Succulent Guide
Succulent Guide
Succulents
ORGANIC
GARDENING
WWW.KELLOGGGARDEN.COM
Succulent Gardening
Get Succulent Savvy!
Succulent Design
Planters & Landscapes
Plus!
SUCCULENT
PROPAGATION
TECHNIQUES
& MORE
ORGANIC GARDENING
CONTENT
3
Succulent Gardening
5
Succulent Seasons
10
Succulent Soil
11
Indoor Succulent Care
Optimal growing for indoor succulents.
15
Outdoor Succulent Care
From planters to landscapes to rocky soil
& crevices grow healthy succulents
outside.
19
Succulent Feeding
Watering & fertilizing succulents.
20
Succulent Design
Interior & exterior design options.
23
Succulent Propogation
Soil & water propagation methods.
27
Troubleshooting
Spotting problems, organic & natural
remedies.
29
Printable Plant Tracking
31
Succulent Resources
Additional resources to assist you.
33
About Kellogg Garden Organics
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Organic Gardening:
Cultivating A Succulent Garden
Succulents are eye-catching plants that boast magnificent foliage. They store water
in their thick, shapely leaves, making them drought-tolerant and relatively self-
sufficient plantings.
One of the most appealing aspects of succulent plants, other than their easy
maintenance, is that they can be found in a wide array of shapes, textures, colors,
and heights.
You can grow succulents just about anywhere in the ground, in pots, tucked away in
unexpected planting spots, and in creative interior and exterior designs.
Take the guesswork out of caring for these great conversation pieces with
spectacular foliage by using our succulent guide to successfully grow healthy,
beautiful succulents now and in the years ahead.
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Organic Gardening:
Caring For Succulents
Succulents can be grown indoors as houseplants, planted outside in containers, or
planted in-ground in garden beds or stone crevices. No matter where you choose to
plant them, they are sure to draw attention.
With the right planting considerations and care, succulents can almost take care of
themselves. Proper sun, water, and the optimal soil environment will make or break
your succulent growing efforts.
Succulent Considerations:
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Organic Gardening:
Succulent Dormancy
Succulents grow at different rates throughout the year depending on the
temperature. When a succulent goes into dormancy, it is often stimulated by
extreme changes in environmental conditions. Some succulents can tolerate frost
and even snow while others can grow in extreme heat, however, most succulents
thrive in mild temperatures. Succulents will also minimize growth activity to
conserve energy until the environmental conditions are more ideal.
Succulents are often categorized as summer growers or winter growers but there are
no absolutes in the plant world. Succulents are industrious plants and in many cases
very adaptable. For succulents grown indoors, they will most likely never go dormant
and you can continue to water them on the same schedule all year round.
A succulent in a rest period will stop producing new growth completely, the leaves
might turn yellow/brown and either drop or hang limply off the sides of the
succulent stem. In some rosette succulent species, the rosettes might contract.
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Organic Gardening:
Summer Succulents
Succulents that are dormant in the winter will actively grow in spring, summer, and
fall. As temperatures drop below 40°F plant growth slows down drastically, and
though they are summer growers during the hottest days of summer, they will slow
down their growth.
When a summer growing succulent starts its dormant period in the winter, it doesn’t
need a lot of water. If you notice the leaves becoming dry and wrinkled you can give
them a drink. Otherwise, in most cases, you can leave the succulent alone until its
growing season comes around again.
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Organic Gardening:
Winter Succulents
“Winter growing” succulents are the most active during fall, winter, and spring—once
nighttime temperatures drop below 60°F. These succulents go dormant in the heat
of summer, they need to be protected from heat and still need to be watered at this
time to keep their roots cool.
Though these succulents are referred to as winter growers in the coldest days of
winter, they will go through a mini dormancy and slow their growth.
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Organic Gardening:
Popular Succulents To Grow
Hens and Chicks:
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Organic Gardening:
Popular Succulents To Grow
Donkey's Tail:
Burro’s tail: (Sedum morganianum) Also
answering to the common names of Donkey’s
Tail or Horse’s Tail, Burro’s Tail is a low-
maintenance, slow-growing succulent with tails
that grow up to 4 foot in length.
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Organic Gardening:
Succulent Soil
The success of growing succulents is directly contingent on the soil in which it is
planted. Succulents have shallow root systems and prefer drought-like growing
conditions. This makes them an attractive, low-maintenance plant choice, as long as
you get a few environmental factors just right from the start.
