Stress often causes succulent plants to change their color. If you want that hue to pop, stress is entirely normal and encouraged. Water, sunlight, and temperature are the three factors that drive succulents to change their color.
Why are my cacti light in color?
Succulents come in a broad range of sizes, forms, and odd characteristics, which is why both experienced and beginning gardeners alike keep buying more of them. Additionally, they provide a variety of hues, from white to just about anything.  
But, especially with recently purchased ones, have you ever puzzled why some gradually lose their vibrant color or turn plain green after a few weeks?
OVER AND UNDER SUNLIGHT EXPOSURE
The effects of excessive or insufficient sunshine exposure go beyond sunburn or an etiolated succulent. Additionally, this may cause your priceless plants to gradually lose their color and becoming a pale green over time.
So, if you see that yours are beginning to lose color, all you have to do to prevent damage is gradually adjust the amount of light they receive while keeping an eye out for both too much and too little light signals.
Place your succulents in a bright, shaded area for at least a week before moving them to a location where they may receive 4 hours or more of morning sunlight for an additional 4 to 7 days. Now, move your succulents gradually to an area with more or less sunshine depending on how they responded. To learn more about different light levels, click the sphere.
PERFECT WATERING
An important factor in why a succulent starts to lose its color is watering. Ironically, a succulent that receives the ideal amount of water will frequently lose its color and finally turn plain green. Therefore, you should give your succulent a little stress by reducing your watering schedule as soon as you detect it beginning to lose its colorful tips or foliage.
For instance, if watering your succulents once a week causes them to gradually lose their brilliant appearance, think about altering it to at least once every two weeks.
However, keep in mind that prolonged droughts might potentially cause them to perish. Thus, keep an eye on your succulents to prevent having a dead plant.
POOR SOIL QUALITY
A potting mix’s quality can deteriorate over time, and certainly, this can result in color loss. Remember that dirt keeps succulents from getting too damp by absorbing moisture. Consequently, even if you water your succulents less frequently than normal, they will still begin to lose their vibrant colors if the soil you are using is either of low quality or does not drain quickly enough.
You can address this by repotting your succulents, either with a cactus and succulent soil mix or your own custom combination.
POT IS TOO BIG OR TOO SMALL
Your succulents may start to become pale if you don’t use the proper pot size for them. Additionally, putting your plant in a pot or container that is either too big or too small for it will probably encourage root rot (if the pot is too big) or impede its growth (if the pot is too tiny).
The pot should ideally just be about half an inch larger (between the plant and the edge of the pot or container). Read our post titled “Choosing the Right Pot Size for Your Succulents” for more details on selecting the appropriate container for your succulents.
HEAT
You’ll notice that when the weather begins to warm up from Spring through Summer, the colors of succulents become dimmer and less vibrant. To keep them content and healthy, the ideal temperature range is between 60 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit. However, you must somewhat stress them by keeping the temperature between 70 and 40 degrees for a protracted amount of time if you want to prevent them from losing the intensity of their color.
keeping the temperature between 70 and 40 degrees to put some stress on them and preserve the vibrancy of the succulents’ colors.
BOTTOMLINE
When it comes to taking care of succulents, stress is a good thing. In reality, succulents’ most stunning hues occasionally emerge only during times of stress, therefore it is frustrating to observe them gradually losing their hues. However, I hope you find this post useful.
What does my succulent’s color mean?
Your succulent plant may be a little anxious if its leaves are becoming red, orange, blue, or purple! Succulents respond to environmental stressors like high sunlight and heat by producing pigments termed anthocyanin and carotenoid.
Why is my succulent becoming a pale green color?
Too much sunlight has a bleaching effect on succulents, which frequently results in a loss of color. If a succulent was once brilliant pink, purple, or yellow, it can change to a lighter shade of green, or it might become white or pale green.
Fast Fix If your plant was in the afternoon sun, move it to a location that receives more reflected light or less direct morning sun. Also, if it was in a sunny corner, move it there.
What causes succulents to turn pink?
You might get really concerned if the succulent in your home turns pink because you think it might be dying.
In reaction to environmental conditions, succulents turn pink. It typically takes quite a bit of stress for some of the hardiest and most durable houseplants to change the color of their foliage.
You must keep in mind that succulents adapt to their settings, and when these environments or their care undergo unexpected changes, they will react since they do not handle sudden change well.
The most frequent stressors that lead to the pinking of succulents include excessive or insufficient sunlight, incorrect watering, root rot, temperature shifts, and nutrient deficiencies.
Too much sunlight
One of the most frequent causes of your succulent turning pink is because it is suddenly exposed to more light than it has ever experienced, which causes sunburn.
The foliage will turn pink as a result of this sunburn. Succulents that have been kept indoors for months and are suddenly moved to the outdoor garden frequently experience this. The succulent plant may experience some shock when exposed to the bright light on its leaves.
If your succulent is positioned too close to a glass window, the glass will magnify the sun’s rays before they reach the leaf of the plant, which is another way it can get sunburned. Plants placed in windows facing the south frequently do this.
Remedy
Transfer your plant to a new location where it may only receive indirect light for six hours each day, such as a patio or one foot away from a west-facing window, to correct this discolouration brought on by too much sunlight.
If you intend to move an indoor plant to your outside garden, acclimate the plant gradually by progressively increasing the amount of time it spends in the light each day. Up until the plant has completely adapted to its new environment, keep up the acclimatization.
If you give your succulent a few days to adjust to increasing amounts of light, it won’t suffer from sun damage and you should be able to keep its green hue.
