Succulents are one of the most striking and beautiful types of plants that you can have in your home. Its fans are many, and it is that these plants, which also tend to be quite resistant, offer a huge variety of shapes and colors.
However, in them it is very necessary to carry out a transplant every two or three years, approximately, and it is not always easy to carry it out. If you want to learn when and how to transplant succulents, join us in this Green Ecologist article.
When to transplant succulents
The first thing to say here is that not all succulents maintain a proportional relationship between the size of the plant and that of its pot, so this may not be an effective method for know when a succulent plant needs a transplant. There are succulents that can be without any problem in containers with much less volume than themselves and, in fact, a too large pot would not do them any good.
Therefore, when transplanting a succulent you do not have to look at the aerial part of the plant, but quite the opposite: its roots. But how can we see them if they are underground? Some will say. It is very simple: lift the flowerpot or flowerpot and observe. If the roots of the plant are sticking out of the drainage holes, is that the succulent already needs a greater flowerpot. Prepare a new container a little larger than the old one, but only slightly, or the plant will accumulate more moisture than it needs.
There is another very important detail to take into account when transplanting a succulent, and that is that you should never do it in winter. It is preferable that the plant withstands the cold months in a pot that is too small, than risking transplanting it at that time. Succulents tend to develop a very extensive root system, and it is very easy for some roots to be damaged during transplantation. This, which is very rarely a problem for the plant in the warm months, in winter can cause humidity and cold to accumulate in the area, rotting the roots of your succulent from the small wound formed.
How to transplant succulents - steps
To achieve this successfully, what you will need, once you have the new container at hand, is to follow these steps to transplant succulents:
- Drop the plant from its current pot. If the pot is made of plastic, it will be very easy to do it: just cut it or squeeze it. If not, tap the sides of the pot to loosen the soil and roots from its walls, and strain a pencil or stick through the unobstructed drainage holes to loosen the soil a bit. All of this is done so that you never have to pull the plant out when removing it, which can cause severe injury. Also, remember to wear thick gardening gloves if the plant has thorns.
- Prepare the new pot, which is vital that it has drainage holes, if it does not have them when you buy it, do them carefully. Cover the bottom with a bed of coarse stones to help keep those holes free and improve drainage, and use substrate for succulents, if it can be enriched with slow-release fertilizer.
- Transplant the succulent: If it is a complete plant, simply place it in its new container, with the green part a couple of centimeters below the edge of the pot, and add the necessary substrate. If it is a sucker of a succulent plant, try to untangle its roots as much as possible, or separate it very carefully by gently prying it with a fork. In the case of suckers, sometimes it is advisable to wait a few days after separating them from the mother plant so that their possible wounds are closed.
Here you can discover more tips about Transplanting a plant: when and how to do it.
Succulent care: a basic guide
As a summary, we can say that general care of succulents are as follows:
- Irrigation: The most important thing with these plants is not to overdo it with watering. Most of them come from desert or semi-desert climates, and excessive watering will quickly cause their roots to rot, being this lethal in many cases. Here you can learn more tips on How to water succulents.
- Soil or substrate: the most necessary thing here is that it offers good drainage, to eliminate excess moisture.
- Light: almost all of them need a large amount of light, so it is necessary to place them in brightly lit rooms. However, the direct sun can be very harmful for many of them, especially in the summer months and if it is very intense in that area.
If you want to read more articles similar to Transplanting succulents: when and how to do it, we recommend that you enter our category of Cultivation and care of plants.
