Be Careful With These 4 Common Succulent Spring Care Mistakes

What’s the first thing that comes to mind about spring? Like most people, you can visualize yourself going to farmers’ markets, food festivals, and lakeside picnics. Or you might be eager to head to a beachside destination for a relaxing holiday.

But if you’re a gardening enthusiast, the thought of spring will bring images of sprightly plants in full bloom. The warmer temperatures and bright spring days create the perfect environment for plants to grow and flower.

With the right container gardening tools, you can create an animated springtime garden in your home that exudes different hues and fragrances.

Whether you’ve built your garden on a balcony, terrace, or countertop, chances are you’ve got more succulents than you can count. All your succulent plants need is a bit of tender, loving care. After months of winter hibernation, spring is the perfect time to bloom and change colors.

In this blog post, we’ll outline a few common mistakes you should avoid while looking after your succulents in spring. Let’s get started.

4 Common Succulent Spring Care Mistakes You Should Avoid

1. Rushing Your Plants Outdoors

Yes. Succulents need ample sunlight to grow. If you’ve had these plants in your home throughout winter, you probably moved them indoors to protect them from the chill. With the onset of spring, you’re likely tempted to take them outside.

But abruptly subjecting succulent plants to extreme heat could take a toll on them. Don’t be surprised if your plants start looking wilted and lifeless after a few days under the sun. That’s why you should gradually introduce them to warmer temperatures over several weeks.

When can I put my succulents outside?

The good thing about container gardening is that you can shift your plants to different home sections depending on the weather. Also, make sure you keep your plants away from direct heat. Keep them on a windowsill, countertop, or balcony that receives diffused sunlight throughout the day.

2. Not Watering Your Plants Enough

During winter, your succulent plants would get by without much water. You might have had to water the plants several times every month. But with the rising temperatures of spring, the watering requirements of succulents also increase.

Water is crucial in keeping your plants healthy and ensuring a vibrant bloom. Watering your plants at least twice a week is a good idea. Check the topmost layer of the soil at least once a day. If it feels dry, let the soil soak until it flows through the drainage holes of the planter.

Make sure you don’t overwater your succulents, though. The last thing you want is to waterlog the root system, causing it to rot. That emphasizes the importance of choosing well-draining containers and soil.

3. Forgetting to Re-pot

Repotting plays a significant role in the growth of succulents. The soil in planters lacks the natural ability to replenish nutrients and continues to lose nutritional value over the years.

If you don’t transfer your succulents to new pots every few years, they’ll stop growing. Also, as the plants grow, they’ll need more space to thrive. It’s imperative during spring because plants prepare for the upcoming bloom season.

Watch for warning signs like roots running out from the bottom or top-heavy plants. Even if a succulent plant doesn’t show any visible signs of damage, you should re-pot it if it’s been in the same planter for more than two years.

Make sure to follow Succulent City on Facebook, Pinterest & Instagram for more informative & interesting content about succulents & cacti 🙂 Happy planting, and live the moment, my friend!

4. Overcrowding Your Succulents

Of course, you’ve been tempted by stunning images of different succulent plants growing in a large planter. While succulents are adept at handling crowded containers, there’s a limit to the number of plants you can group.

If you add too many succulents to a planter, you’ll soon find that a few have withered or died. It’s more likely to happen in spring when each plant starts blooming and competing for resources.

So, if you’ve built a stunning arrangement of succulents, keep a close eye on your plants to ensure they are in great shape. If a few plants appear weak or dry, consider repotting them.

How To Care For Succulents In Spring

#1. Lighting Requirements During Springtime

Succulents require a lot of sunlight and warmer temperatures to grow well during the spring. But then, it would be a bad idea to expose your succulents to direct sunlight as soon as winter is over. Exposing your succulents to direct sunlight can make them suffer from sunburns, which they may not be able to recover from easily.

You have to start the exposure process gradually. For instance, you can start bringing out your succulents to receive the morning sun with mild intensity. After a few weeks, you can then expose them to the afternoon sun. Once your succulents acclimate to full sunlight, you can then leave them outdoors for the remaining spring months. But bear in mind that spring temperatures fluctuate a lot. So, you may have to take your succulents indoors during cold days in the spring.

Make sure to follow Succulent City on Facebook, Pinterest & Instagram for more informative & interesting content about succulents & cacti 🙂 Happy planting, and live the moment, my friend!