Not enough light
When a succulent receives less light than it requires daily, this might also cause it to turn pink.
When certain succulent plants are under stress from insufficient light, such as some cacti, anthocyanins are produced. The pinkish color of the plant’s leaves is caused by the combination of the purple pigment anthocyanin and the green pigment chlorophyll.
Keep in mind that succulents require sunshine to survive and operate normally. They cannot undertake photosynthesis without it, which prevents them from growing their own food.
The yellowing of a succulent that isn’t getting enough light can be easily remedied. Simply move it to a location where it will have access to the constant, brilliant indirect light that it requires.
Overwatering
Your succulent is receiving too much water, which is another cause of its pinking.
This might be the case if you water it more frequently than you should or if you give it more water than it requires each time. In any case, this causes overwatering, which causes root rot.
The condition known as root rot is brought on by a plant’s roots spending an extended period of time drowning in damp soil. The decaying dead roots will start to attract opportunistic infections like fungus and bacteria. As a result of these diseases, the rot will spread more quickly and eventually kill the entire plant.
The leaves on your plant may become yellow, pink, red, or brown and become soft and mushy to the touch as a sign that it is overwatered.
The wrong potting mix might also contribute to overwatering. Succulents want potting soil that is porous and airy so that water and air may easily pass through it. Additionally, if the pot you use doesn’t have drainage holes at the bottom, this can also result in an accumulation of water that can cause root rot.
You must immediately stop watering your succulent if you notice that it may be turning pink from overwatering.
Take the plant out of the pot, then wash the roots to remove as much of the old soil as you can. So as not to harm the delicate roots, go slowly. Examine all of the roots, and using sterile scissors, remove any areas that have gone brown or black.
After that, place the plant on a clean piece of paper towel and let it air dry for a few hours.
Prepare a fresh container with drainage holes at the bottom, and fill it two-thirds with new succulent-specific potting soil.
After putting the plant in the middle of the dirt, add more potting soil to fill the container up. Gently tap the ground close to the plant’s roots.
The soil won’t need any additional moisture; it’s already damp. Before watering the newly potted plant, wait at least a week.
Check the top two inches of soil with your finger before watering your plant to prevent overwatering. If the soil is humid, wait one or two days before examining it again. If the soil is dry, water it.
Underwatering
Although it may not be as harmful as overwatering, underwatering can nonetheless result in your succulent turning pink.
A succulent’s foliage will first turn pink, then purple, and then turn brown if it does not receive enough water. The leaves will wrinkle and get crispy as they dry out.
Fortunately, a succulent that has been underwater is much simpler to cure than one that has been overwatered.
To restore the succulent to health, you will need to wet and dry it. Water the plant five times with water that is equal to the volume of the pot when the soil is completely dry.
After watering the soil, wait until the top two inches feel dry to the touch before watering it again.
A succulent only has to be watered on a regular basis when the soil is dry. By doing this, you can prevent your plant from being both overwatered and underwatered.
Changes in temperature
Your succulent may also be becoming pink since you are subjecting it to temperatures that are far higher than they are accustomed to.
This might be because the plant is in direct, unfiltered sunlight, it’s next to a radiator, or it’s located where a heater is blowing heated air directly at it.
The plant will release anthocyanin as a result of the heat stress, which is, as previously said, a purplish pigment that takes on a pink hue when combined with chlorophyll in the plant.
Your succulent may have tissue damage as a result of excessive heat, which may impair photosynthesis and produce more discoloration.
The plant will also experience temperature stress and develop pink discolouration if it is placed in an area where it will be hit by cold air, such as next to an air conditioner or a door or window that allows in cold drafts.
Simply move your plant to a location where it won’t be exposed to extremes of heat or cold to correct any discolouration brought on by temperature variations.
A room that is between 70 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit is the ideal temperature for keeping an indoor succulent.
Nutrient deficiency
When plants are deficient in certain elements, such as phosphorus, nitrogen, or magnesium, succulents can also turn pink.
For instance, phosphorus is required by succulents in order to synthesize the sugars and nucleic acids that serve as their source of energy.
Along with turning pink, other symptoms of nutritional shortage include wilting and yellowing.
Because the succulent’s soil will eventually get devoid of nutrients and minerals if you wait too long to repot it, this might also result in nutrient deficit.
How can I add color to my succulents?
Succulents have attracted a lot of attention recently due to their resilience, seeming immortality, and ability to make almost any garden look more attractive. However, there is a way to vary the color of your succulents, so why limit yourself to having only green ones?
You must alter the environment that succulents are growing in and “stress” them in order to color them. They can alter their color in response to factors including fewer or more water, less or more sunlight, and hotter or colder temperatures. But you may also use food coloring if you want to create some wilder hues.
I have a green succulent, why is it becoming purple?
There could be a few causes for your succulent plant to start turning purple. The reasons why your succulent may be turning purple or red, turning purple and dying, what it signifies when succulents turn purple, and what to do in this case are all listed in this page.
Purple or other color changes in succulents can occur naturally or as a result of stress. Stress can cause your succulents to turn purple or red, and the causes can include abrupt temperature changes, excessive heat or light, as well as a lack of food and water.
Anthocyanin and carotenoids, two pigments, are what give succulents their purple or red color. During periods of intense sunlight, this pigment primarily prevents succulents from overphotosynthesizing and burning.
To reveal their full potential colors, some succulent growers purposefully expose their plants to more sun. Blushing or red/purple colouring disappears after sunshine exposure is reduced once more.