Succulents are having a heyday! These cute little plants are popping up everywhere and have become the darling plant of home decorators. Succulents are affordable, stylish, and super easy to care for. Plus, with so many different shapes and color varieties, they’re fun to collect. If you want to add charming succulents to your home or office, review the below essential guide to growing and caring for succulents from the experts at Morningside Florist.
What Makes Succulents Different from Other Plants?
The primary difference between succulents and other plants is their leaves. Most plants have thin, delicate, pliable leaves, but succulents have thick, plump leaves that grow in a variety of shapes, such as spiky, round, pointy, and spherical. Along with their roots and stems, succulent’s leaves store water allowing the plant to survive in harsh, dry climates.
Why You Should Have Succulents in Your Home
In addition to being super cute, succulents are also good to have around for a number of reasons. For example, they’ve been shown to increase concentration and productivity by creating a calming atmosphere, and they help regulate indoor humidity. The roots of a succulent draw air into the soil and convert harmful air pollutants, like VOCs, into nutrients. In addition to purifying the air, succulents continuously replenish it with fresh oxygen.
Popular Decorative Succulents
Echeveria
Echeveria succulents have a starburst shape with rows of leaves creating a radiating pattern. Echeveria plants come in a variety of colors and different shaped leaves, which make for a colorful selection to choose from. They’re often used in succulent gardens, planted on their own, and are even a popular accent in modern floral designs. If you receive an echeveria in a floral arrangement, don’t throw it away when the flowers are spent. Pot it. It will grow roots, and then you will be able to enjoy its beauty for years to come.
Succulents – Echeveria
Tom Thumb Crassula
The Tom Thumb crassula is one of several varieties of crassula. This one is especially beautiful because, like a plant from a fairy tale, it has vibrant green rosettes that sprout on top of one another, creating lovely spiraling columns.
Succulent – Crassula
Kalanchoe
Kalanchoe is a colorful, cheerful succulent. They have green, paddle-shaped leaves and sprout clusters of delicate flowers in vibrant shades of pink, red, yellow, orange, and white. Kalanchoes start blooming in autumn and continue until spring, making them a great way to brighten winter’s shorter days.
Orange Kalanchoe
Tips for Growing Indoor Succulents
The key to growing healthy indoor succulents is to leave them alone most of the time. They don’t require much water, nor do they need pruning.
Put succulents in a container with adequate drainage and use a low-nutrient potting mix designed for cacti and succulents. Place the container in a location that receives plenty of sunlight and rotate it periodically to encourage even growth.
When watering your succulents, don’t be afraid to soak the soil, but make sure all the excess water is able to drain. Letting a succulent sit in standing water will cause the plant to rot and die. Make sure the soil dries completely before watering again.
Succulent leaves that turn yellow or brown indicate a stressed plant. This usually occurs due to over-watering but can indicate a thirsty plant. Check the soil’s moisture and water if dry, or leave it to dry out if wet.
