Caring for succulents

[RoxMonster]

So I bought some potted succulents for my desk at work back in, like, March and haven't watered them yet, but they still look fine. Maybe this is  :?  I don't know. I don't know a ton about plants, but I love how succulents look.

I have done some reading online and it sounds like you should water them but not too frequently and don't over water and make sure the soil is dry before re-watering, etc.

I plan to bring them home with me for the summer when work ends in a couple weeks. It is just a small pot with a few in it. What is the low down on watering succulents to keep them alive the longest?

[FastHands]

I think you can actually just spray them with a wayer bottle every now and then.

[RoxMonster]

Every few months makes me feel better since I haven't touched them yet!

[MrsAxilla]

May 5, 2016 21:32:59 GMT -5 RoxMonster said:

Every few months makes me feel better since I haven't touched them yet!

It's a little container?  It will dry out faster than a larger one.  I'd give them a drink tomorrow!

[regencygirl]

I have several cactus that I water like once a month or so and those suckers are getting huge so I must be doing something right. Cactus and other succulents are about the only plants my black thumb can't kill.

[lilafowler]

Sexulents

[isabel]

Succulents require very little water. They are dessert plants, basically cacti.

Do not flood them with water. I have some in my office and probably water them with 2oz or so every couple weeks. That sounds all technical, but really I just save the last swig of my water bottle for the plants when I randomly remember to water them. They've looked great since I got them last year.

[RoxMonster]

Thanks for the tips. I stumbled upon a blog about succulents where she said you shouldn't spray them and use a long-nosed watering can to give exactly such and such water, and I know I won't be that technical, nor do I keep a watering can at work. But I will give them a bit of water today.

[RoxMonster]

Oh and someone online said if they are in a humid environment, they can go longer without watering? I have geothermal at work and my classroom is super humid, so maybe that has been working well for them.

[regencygirl]

Mine are all in my kitchen b/c it gets the best light in the house, and it's very humid. Maybe that's what's been keeping mine alive all these years. I've seriously killed a bunch of house plants up until someone suggested getting a cactus. I got the little stubby $1 a pot ones from Home Depot b/c I figured if I killed them I wouldn't be out much. They've grown from 2-3 inches to 5-8 inches in a few years.

[gibbinator]

The plants I have in warm rooms in direct sunlight most of the afternoon, I give a good amount of water once every 2 weeks (eta: by good amount, I mean my large pots get like 3oz).
Those that are in shadier/cooler windows of the house (like the basement level) get watered once a month or less. And not very much at a time.

As others said, don't water until the soil is dry. I have Christmas cactus, aloe Vera and Jade, and they all do well in these conditions. My Christmas cactii flower every 3 months. They love me.

[lightbulbsun]

I killed a succulent by watering it too much. It got bloated and mushy, haha. Since then I've done as other suggested, and only water when the soil is dry.

[gilmoregirl]

I had a knack for killing succulents.. mostly because I didn't know better. Now I water very rarely. Once a month or when the soil is completely dry.

[brooke77]

I have had some in my office for about a year. I water very little (about one a month and make sure the extra water completely drains). Less in the winter.

[Serenity9]

Maybe it's one of these?

[textbookcase]

May 6, 2016 9:20:14 GMT -5 Serenity9 said:

Maybe it's one of these?

Lol my exbfs mom had been keeping this bamboo plant for him for his birthday. She was watering it and fertilizing it for a few months. She gave it to him on his bday and I noticed that it was plastic. Lol! The fertilizer and water had started to break down the glue or something and it was falling apart. It was hilarious.

[Deleted]

I have a fake succulent in my office. it's a cave with no sunlight. I assume anything living would die in here... like my soul. When I was gone on vacation, my coworker said she came into my office for a file and she watered my plant. Not uncommon...