Succulents have shallow root systems and prefer soil that well-draining.
A loose, rocky soil that is nutrient-rich is optimal.
If planting in containers, use a potting mix specifically formulated for succulents and
cacti and plant in a pot with holes in the bottom for drainage.
Alkaline soil has the potential to cause the demise of succulent plants.
You can amend soil with compost, perlite, pumice, decomposed granite, and sand.
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Organic Gardening:
Indoor Succulent Care
Planting succulents in the optimal soil composition will boost the health of the plant
and is the first step in properly caring for succulents indoors. Most indoor succulent
varieties thrive with ideal indoor nighttime temperatures of at least 60°F - 65°F.
When caring for succulents indoors, it is crucial to ensure that they receive at least 6
hours of sunshine per day. Too little sunlight will cause succulents to reach
awkwardly for sunlight, resulting in spindly, blanched, and unbalanced plants.
In place of sunlight, using grow lights for 12 to 14 hours per day will strongly help
your plant's development and survival.
Good drainage is essential for your succulents to grow well. This requires the
right soil but also that there is a hole in the bottom of your container.
Watering regularly keeps the roots plump and leaves full of water for your
succulents. However, watering too much can kill the plant. Keep your plants on
the drier side; water a small amount, let it drain through, wait a week or so, check
to see if there’s any moisture left, then repeat the process
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Organic Gardening:
Popular Variegated Succulents
What are Variegated Succulents?
Whenever you see a green leaf, that’s
chlorophyll — and when you see different
shades of green, white, or yellow edges or
markings, that means that the chlorophyll is less
concentrated in those areas than it is in the
green parts of the leaf. When chlorophyll — and
other pigments — are unevenly distributed, it
creates variegation.
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Organic Gardening:
Popular Unique Succulents
Succulents With Pizzazz
Dolphin (Senecio peregrinus) Sometimes you’re
just in the mood for a 6” tall succulent that
looks like dolphins jumping out of the water.
We know. It’s adorable. And guess what? Pretty
easy to grow too.
Split Rock (Pleiospilos nelii) These tiny succulents grow to a bit over 3” tall and 4”
wide with stemless, opposing plump leaves. It produces a new pair of leaves each
year, “splitting” up from the center of the previous growth. Its alien-looking flower is a
daisylike yellow-orange color and grows up to 3” in diameter. These flowers are quite
large in proportion to the actual plant, opening in the afternoon and closing at sunset.
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Organic Gardening:
Finding Your Gardening Zone
Identifying your plant hardiness zone is essential to the success of your succulent garden.
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Plant Hardiness Zone Map provides
an informative view of average temperature trends across The United States and Canada.
Zone Hardiness maps are based on the average yearly extremes for minimum
temperatures in a given area.
The USDA Zone Hardiness Map is divided up into 13 planting zones. They are
sectioned off by a 10-degree Fahrenheit differential for the average annual
minimum temperatures. The larger the number is, the warmer the temperature
is in the corresponding garden zone. For added clarity, zones are broken down
into subsets of a and b, which represents a 5-degree differential in which a is
colder than b is.
The majority of the United States falls under USDA Planting Zones 4 through 8.
Most garden centers label their plants with markers that signify a plant’s grow
zone. Understanding your gardening zone for plant hardiness can help you
decide which plants to select for your garden and can mean the difference
between a successful crop and a failing garden.
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Organic Gardening:
Outdoor Succulent Care
Succulents store water in their thick, uniquely shaped leaves, making them drought-
tolerant plants. Succulents come in a wide array of interesting shapes and textures,
which add visual interest to any landscape.
A common question is can succulents live outside? The short answer is yes! They
thrive in sunny locations with warm, dry climates and can tolerate some neglect. So
growing succulents outdoors is a great option.
Use these helpful tidbits to guide you on how to care for succulents when watering
them.
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Organic Gardening:
Unique Blooming Succulents
Echevaria ‘Perle von Nurnberg
The leaves are rosettes that have a gray-
brown tinged with deep pink or purple
coloring, but when this one blooms — holy
cow! Footlong stems with bright coral
flowers create some of the most stunning
succulent blooms around, brightening up
container plantings and rock gardens.
