Backyard Gardening

By Carol Lugg

My New Year’s Resolution is to be a better succulent parent. These easy-to-grow indoor plants seem to come into my home with a determined goal of making me look like a bad parent. While parents of the late forties and fifties took to Dr. Spock to ramp up their parenting skills, I decided that researching the care and maintenance of indoor succulents would be a good start to the New Year with a resolution of raising healthy, happy succulents topping my list of resolutions for 2024. 

Gardeners all share the same aspiration for the indoor plants that are either purchased or gifted to them. The new parents hope to raise a plant that will provide joy in their home. When their bundle of joy arrives home, they begin making plans for proper care, such as finding the right location, checking humidity levels, and setting up a watering maintenance schedule. As the plant matures, the new parents look forward to the time when they can share the offspring produced by the healthy and happy plant with others. However, in my case, the sickly succulents are in need of emergency care to resuscitate the sick and restore them to good health. 

After researching the care and maintenance of succulents, I discovered that my parenting flaw was that I cared too much. That’s right, succulents thrive on neglect. Providing succulents with the same care I was providing for my other indoor plants was not parenting based on individual needs. The succulents needed me to check in with them from time to time, foregoing the weekly watering of my other indoor plants, as the succulents are capable of storing their own water and only needed me to ensure they were receiving enough sun to keep them happy. As succulents have the ability to store water in their leaves, stems, and roots, these plants are able to take care of themselves for an extended time, all the while improving air quality and elevating our daily moods. 

There is a wide variety of succulents available, and while each may have its own unique form, all succulents share a love for dry soil and being placed in a sunny window where they can receive at least 6 hours of light per day. While these two simple rules of thumb work well for raising healthy, happy succulents, another good parenting tip is to plant them in a pot with a drainage hole. When watering, water thoroughly or until water drains out of the hole, and if you use a catchpot, don’t let excess water remain, or you run the risk of root decay.  You can also water your succulents by placing the pot in a pan of water and waiting until the wicking action pulls water to the top and the soil is wet. Remove the pot from the pan of water and return the plant to its sunny location. Bottom watering encourages stronger root growth and reduces the risk of allowing the plant’s roots to sit in water. A water regimen of every 2 to 3 weeks, or when you notice the soil has dried out, ought to keep your succulents in good health (https://sites.psu.edu/plantsgo/2021/09/24/grow-the-best-a-how-to-guide-on-succulent-care/). 

When potting succulents, you can purchase a growing medium specifically for succulents, or if you’d rather, you can mix potting soil and coarse sand together, with equal parts of each. Again, while caring for your other indoor plants, remember that your succulents don’t need as much attention as your other plants. Indoor plants should be fertilized only in the warmer months (May- October), but your succulents should receive a diluted fertilization at half the rate of your other plants. Succulents can be moved outside in the summer, choosing a sunny location that satisfies their light needs, but make the move gradually and steadily increase their sunlight exposure, avoiding locations that receive the hot, mid-day sun. During the summer, the watering regiment will need to ramp up, likely needing at least a weekly watering (https://extension.wvu.edu/lawn-gardening-pests/indoor-plants/succulents-101). 

While the winter drabs may have us longing for some color, there are succulent varieties that produce flowers. Kalanchoe blossfeldiana is a popular houseplant from the succulent genus that is popular to give or receive around the holidays. This plant requires the basic succulent care of 6 or more hours of sunlight with care taken not to overwater. These plants can be moved outdoors, and if the plant has become leggy, you can cut it back, leaving about half the plant. Fertilize and care for the plant during its active growing season, moving it back indoors around Labor Day.  To produce a holiday bloom the following year, the plant requires long periods of darkness for flowers to develop. The process of long periods of darkness (14 hours or so) should begin in mid-September, with the remaining 10 hours of a 24-hour day spent in bright, indirect light (https://ipm.missouri.edu/MEG/2017/1/Kalanchoe/). 

If you are looking to add succulents to your indoor garden but the light demands of most succulents are deterring you, consider a plant from the genus Dracaena, formerly in the genus Sansevieria. Succulents from this genus, commonly called mother-in-law’s tongue or snake plant, can thrive on fewer hours of sun, and there are many species, with even more cultivars, creating an opportunity to design an indoor collection.  Dracaena trifasciata has several cultivars, ranging from the dwarf Dracaena trifasciata ‘Golden Hahnii’, which tops out at 7 inches in height with gold bands providing interesting color, to the Dracaena trifasciata ‘Bantel’s Sensation’ which grows to 36 inches and will provide indoor interest with its vertical white striped leaves 

(https://extension.psu.edu/snake-plant-a-forgiving-low-maintenance-houseplant). As snake plants are toxic to dogs and cats, be sure to keep your snake plants out of reach or away from curious pets. 

If you think succulent parenting fits your gardening style, attend the Garden Sense Symposium on Saturday, January 20th. Sharon Miller will discuss growing and raising succulents, followed by a hands-on workshop where you’ll be potting up succulents to take home. The symposium will feature Dr.Mihail Kantor, a noted expert on nematodes. Dr. Kantor will discuss the microscopic worms living in our soil, presenting both the beneficial nematodes as well as those that can harm plant life. Mr. Tom Butzler, Extension Educator for Clinton County, will present on maintenance and care of boxwoods. The event, hosted by the Clinton County Master Gardeners, will begin at 9 am and will be held at the Clinton County Cooperative Extension Office, 47 Cooperation Lane, Mill Hall. Refreshments and ample parking is provided. 

Carol Lugg became a Penn State Extension Master Gardener in March 2022. She can be reached at clintonmg@psu.edu or the Clinton County Master Gardener Hotline at (570) 858-0198.