Common Mistakes to Avoid When Propagating Succulents

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Growing and caring for succulents has been a popular trend nowadays. A lot of plant cultivators have started growing succulents with the idea of possibly propagating them. If you are searching for a place to help you how to propagate succulents, you’ve come to the right place. In this article, we will be discussing the common mistakes to avoid when propagating succulents. Continue to read below if you want to find out more information.

If you love to propagating succulent plants, you must know that not all the time you can be successful with propagating your succulents plants, sometimes mistakes occur, so don’t be disheartened and disappointed. Keep on planting and propagating your succulents. Check out the information below so you will avoid the mistakes and be successful in propagating your succulents.

Here is the list of the common mistakes that occur when propagating succulents:

Mistake #1

Overwatering – When propagating succulents, you must watch avoid overwatering your succulents. Succulents can become squishy and may turn yellow if you overwater them. You will not be able to make your succulents propagate faster if you keep watering them; it can only cause rot or worse, kill the plant. You must wait for the succulents to form roots before you start watering them.

Too much watering can often do more harm than good to your succulents for propagation. If you will do soil propagation, you can mist the soil lightly daily only when the roots have already appeared. If you are planning to do air propagation, you can allow the parent leaf to develop its leaves before you water them. Too much water can cause rotting of the parent leaf and the baby succulent can die off as well.

You can use a gardening syringe so you can control the amount of water when watering the baby succulents.

Mistake #2

Incorrect amount of light – When propagating succulents, one of the most common mistakes that can occur is when there is too much bright light or not enough light. If you want your plant to properly propagate, you must place it in a moderate amount of light.

If you place your succulent in an area with bright light, this can cause the roots to become thin, turn dark red, which means the roots are burning. If the roots are pink, it means the succulent is growing properly. The new roots of the newly propagated succulent are very prone to burning if there is too much light. You must do your best to keep them safe and allow the roots to grow long so they can be buried in the soil and protected from too much sunlight, so be patient and wait until the succulent roots grow into the soil and place them in an area with moderate light.

When the propagated succulent has rooted and is growing well, you have to check the amount of light so the succulents can grow properly and avoid stretching or etiolating. When the succulent is stretching, you might think that it is growing fast, but in reality, it is not properly growing. Healthy succulents grow out and do not become stretchy. When the succulents are stretching that means they need more light.

Intense sunlight can burn your plant, succulent leaf propagation does not need too much sunlight. Just place the leaf for propagation in an airy and bright place. Baby succulents will not survive in too much heat or extreme direct sunlight. Always remember, if the baby succulents do not grow close to the leaf that means your succulent needs more light to grow.

When growing succulents indoors, you may use grow lights like this.

Grow lights are perfect for growing succulents indoors, they offer bright light but do not burn succulents. Just remember to not place your plants too close to the grow lights.

Mistake #3

Choosing the parent leaf – When propagating the succulent, you must choose a parent leaf that you will use. You must water the succulent that you have chosen to propagate a few days before you remove the parent leaf. It is very important that you do this step correctly as the leaf that you will pull off the succulent plant is where the baby succulent will grow from. Each leaf that you pull off must be filled with water and nutrients.

You can choose small leaves, but it may take longer; the succulent that grows can be much smaller than when you choose to propagate from a bigger leaf. The leaf that will be chosen is filled with water and nutrients that the baby succulent will use to grow accordingly.

The leaves that will be chosen for propagation must be plump, thick, fleshy, and healthy. This means there are lots of nutrients and water inside it, which helps your baby succulent grow properly and healthily. This will increase the growth rate success of your succulents during propagation.

Avoid these types of leaves when propagating your succulents:

Small or young leaves – Small leaves can be used for propagation but it can take a while to grow succulent babies. Small leaves do not have enough water and nutrients that can be used to support new succulent plants.
Broken leaves – Baby succulents will not grow unless the parent leaf that you will use to propagate new ones is properly or cleanly removed from the mother plant.
Withered or dried leaves
Overwatered leaves

You must choose the ideal leaves to propagate new succulents. Those are the leaves that are found in the bottom part of the plants, these are the plump and mature leaves.

