SUCCULENTS AND CACTI
Posted on 30 July 2019
SUCCULENTS AND CACTI
If you are a serial plant murderer but loooooove the look of plants in your home, then succulents and cacti are the best way to go. They are very, very hard to kill, but just to help you along, here are a few tips to help you on your way to becoming a budding plant parent in your own right.
SUCCULENTS:
There are only a few key things to remember when it comes to caring for your succulents.
A lot of succulents have limbs that are quite chunky; this is because the cells in succulents hold a lot of water. Succulents like to be well watered, but beware of overwatering as this will drown your plants. But also, a tell-tale sign that your plants need to be watered would be if your succulents aren’t looking as plump as they usually would.
A good rule to go by, is to water your succulents a small amount around once a week or a couple cubes of ice.
CACTI:
Cacti are actually a sub-type of succulent. The most well-known things about the cactus have to be that they are spiky, and they live in the desert.
The spikes or spines on cacti are in actuality, a type of highly modified leaf. They were developed in order to protect the cactus from ‘predators’, which would have been animals seeking to eat or drink the juices from it in the hot unforgiving desert because, as a type of succulent, they too have adapted to hold and store a large amount of water.
- Despite cacti being a type of succulent, they don’t need to be watered as frequently. Succulents are already watered quite sparingly, however because the water retention in cacti is so good, overwatering even by a little can cause the cacti to drown. They should be in a pot or container which is extremely free draining (eg pebbles or small rocks instead of soil). Keep the watering to when the weather is on the warmer side, and refrain from watering at all in the winter.
- Most house cacti don’t need to be in full or direct sunlight. All they require is to be placed somewhere where there is some light, such as on a windowsill. They grow best in these conditions, and it will also help your cacti to flower and bloom.
So, if you're after some plants which are VIRTUALLY unkillable, try succulents and cacti! Just remember, treat these plants with kindness and care just as you would another human and you should do just fine :))
- Hailey Paige Flowers xx
