- Repot your succulents in well-draining potting soil—anything with “cactus” on the bag will do! Any nearby hardware or gardening store will have this. Here is an illustration of cactus dirt.
- Pick a pot with a bottom drainage hole. Before adding the cactus soil, add a layer of rock if the pot of your dreams lacks drainage holes.
- Fill your pot with cactus dirt about 3/4 of the way up.
- To remove your succulent’s soil from its plastic container, gently squeeze the sides of the pot to release the soil.
- Remove any remaining soil from your succulent’s roots by gently crumbling it.
- After setting the succulent in its new pot, top out the pot with extra dirt to keep it in place.
- Now is an excellent time to water your succulent if you haven’t in a while. If you’re unsure, give your succulent a week or so to adjust to its new environment before watering. Then, wait until the soil is fully dry before watering it once more (usually about two weeks).
After purchasing, do I need to repot my succulents?
Once you get a new plant from the store, do you repot your plant or do you keep it in the same pot indefinitely? In fact, repotting your newly acquired plants as soon as you can is a smart idea.
Why repeating is a wise concept is as follows:
- Put that plant in a well-draining potting mix made for succulents and cacti. Succulents and cacti shouldn’t grow in potting soil that retains too much water, which happens to be the case frequently. The plants’ long-term health will be ensured by removing them from the nursery soil and placing them in a more suitable one.
- When repotting, you can give the plant a closer look to check on its health. To determine whether the plant’s root system is healthy, you can inspect it. If necessary, you can also remove any dead or decaying roots. Dead or dried leaves can also be removed.
- You can also look inside the plant for insects and pests that might be there and could contaminate your other plants if ignored. To prevent the infestation from spreading to your other plants, treat and isolate the plant as soon as you notice pests there.
- You can select a better pot or planter. Choosing a pot or container to house the plants in is one of the things I enjoy most about repotting. A container that is a few inches larger than the nursery pot it was originally planted in is ideal so that the plant has space to grow but is not so large that you run the risk of the plant spending too much time in moist soil. It’s acceptable for some folks to reuse the same nursery pot, but you can also get creative with your selections.
How can I move my succulents?
Let’s start by going over a couple of the most popular justifications for replanting succulents.
1.) You need to plant the succulents you purchased in the ground or a planter.
2. You want to plant the succulents you propagated.
3. The present container can no longer hold your succulents.
Whatever your motivation, if you use the advice below, your succulents should flourish!
Step 1: Remove all the dirt from the roots.
It’s crucial to remove the dirt from the succulent before transferring it from another pot or digging it out from the ground.
Purchasing succulents that have not been established in potting soil appropriate for succulents is quite usual.
When you acquire a succulent, you frequently discover that all the soil is glued to the roots when you pull it out of the pot, as shown in the image below.
If there isn’t adequate drainage, the soil may eventually become saturated for an extended period of time, which can lead to root rot.
Step 2: Break up roots if needed.
Sometimes a succulent will have enormous root balls that are all clumped together when you remove it from a pot.
If so, breaking them up or even removing portions of the roots before replanting is totally OK.
Step 3: Choose a pot with drainage or an area in the ground with well-draining soil.
The most crucial aspect of any container you use to grow succulents is whether or not it includes drainage holes.
You can drill your own drainage holes if you locate a pot you like but it lacks them. Here is how to drill your own drain holes.
After transplanting succulents, should I water them?
1. To get started, fill your new planter 3/4 full with pre-mixed succulent or cactus soil, which is often available at any nearby nursery or home improvement store. You can combine standard potting soil and perlite in equal amounts to try making your own soil. Make sure the planter is at least 2″ wider than the diameter of the succulent if you are relocating it to a larger container. Your succulent will have plenty of room to expand and become stable as a result.
2. Remove the succulent from its present container and gently separate the roots. To loosen the roots and remove the soil, you can “tickle” them from the bottom. Consider this phase as a pleasant stretch for the roots. They can stabilize in a larger pot and acclimate to their new soil by being spread out and lengthened. This is the ideal time to remove any dead leaves and brush away any dead roots from the plant’s base. While doing this, be careful to brush away any old or extra dirt.
3. To support the plant, dig a small hole in the fresh dirt, lay the succulent in it, and then gently cover the roots with extra potting soil. Don’t cover any leaves or allow them lay on top of the soil; only add enough to cover the plant’s base. As a result of the leaves absorbing too much moisture from the soil, this will cause them to rot.
4. After the plant has stabilized, you can add colored rocks, pebbles, or sand to give your new succulent plant in a pot a unique touch. Make sure the material drains adequately if you do add something on top so that water can reach the soil underneath.
5. In this case, the situation dictates how to water. Depending on the type of plant and when it was last watered, a succulent that has been repotted may require different first watering. However, it is typically advised to hold off on watering your succulent for at least a week following repotting. Make sure the soil is dry before giving it a good soaking without drowning it.
6. Enjoy your succulent in a new pot! Depending on your environment, sunlight, etc., water your succulent once per week to three weeks to keep it healthy. Water should be applied when the soil is dry. Leave it alone until it dries if it is still wet. They are tough little plants, so try different things to see what works best for your new addition.
My succulent died after being replanted; why?
Transplant shock is the cause of your succulent’s death after being replanted. The stress of a new environment can cause succulents to droop, turn yellow, brown, or black, and eventually die back when they are repotted because of the contrast in the soil medium, moisture levels, and lighting conditions.
Succulents are adaptive and develop adapted to a certain set of conditions, so when they are unexpectedly repotted or relocated to a different location, they frequently show indications of stress.