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Organic Gardening:
Unique Blooming Succulents
Kalanchoe Delagoensis:
Refer to this plant as “chandelier plant” and
most succulent-lovers will know what
you’re talking about. Tubular, grey-green
leaves have dark purple blotches and
hanging, trumpet-shaped flowers in bright
red to orange. It’s so unusual and dramatic
that many people believe it’s worth a bit of
risk, as it can be invasive if not kept under
control and contains toxins that can cause
digestive issues to animals.
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Organic Gardening:
Fertilizing Succulents
Many succulent varieties will never require fertilization, and they will still have
healthy and consistent growth. However, applying fertilizer will help your succulent
soil reach its fullest potential, encouraging more vibrant foliage and more prolific
blooms. A high-quality organic fertilizer will improve the overall health and longevity
of your succulent plants.
Seek out a fertilizer that is specifically formulated for succulents and cactus plants.
The fertilizer should be low in nitrogen and include beneficial soil microbes. Since
succulent plants are not continuously soaking up water from the soil, select a slow-
release formula that will feed the succulent plant whenever it needs nourishment.
Diluting your fertilizer can also prevent any issues with burning.
Like most containerized plants, some succulents can benefit from a nutrient-rich
feeding routine.
For optimal growth, apply the fertilizer in spring as new growth emerges and once
again in fall.
When growing succulents indoors, fertilizer can result in rapid growth, which can
cause plants that aren’t getting sufficient light to stretch in search of it. Consider
temporarily moving your succulent plants outdoors to a partial sun spot just after
fertilizing to help them retain their robust, compact nature as they soak in the
beneficial nutrients.
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Organic Gardening:
Succulent Planter Ideas
The sky's the limit with succulent designs. Succulents are hardy, resilient and can
grow on or in just about any medium for a short period of time. So why not take
your love of succulents and double it by creating works of art?
A double or triple-tiered concrete birdbath – fill the tiers with cactus soil and
plant with succulents.
Pumpkins — hot glue a layer of moss on top of the pumpkin, then hot glue (yes,
you read that correctly) small succulent clippings onto the moss. The succulents
root into the moss and thrive with occasional misting from a water bottle.
Wreath - twine branches, hot glue moss, and add small succulent cuttings to
branches.
Driftwood from your beach vacay — attach succulents to your driftwood the
same way you would the pumpkin.
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Organic Gardening:
Succulent Planter Ideas
There are designs that showcase succulents as large living art displays, with full walls
and even buildings covered with succulents. While some of these art pieces are
professional installations, there are many that are perfectly doable for the handy
DIYer — and we have a feeling that’s you.
Picture frames — Staple hardware cloth into the back of the frame (where the
glass would normally go), then attach a cedar shadowbox to the back of the
frame. Turn over, add soil through the hardware cloth and into the shadow box,
then place stems of succulent clippings through the openings of the hardware
cloth.
Pot in a pot — this one is just adorable. Take a large round container, fill it will
cactus soil, then nestle a tiny terra cotta pot on its side into the soil. Finish by
planting a variety of succulents out of the “top” of the smaller pot — it looks like a
silhouette of a planter within a planter.
Sand — simply nestle your succulent clippings in the sand for a super easy display
with other trinkets like pebbles or beach glass.
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Organic Gardening:
Succulent Landscape Ideas
If you live in a warm climate year-round, you may want to plant your succulents in
your garden bed directly. When planting succulents in-ground, always provide them
with well-draining soil to ward off root rot. In-ground doesn’t always translate to in
the garden bed. You’ll often find succulent plants uniquely tucked into cracks and
crevices.
Succulent Varieties:
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Organic Gardening:
Propagating Succulent Cuttings
Once you start growing succulents, like us, you may become a wee bit obsessed with
them. There are so many varieties with mind-boggling shapes, intense colors, and
amazing textures. You will love them in containers, in the ground, in open terrariums,
nestled in rocks…the only drawback to a love of succulents is that it can also be a bit
expensive to get as many as you want.
That’s where propagating comes in handy — taking one succulent plant and getting
(in some cases) dozens more from it. And if you’re the least bit intimidated by this
process, please don’t be. Succulents make it easy, as long as you know some basic
methods.
Crassula ovata: You probably know this one as “jade plant,” and it’s extremely easy
to propagate from stem cuttings.
Sedum morganianum: Also called “Burro’s Tail,” it has plump leaves that trail down
the edge of a container. Use the leaf propagation method below to create lots of lil’
Burro’s Tail babies.