When propagating succulents, you must have in mind that you will not always get a one hundred percent success rate. Each leaf that you use can perform differently from each other when propagating them. Some may grow roots as soon as possible and create a baby succulent, others may not develop any root, and others may root but not develop a baby succulent. If you are lucky, some succulents can grow more than one baby succulent.

If mistakes occur, fret not, just keep on going, you can propagate your succulents with no worries. Keep reading and learning everything you need to know. If you need more information on how to grow and propagate your succulents make sure to read our extensive store of information on our website.

Frequently Asked Questions about Propagating Succulents:

Question #1: When is the best time to remove the parent leaf?

The parent leaf that you will use for propagating a succulent plant must not be removed until it becomes dry; it is the one that supplies nutrients and water that the baby succulent needs to grow properly.

If you are in a hurry to remove the baby succulents from the parent leaf, there is a chance that they will not be able to survive on their own. You must wait till the parent leaf is all-dried up and until it falls off from the baby succulents.

Question #2: Can I use rooting a hormone to propagate succulent leaf?

No, Succulent leaves contain nutrients that are used to sustain the new succulent that will grow from it. A baby succulent will grow and the parent leaf will wither normally. You will not need to use any rooting hormone to propagate a new succulent. The parent leaf will provide all the water and nutrients needed for the baby succulent that will grow.

Question #3: What is the perfect light setting for a new succulent to propagate or grow properly?

When propagating a succulent outdoors, you can choose a bright yet shady area that gets indirect sunlight. If propagating indoors, you can place the parent leaf in a window facing south.

Question #4: What are occurrences that can affect or prevent root growths for succulents used for leaf propagation?

If you live in areas that have dry and arid climates, it can disrupt the root growth. If a month has already passed since you propagated your parent leaf and there is no root development, the possible reason is because of the climate in your area.

If you propagate your succulent leaf, you must use a tray and place succulent soil and perlite or pumice stones when propagating the plant. Pumice or perlite will keep the leaves from the wet soil and prevent it from rotting.

Question #5: Why do succulent leaves rot?

Overwatering or frequent watering of the new succulent plant can keep the soil moist and cause the leaves to rot. Always remember that the succulent plant will only need water once the roots have formed. If the leaves are rotting, you can add pumice stones into the soil. It can keep the leaf from moist soil and allow the roots to grow. You must also remember to avoid misting the leaves because the leaves are prone to rot from too much water.

Question #6: How can I stop leaves from moving around?

If you are propagating outdoors and your area may experience moderate to strong winds, you can pin the leaves of the growing succulent. It can prevent them from falling off and it allows the succulent to grow healthy. You can use a thin wire and form it into a horseshoe shape and pin down the leaves until the roots have formed and developed.

Question #7: Why do my succulent roots become dry or withered while propagating them?

The leaves of succulents can lead to dead roots, it can happen so be very careful when dealing with succulents for propagation. Their roots are delicate and can be easily killed if not handled properly.

Question #8: What should I do when the roots of the succulents are not covered with soil?

You can add a small amount of soil over the roots to cover them. This is important because it can prevent the roots of the new succulent from drying out. When watering the succulent, you must prevent the leaves from getting wet or it can cause them to rot. You can water the soil in the front of the leaves; this will promote root growth and prevent the plant from rotting.

Question #9: Can all succulents be propagated using leaves?

Some succulents can be used for leaf propagation. Sedum and Echeveria succulents do well because they have fleshy and plump leaves.

Growing succulents and filling your garden with these cute and lovely plants is every gardener’s dream. Propagating succulents successfully is important so you can add more plants to your collection. Just make sure to avoid the mistakes mentioned above.

Are you planning to grow and care for succulents? Do you know how to properly propagate your succulents? Here at Eden Succulents, we will share all the information we know about succulents. Make sure to check out all the common mistakes to avoid when propagating succulents that have been discussed above, so you will know how to properly propagate your succulents.

If you need more information and guide that you will need to properly grow and care for your succulents, you can visit the rest of our website for more information. If you have any information that you’d like to share about the care of succulents, feel free to leave a comment for us, we’d love to hear from you!