How do I determine the best time to repot my succulents?
Succulents are a favorite among home gardeners because to their distinctive colors, odd shapes, and low maintenance requirements.
Succulents are low maintenance, but that doesn’t mean you should plant them and leave them alone. There will probably come a point when your succulent requires a little more care in addition to making sure it gets the right amount of water and sunlight. Your succulent will eventually need to be repotted in order to give it a suitable environment in which to develop and flourish.
Continue reading for four reasons to repot succulents if you’re unsure whether or not yours does.
Roots are growing through the bottom of the pot
Do you notice white roots clogging the drainage holes in the container when you turn your succulent over? It’s time to repot your succulents if the answer is yes. It’s definitely time to repot if roots are the cause of your pot becoming unsteady. A decent rule of thumb is to leave about a 1/2-inch space around the pot’s edge and between your succulents (if you’re using more than one plant in a pot). Although you want to give your succulent some breathing space, a pot that is too large will actually slow down its growth. Additionally, make sure it has drainage holes. Drill a few holes into the bottom if there aren’t any. If you don’t want to drill holes in your pots, adding a layer of stones, like our Hydro stones, in the bottom of your pot is a fantastic alternative drainage method.
The soil dries out too fast
Have you ever noticed that after watering your succulent, the soil is completely dry again after a few hours? This is a clue that your succulent needs to be repotted because the potting soil is no longer suitable. Succulents want soil that drains easily, but they also require soil that remains damp long enough for the roots to absorb the liquid. Make sure to get the best potting medium for your plants when you repot succulents because of inadequate soil. Succulent soil and perlite, both of which are available at your neighborhood garden center, should be mixed in a ratio of 1:1.
Your succulents are top heavy
Your prized succulents need to be replanted if they are leaning or tipping over, which is an evident symptom. This does not necessarily imply that they require a larger pot, though! Some varieties of succulents grow tall while maintaining shallow root systems. Therefore, even though the roots of your succulent are content in its current container, you must repot it due to the top’s weight. In this case, you simply need a heavier pot—no need to acquire a bigger one. Use a hefty clay container or large stones in the bottom of a lighter pot to add weight when repotting your succulents.
Your succulent looks unhealthy
Have you observed that the once-plush and luscious leaves of your succulent are now limp, shriveling, or yellowing? These are symptoms of a sick plant, therefore it’s time to identify the issue and perhaps repot your succulents. If your succulent receives adequate water and light, then you should check for pests, disease, and rot as potential offenders. Examine the leaves of your succulent; if no issues are there, take the plant out of the pot and check the roots. Cut the roots back to where they seem healthy if you notice a problem with them. Repot your succulent after that in a clean container with new soil. Hopefully, your succulent plant will recover quickly after being re-potted.
Get To Know Your Succulents
Because some succulents, like Echeveria Vincent Catto, Sinocrassula Yunnannensis, or Echeveria Derenbergii, are inherently small and slow-growing, it is best to know what kind of succulents you are trying to grow bigger.
Search Google for the maximum size and growing advice for your succulent if you know its name. If you post a photo to one of the succulent-lovers’ facebook groups, they can identify your succulent if you don’t know its name.
To find a group on Facebook or Google and choose the one that looks appealing. There are some groups that can be excessively vast, and you might not always get a response because your message might get lost in the sea of thousands of other individuals trying to submit their queries. Sometimes working in smaller groups may be preferable.
If you don’t know the name of your succulent and don’t want to bother with Facebook, try searching Google for information about your plant’s qualities (blue succulent with pink edges or red spreading succulent etc.) Then, you can try to locate your plant by going to the image portion of the search.
Plant succulents in the garden
Succulent cuttings are one of our best-selling items at our online store. We have huge succulent gardens and beds since here is where succulents grow the best, quickest, and biggest. This allows us to grow enough to meet demand.
The majority of succulents are not frost hardy and would perish if planted in the ground in various regions of the world where winters are cold with frequent frosts. But don’t worry—we also have a remedy for you unfortunate residents of chilly climates.
However, in temperate conditions, succulents will make the most of the room they have when planted in the ground and will develop into magnificent, large plants.
Succulents can rot if planted in the area of the garden where water collects after heavy rains, therefore water needs to drain away successfully for them to grow in the ground.
Succulents that prefer the sun should be planted there, while those that prefer the shade should be planted behind trees or in the shade.
Although we do advise adding high-quality potting mix for additional drainage and nutrients, the majority of succulents will grow big and healthy even in poorer soil when planted in the ground.
Upgrade the pot regularly
Larger succulents will grow if there is more room for their roots. Although, as was already noted, certain species of succulents are naturally small and slow-growing, there isn’t much that can be done to encourage them to grow larger.
Most of our succulent plants are propagated through cuttings that are placed in little pots or propagation trays. We transplant the plant to a pot that is twice or three times the size of the root ball once the pot is full with roots.
They will do better in nice, fresh potting mix every time they are repotted, and we also get to observe how the roots are doing and check for pests on roots (mealy bugs, grubs, etc.) every time we repotted a plant, which is why we don’t place them in the biggest pot available at the beginning.
Since potting soil can degrade over time and harbor pests and fungus, it is recommended to gradually transition succulents to larger pots if you want them to grow big and healthy.
Succulents will technically continue to grow in a small pot after they have hit their limit and become root-bound, but they will do so extremely slowly.
On the bright side, if you choose the proper succulent for the job, you may achieve better color and a plumper form because many succulents may become “bonsai” if kept in small pots for an extended period of time; however, this is a subject for a completely separate post.