#2. Repotting & Fertilizing Succulents During the Spring

If your succulents have been dormant during the winter, they will grow and bloom during the spring and summer months. With this growth comes the need for repotting. Succulents have different ways of telling you they are due for repotting. If the succulents’ roots are sticking out of the pot. It is a sign that you need to re-pot the succulents. If you notice the pot is too tight for the succulents or the soil drains too fast, you must re-pot the succulents.

If your succulents suddenly become too heavy, you must consider repotting them. When repotting your succulents, ensure you have a larger pot, well-draining soil, and the suitable soil composition. If you repot your succulents appropriately, you will witness their fascinating growth during the spring. Meanwhile, spring is the most appropriate time to fertilize your succulents. You want your succulents to stay dormant during the winter, so fertilizing them is unnecessary. Applying fertilizers will help your succulents grow better and faster.

The best time to apply fertilizers is at the start of spring. Also, the best fertilizers are those with a high phosphorus concentration. You can apply these fertilizers once a month during the spring and stop applying in the late summer or early fall.

#3. Watering Succulents During The Spring

During the spring, succulents experience active growth, and so their water demand is high during this season. As succulents develop new stems, roots, and leaves, they tap from the soil’s water, making the soil dry out quickly. You have to water your succulents twice a week during springtime, depending on the environment’s temperature. But ensure you do not overwater your succulents during this period to avoid rot.

Your succulent pot size also determines how much water your succulents need. The larger the pot, the less you need to water your succulents. Consider using a large pot if you often forget to water your succulents.
If your succulents receive more than 10 hours of sunlight daily, you must water them more often. Also, outdoor succulents demand more water than indoor succulents because they get exposed to harsher environmental conditions.

Succulents planted in high-humidity areas require watering less often than succulents in dry, hot areas because they retain moisture for longer. If you live in Phoenix, you may need to water your outdoor succulents daily in spring. But then, if you reside in San Francisco, watering your succulents once a week will suffice.

How to water your succulents properly

Besides knowing the factors that affect your watering frequency, you must also know how to water your succulents properly. If you do not correctly water your succulents, chances are high that they will die of dehydration or become too plump. First off, you need to understand that succulents are typically desert natives. And so, you need to follow the pattern of desert rainstorms when watering your succulents so it is as if they are in their natural habitats. You can do this by drenching your succulents when watering them. Do not stop watering until you notice water running out of the drainage hole.

Generally, succulents prefer deep, periodic watering that reaches the soil’s bottom to frequent, light watering that only wet the soil’s top section. If the soil is arid, drench it and wait until it is dry before drenching it again. Follow this watering pattern, and your succulents will bloom throughout the spring.

Also read:

• 4 Common Succulent Spring Care Mistakes That You Should Avoid

Make sure to follow Succulent City on Facebook, Pinterest & Instagram for more informative & interesting content about succulents & cacti 🙂 Happy planting, and live the moment, my friend!

#4. The Best Succulents To Grow During the Spring

Some succulents do well than others during the spring. So, it is only wise to plant with a higher chance of thriving during springtime. Some of these succulents include:

1. Aloe

Aloe has over 250 different succulent species, with many capable of surviving up to a century. If you live in USDA Plant Hardiness Zone 9, your Aloes can survive outdoors in spring and summer. But they need special care to thrive in most temperate regions.

2. Echeveria

Echeveria has over 150 species that are native to Central America. Its elegant rosette leaves bloom if given an adequate supply of sunlight during the spring. Echeverias require lots of sunlight; otherwise, they will stretch out and lose their gorgeous leaves.

3. Crassula

Crassula has a wide succulent variety that is native to South Africa. The Crassula variants with thick stems require less watering. They are more drought-tolerant, while the varieties with soft stems need constant watering. It would be best not to expose your Crassula succulents to direct sunlight. Instead, find a way to shade them if you want to see their deep green, healthy appearance.

In Conclusion

From seasoned gardeners to amateurs – everyone enjoys the sight of dainty succulents in their living space. Ensure you prepare your plants for the onset of spring with adequate sunlight and water. Don’t forget to repot succulents in the same container for years.

ABOUT ME

Richard Miller

Salute everyone. It's Richard, the author of this Succulent & Xeriscaping blog. I am a traveler and a nature lover looking for a connection with the wild green. In my journey, I found a love for succulents and xeriscaping. What attracts me is the long-lasting & unique beauty of every plant I have the chance to see with my own eyes. Welcome to my little blog and let's enjoy a good time together!

Contact me: richard.succulentcity@gmail.com