SUCCULENT PLANT CARE GUIDE
WATER : Succulents soak up lots of water, they love it and store a lot of it in their bodies to cope with dry periods. If their soil and roots sit permanently in too much water they will eventually rot though, so drainage (if you like to flood a plant) is important. If your succulents are without water for a while (let’s say a dry summer) in the garden or in big pots they’ll cope with this fine. You’ll notice colour changes in their appearance and we call this being ‘stressed’. This is fine and actually a lot of succulents are at their most spectacular when in this state. Come autumn and some consistent rain they’ll plump up again and take on more green colouring as they store up again to face another summer next year.
Inside in pots you must allow the soil to become totally dry between waters. If you feel that you have overwatered in a pot without drainage you can either sit the pot into a hot sunny spot to evaporate some of the water or just tilt the pot and tip the excess out.
LIGHT : Love it. Full sun is best and you’ll have your varieties flowing amazingly year round.
LOCATION : Most succulents grow and spread quickly in the garden. For varieties in pots the size of the pot will help to slow the growth to an appropriate size for that vessel. If you want your plants to grow you can keep increasing the pot size (and the space for them to grow). Garden, deck, pots, indoors (with enough light) these fellows are totally versatile.
TEMPERATURE : Succulents love our warm summers grow amazingly in our cool Victorian winters. Towards the end of winter you may notice little marks on their leaves, this can happen occasionally when we get frosts, is purely cosmetic, and doesn’t affect the health of the plant. New growth in spring will come through without these marks and by summer again they’ll be magnificent.