How to Stop Killing Succulents: Succulent Care and Propagation Guide

Growing Joy with Plants - Wellness Rooted in Nature, Houseplants, Gardening and Plant Care

Maria Failla- Happy Plant Lady and Author of Growing Joy: The Plant Lover's Guide to Cultivating Happiness

Education, How To, Health & Fitness, Mental Health, Home & Garden, Leisure

4.8 • 883 Ratings

🗓️ 6 June 2023

⏱️ 66 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Succulents are beautiful, low-maintenance plants that are perfect for us busy plant parents. They're also total badasses. However, they can be quite tricky to care for if you don't know what you're doing. In this episode, I have invited my “succy” friend Andrea from Justsuccit.com to shed some light on the facts and fiction surrounding succulent care!

In this episode, we learn:

[00:17] Why succulents can mislead and frustrate people
[07:34] How did Andrea become the expert succulent plant lady she is
[08:48] Fascinating geometry of echeveria and other rosette-type succulents
[11:25] How Andrea’s multifaceted business operates
[12:13] Carefully tending to succulents is important due to their specific care needs
[14:09] 3 reasons why you’re killing your succulents
[14:51] Where can you find a fast-draining potting mix for succulents, cacti, and citrus plants?
[17:01] Where can you pre-order garlic to grow your own bulbs and scapes?
[19:26] Why you should try succulents
[19:59] Are lithops considered succulents?
[22:44] How do you stop killing your succulents? (aka succulent care!)
[23:27] #1 Before watering, check the soil
[25:09] Adaptations in succulent leaves that are affected by watering
[26:36] #2 Place your succulents in direct sunlight
[31:23] #3 Beware when your succulents start stretching
[33:46] #4 Place your succulents in fast-draining soil
[35:56] #5 Keeping airflow in check
[38:00] Few ways to propagate your succulent
[38:09] #1 Leaf propagation
[41:13] #2 Stem propagation
[44:20] What are the best practices for removing a fully withered leaf?
[44:44] Plant life parallel: a poetic act of a mother plant nourishing offspring
[48:17] How can you “embrace the succ” and ensure you and your succulent thrive?
[50:54] Most powerful lesson Andrea learned from her succulents

Mentioned in our conversation:

For Andrea's recommended succ care,

check out the full show notes and blog here!

Thank you to our episode sponsors:

Espoma Organic

Make sure your succulents have the right soil and nutrients! Espoma Organic is dedicated to making safe indoor and outdoor gardening products for people, pets, and the planet. They have an amazing variety of high-quality, organic potting mixes, garden soil, fertilizers, and pest control products that are organic and eco-friendly. To top it all off, they have a huge sustainability commitment with a 100% solar powered plant, zero waste manufacturing and eco-friendly packaging.

Visit espoma.com to find your local Espoma dealer or check my Amazon storefront.

Territorial Seed Company

Grow your own garlic! Skip the lines at the garden center and let Territorial Seed Company deliver top-of-the-line, healthy and hardy plants right to your door. They have a great line of pre-grown plants, an expansive seed catalog, and over 40 years of experience delivering the best seeds and plants for everyone's garden. Whether you are looking for leafy veggies, flowers or edible plants in either seed or seedling form, Territorial Seed Company has your back.

Get 10% off by visiting territorialseed.com/growingjoy - discount applied at checkout.

Follow Andrea and JustSuccIt:

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Order my book: Growing Joy: The Plant Lover's Guide to Cultivating Happiness (and Plants) by Maria Failla, Illustrated by Samantha Leung

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Our Sponsors:
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Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	In my opinion, succulents are some of the most problematic plants that are out there when it comes to growing joy with plants because frankly,
0:07.6	they are the plant that has the most false information and bad reputation that misleads people and often puts them onto a journey towards
0:15.1	labeling themselves as a plant killer. Let me explain. I am the perfect example of why
0:20.6	succulents can mislead you. Back in my plant killer days, succulents were commonly talked about
0:26.0	as one of the easiest plants to take care of something you couldn't even kill if you tried.
0:30.0	Well, I brought succulents home, had no idea how to care for them, mistakenly put them in the wrong environment, and obviously they died.
0:38.5	When I felt that pain of failure of not just killing a plant, but killing a plant that everyone touted as being
0:43.7	impossible to kill.
0:45.2	I told myself that plants weren't for me and I swore them off for another three years and I have
0:49.5	heard this story over and over and over again from members of our community or even just people that I meet.
0:55.5	Usually when I'm out at a party or at a conference and I meet people and I tell them I have a podcast about
0:59.6	houseplants they always respond with one of two answers. One, oh my God, I love house plants, where can I listen to it?
1:05.3	Or two, well gosh, I really need your podcast
1:08.4	because I can't even keep a succulent alive.
1:11.0	Well, plan friend, of course you probably can't keep a succulent alive. Well, plan, friend, of course you probably can't keep a succulent alive.
1:15.1	They're super tricky.
1:16.7	In order to have them thrive indoors, you need very specific lighting and you need a very specific
1:22.2	indoor environment that a lot of people don't have.
1:24.0	But my sweet plant friends there's hope.
1:27.0	Once you figure out that plant's needs, if you give it the light and the laid-back relationship
1:31.0	that that succulent and cacti thrives under, you can have a glorious collection
1:35.3	of these cutie little chubby succulent boys and cacti ladies in your collection.
	...

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