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Succulents are mostly preferred because they please visitors and even family members. Succulents can grow both indoors and outdoors as long as they are taken care of well. Succulents include cacti which many people grow. Moreover, succulents depend on other plant hosts.
Succulent plants have certain features that help them survive in a dry environment without withering. Once you’ve decided to grow succulents inside, ensure you expose the plants to light, soil, less water, etc.
The easiest succulent plants you can grow indoors include; aloe Vera, Christmas cactus, Penda plant, Jade Plant, Zebra Cactus, and Pencil Cactus.
Can succulents grow and live inside?
Succulents, such as cacti, can grow and survive indoor conditions. Succulents have a feature of surviving dry indoor conditions, but they can hardly survive unless the room is dried using a dry indoor air method during winter.
Succulents have fleshy leaves throughout as long as they are not exposed to winter conditions. Fleshy leaves help them survive in a dry environment. Also, the succulents have thick stems and enlarge roots that allow the plant to store water which helps it survive dry conditions.
However, when plants are exposed to water or winter season, the thick stems and leaves start rotting due to much water in the plant.
Indoor succulent care
Lighting Requirements for Succulents
To keep your succulent plant growing and surviving, find locations where there is light. Place your plant outside once there is sunlight or a warmer place. You can alternate the plant positioning as long as there is sunlight.
For your small succulent plants, ensure you protect them from too much sunlight, which is more than 90 degrees Celsius, to avoid damaging small succulent plants.
However, if your succulent plants are big enough, expose them to as much sunlight as possible and also remember to use less water when watering them to avoid killing the plants.
Check your plants daily and rotate them to get direct sunlight. If you don’t rotate the succulent plants, they grow to lean on one side instead of growing straight. Rotate them to ensure each part accesses light.
Not enough light? Check out our list of the best grow light for succulents.
Watering Requirements for Succulents
The use of too much water kills your succulent plants. Overwatering your succulent plants makes them start rotting slowly until they ultimately die. Therefore, ensure you use little water when watering the plants to prevent them from withering because they store their water in the thick stems and enlarged leaves.
Moreover, check your succulent plants frequently to see if they require any watering. Examine if your succulent plants have the following signs:
- Succulent plant leaves shrinking or falling off from the plant. Once to identify such a sign, water your plants to keep them fresh.
- Leaves become dull. Observe if the shiny leaves have changed the appearance into dull. Water the plant and wait for even a day and see if there are any changes. Dull leaves should begin shining.
- Soil completely dry. Test the plant sand using your fingers to see if it is scorched. If it is dry, it is a sign that your plant will begin withering soon and, therefore, water the plants to prevent them from withering and falling off.
Finally, once you have watered your succulent plants in the container, ensure you drain the container water through the draining holes to prevent succulent plants from staying in the water for an extended period.
Check your succulent plant regularly to see if they require watering. In case your plants show signs of withering, water them well, but don’t overwater them. Leave them to sit for a couple of hours before draining the excess water remaining in the container.
Fertilizing Succulents
Succulent plants grow better when there is bright sunlight, especially during the spring and summer seasons, but also fall faster during cold and rainy seasons, especially during winter seasons. Therefore, light fertilizer on the succulent plant during the spring and summer seasons makes the plants grow strongest.
Further, avoid using fertilizers on the plants during cold or rainy seasons. It is advisable to use a standard house plant fertilizer recommended by any agro vet. Finally, ensure you don’t use too much fertilizer on the plants to avoid damaging them. The chemicals found in the fertilizer can damage the plants if used too much.
Keep Your Succulent Plants Clean
Your succulent plants will automatically collect a lot of dirt, especially dust, on the leaf surfaces. Dust that has accumulated prevents the plants from growing healthy. Therefore, wipe your succulent plant using a damp clean cloth once the dust has accumulated on the surface.
For complex plants such as cactus, you can use a soft paintbrush to remove stubborn stains. Cleaning succulent plants allow them to breathe warm air effectively hence increasing their growth and strength.
Finally, remove all pests that infect your plants by using the recommended spray. Also, get rid of eggs that have accumulated on the soil and the plants. Ensure you use an appropriate spray to avoid damaging the soil and the plants.
Planting Succulents
Soil
Grow your succulent plant using sandy soil. Sandy soil is preferred because it drains water effectively, unlike clay soil. If you cannot access sand soil, try implementing yours by mixing potting soil and the little sandy soil you have. Test the mixture you have created if it drains healthy water using your bare hands. Ensure the potting soil and sand soil you are using are equal to obtain the best mixture for your succulent plants.
Take the mixture and squeeze it firmly. If it falls off, the mixture is suitable for use but if it sticks together, consider putting more sand until the mixture falls off when testing. If still, the mixture sticks together, you must look for sand soil only for your succulent plant.
Need help choosing the right type of soil? Check out our list of best potting soils for succulents.
Succulent plant combination
Planting many succulent plants together increases the growth rate as long as you have selected and combined the plants correctly. Combine plants that grow the same and require the same care needs to reduce the cost of caring for each plant separately.
A succulent plant combination creates a lovely container garden that pleases your guests and decorates your interior home. Finally, ensure you select plants of the same type and which are in good condition. Caring for many succulent plants together is hard, but following the instructions makes your work easier.
Succulent plant containers or dishes
When purchasing a container for your succulent plants, ensure it is transparent to allow light to pass through to the plants. Secondly, ensure the container is not too deep because most succulent plants have shallow roots that don’t extend deep.
Moreover, succulent plants do not survive in a moist environment. Therefore, ensure the container has drain holes to drain excess water remaining after watering the plant.
Conclusion
Succulent plants can grow inside a house as long as they are maintained and well-taken care of. The above information can help you grow succulent plant plants in your home to please house guests. Finally, ensure you follow all the requirements needed to care for your succulent plants.