How to care for succulents

For caring for succulents you have to bear in mind that they need little water, poor soil with good drainage and lots of natural light without direct sun. These plants can retain a lot of water inside and, therefore, you have to watch the watering and avoid strong sun and low temperatures.

These are the basics of your care, but before commenting in detail how succulent plants are cared for we are going to know what their types and species are, as there are many different succulents that we can have at home. The succulent plants They are some of the best known among the different types of succulents, but all of them are easy to care for. They are very varied and of great beauty, as they have a variety of shapes, sizes, colors and flowers, making our home more welcoming by giving it a natural and simple touch. Choosing one of these plants can be a difficult decision, not because of its complexity but because of its great variety, since there are a large number of species. Specifically, these are the main succulent plant varieties:

• Agavaceae: 300 species native to Central and North America.
• Aizoaceae: 2,000 originating in South Africa.
• Apocynaceae: 500 originating from Africa, the Arabian Peninsula and India
• Asphodelaceae: 500 originating from Africa, Madagascar.
• Cactaceae: 1,600 originating in America.
• Crassulaceae: 1,300 originating around the world.
• Didiereaceae: 11 from Madagascar.
• Euphorbiaceae: more than 1,000 originating from all continents.
• Portulacaceae: more than 500 originating from America.

Thus, we can find a wide variety of plants to choose which one we like the most to decorate our home. Of course, each species has certain needs that may be specific, but there are certain basic care of succulents that you have to know to take good care of them at home and that, in this way, they always look healthy.

Surely one of the first questions you ask yourself is how to water succulents, and in fact it is one of the most important points of your care. Succulents are plants that always contain a good amount of water inside that allows them to overcome periods of extreme drought and heat. They have two ways of achieving this, on the one hand they have certain parts, such as the leaves or the stems, that they store water, and on the other hand they reduce perspiration to be able to retain it better.

The fact that they need and are able to retain water does not mean that we have to flood them so that they can absorb it, since they collect water both from the ground through the roots, and from the environment through the leaves. In fact, the peculiarity of being able to collect moisture with the leaves so effectively is what allows many of the species of this type to be aerial, that is, to grow suspended in the air or in places with hardly any soil. For this curiosity, they are also highly sought after hanging succulent plants or aerial.

As they store it very easily, if we exceed the irrigation we will only manage to drown them. Therefore, overwatering is one of the main reasons why these plants die in the home, since sometimes we do not know how to grow succulents and we treat them like any other plant. As it happens with The Cactus, other plants that retain a lot of water, it is necessary to bear in mind that the main care of succulent plants is to water them with little water. In addition, in the months of high temperatures they can be watered once a week, but the rest of the year, when it is cold, it is necessary to reduce watering to one every fifteen days.

This type of plant grows in trees and rocky areas, so the substrate for succulents has to be poor, that is to say that it is not necessary to use a land very rich in minerals. Ideally when planting or transplant a plant crass is to use a mixture of normal substrate, that is, soil with minerals, and substrate for cacti, with porous stones, or sand.

As with practically anyone, succulent plants need good drainage to be able to eliminate excessive water from irrigation and avoid waterlogging. If this happens, the parts of the plant that are more succulent, that is to say that normally store water, would become soft and finally die, and then the rest of the parts of the plant that do not usually retain water would follow the same process.

Therefore, when watering them remember not to overdo it and allow any excess water to drain and drain well. Do not place a plate under the pot or place it but after a short time empty it so that the plant does not reabsorb the excess water.

Succulents need a lot of natural light, but the direct sun, especially in the hours when it arrives stronger and in summer, is harmful since it can dehydrate them, eliminating their water reserves, and burn them easily. For this reason, we will not place these plants in areas where the sun shines in full or indoors, that is to say, attached to a window, or outdoors, but it is better to put them in an area of ​​sun and shade or total shade. but where natural light does reach. Of course, there are some species that support direct sun better than others, so it is advisable to inquire at the store when purchasing a specific species.

Thus, if you see that your succulent plants begin to have the reddish, brown and dry leaves is that the sun that reaches them is excessive. To remedy this, it is recommended to immediately move it to a more suitable area and prune the parts that have dried completely. On the contrary, if the leaves turn pale it is a symptom that the plant needs more sunlight.

For caring for succulent and succulent plants in hot months the following tips must be taken into account:

• That they have natural light but without direct sun, if they are outdoors it is better that they are in the shade.
• Substrate mixed of earth and sand or earth for cacti with porous stones, except in aerial species that do not require substrate or in very little quantity. They must always have effective drainage.
• Irrigation with little water once a week and some humidity, without directly wetting the leaves.
• Better indoors and near a window without direct sunlight, but if they are placed outdoors, it is better to put them in the shade.