents to start your collection with. They’re easy to find in garden stores and nurseries, and they adapt well to indoor living.
Burro’s Tail
Burro’s tail is a Mexican native with stout trailing stems that work well in hanging baskets. The delicate leaves of this Mexico native thrive in bright light, although full sunlight can burn them.
Blooms are uncommon, but your burro’s tail may surprise anyone with pink or crimson blooms in the summer if you’re lucky.
Christmas Cactus
The Christmas cactus is a one-of-a-kind flowering succulent with long, draped stems and bright blooms. These plants require additional watering than your normal succulent because they are from a tropical area.
During the winter, keep the plant dry. Be cautious when it’s at the bud stage since even minor overwatering or dehydration might cause buds to drop.
Snake Plant
Their sword-like leaves are dark green with yellow margins and pale green streaks. Snake plants are great indoor plants because they can absorb toxins like formaldehyde and benzene from the air.
A snake plant, which is tall and thin, is ideal for adding architectural interest to a tiny area. Snake plants don’t regularly develop, although fragrant, tubular white blossoms might appear every couple of years.
Panda Plant
Pandas have fluffy, pale green leaves featuring brown ends and margins that are endemic to Madagascar. It is a good idea to place the panda plant in a location that receives brilliant indirect light and a limited amount of time of direct sunshine.
Water the plant rarely and allow it to dry between waterings. The silver-grey hair on this plant gives it a fuzzy appearance; the leaves are plump like all other succulents and have a rusty tint on the margins; and, like many other kalanchoe plants, it produces flowers.
String of Pearls
The string of pearls is a beautiful trailing houseplant that looks great in hanging baskets inside. The string of pearls is an excellent trailing houseplant that can be grown in a variety of containers.
Cultivating a string of pearls or beads is similar to growing other indoor succulent houseplants. Water carefully; this plant requires little water, but moderate watering is essential in hotter climates.
Conclusion
Indoor succulents have remarkable textures thanks to their strong, unique leaf forms, which turn them into natural artworks for interior spaces.
Since they are suited to withstand dry conditions, they make excellent indoor plants. Indoor succulents are low-maintenance houseplants that are simple to care for, provided you understand how to do it properly.
After reading this post, you are now more equipped to care for your indoor succulents inside!
This was to assist you in avoiding becoming unduly worried. Admittedly, indoor succulent house plant gardening is meant to be relaxing and enjoyable.
Interested in other kinds of plants? Don’t worry, we have a whole review on silk plants which are another easy alternative!