Sempervivum tectorum: also known as “Hens and Chicks” this succulent features a
main plant that produces little chick offspring which are very easily propagated by
division.
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Organic Gardening:
Propagating Succulent Cuttings
Leaves: A single leaf can grow into an entirely new plant! Gently twist the leaf off a
stem (or use one that fell off on its own), being careful to use only healthy leaves
without tears, damage, or disease. Set the leaves aside in a dish in a single layer out
of direct sunlight for a couple of days until the previously attached edge has
calloused over. Once the edges are dry, lay them on top of cactus soil in an area of
bright, indirect light, then lightly mist with a spray bottle filled with water to
encourage roots to form. Do this every couple of days, and in a few weeks (maybe
months for some), a new little succulent baby will form — ready for planting!
Stems: Cut a length of stem from an existing succulent and remove lower leaves. Let
it sit for a couple of days allowing the cut end to dry, then plant it in fresh cactus soil
and lightly mist to encourage roots. Or, if you have a stem already in soil with the
top part of the plant cut off for propagating, go ahead and cut that stem just above
the soil line, and new growth will appear from there.
Divisions: Divisions are quite easy — some succulents have a “mother plant” with
offsets or babies that develop around the base of the original plant. Carefully
separate the offset from the mother, gently loosening the roots. Then replant in
cactus soil and lightly water. Other succulents develop offsets from stems – you’ll
see a stem with a baby succulent protruding from the mother. Simply cut it off,
leaving a bit of stem, and replant.
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Organic Gardening:
Succulent Water Propagation
Succulent plants can make a dent in your budget, as they can be quite expensive to
purchase. Propagating succulents is an exciting additional benefit to their unique
beauty and easy succulent care routines.
Creating new plants from cutting by propagating succulents in water costs nothing,
is relatively easy to do, and can be a fantastic way of growing your collection of
succulent plants. It also makes it easy to share your new plants with friends and
family, spreading succulent joy.
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Organic Gardening:
Succulent Water Propagation
Propagation Steps:
Remember that the best defense is a robust offense. This starts with having healthy
soil and ideal planting conditions.
Mealy Bugs – remove the plant from the pot, clean the pot, and wipe down the
plant. Replant the succulent in fresh soil.
Rodents – set up rodent traps near succulent plants outside to keep them from
nibbling on your succulent leaves.
Red Spider Mites – Use a sharp spray of the hose to remove them from the
foliage.
Aphids – use a quick spray of the hose to remove them from the foliage—spray
the foliage with soapy water.
Snails – In the garden, bury a shallow dish so that the dish’s rim is level with the
soil. Add beer to the plate. Snails will seek out the beer and will be unable to
free themselves.
Root Rot – Allow soil to dry completely before watering and ensure that soil is
well-draining.
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Organic Gardening:
Succulent Sign Reading
When a plant needs something, it will always tell you - the trick is knowing how to
read their signs. Here are few signs to look out for that can help you spot problems
before they become irreversible.
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Organic Gardening:
Succulent Tracking
PLANT
SUCCULENT CARE
OBSERVATIONS
NOTES
Organic Gardening: www.kellogggarden.com
2021
Succulent Calendar
JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH
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Organic Gardening:
Resources:
How to Find Your Planting Zone
How to Amend Soil for a Healthier Garden
Best Pots & Planters For Container Gardening
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Organic Gardening:
Gardening Guides & Charts:
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Kellogg Garden Organics
Kellogg Garden Products, family-owned and operated since its establishment in 1925
by our founder, H. Clay Kellogg, now spans four generations. The company continues
its success as a steadfast business, guided by Mr. Kellogg’s original core values:
innovation, loyalty, experience, commitment, and generosity.
These values have led our company to seek the highest level of organic rigor in all its
branded products.
In 2012, Kellogg Garden Products committed to strictly follow the USDA’s National
Organic Program (NOP) guidelines for manufacturing all Kellogg Garden Organics
and G&B Organics branded soils and fertilizers.
Every ingredient and every process used to produce our branded products has been
verified 100% compliant as organic, all the way back to the source, meeting all
federal guidelines.
All our branded products are approved by
the California Department of Food and
Agriculture’s stringent Organic Input
Materials (OIM) program, as well as the
Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI)
— the leading independent review agency
accredited by the USDA NOP.
Product Recommendations
ORGANIC SOIL
ORGANIC
LIQUID
FERTILIZER
ORGANIC
GRANULAR
FERTILIZER
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