Succulent House Plants

What kind of thoughts started penetrating your mind when you first heard the term succulent house plants? I am sure it must be something very juicy. This is exactly what succulent means, something full of juice or stuffed with moisture and this is one of the characteristics of a succulent plan. It is one of the most efficient types of house plants that retains water, like cactus, in their fleshy leaves, roots and pockets. They are very good indoor ornamental plants that require minimum maintenance and care. These plants come in various shapes, sizes, colors and types. These plants very easily survive in the desert and are adaptable to climate change as well. They can even tolerate a very high temperature during the day and a low temperature at night.

Succulent plants propagate, that is, they transmit from one generation to the next if you already have one, you don't need to go the nursery again to get another for yourself. Just take a piece of it and carefully replant it following the methods for planting and thus, you can grow many out of just one plant. This simplicity of it makes it an excellent houseplant as well as office plant.

Common Succulent Plants

• Jade Plant - Crassula Ovata: Jade plant is also called 'money tree.' This plant has a bunch of stout leaves that are dark in color with beautiful small flowers that blossom especially in spring. During winters, jade needs water just once a month, but in summers, it needs water after every two weeks. Jade should only be pruned in spring.
• Ponytail Palm - Beaucarnearecuvata: It looks similar to a palm tree, but is shorter in height. It does not grow well on windowsills, rather it should be planted at a distance of a few feet. In summers, it requires water after every three weeks and one or two times in winters. The leaves grow more than 2 feet indoors and more than 20 feet if planted outdoor.
• Aloe - Aloe Vera: The most well-known type of aloe is aloe vera, that is popular for its medicinal benefits. It requires water only once a week and lesser sunlight in comparison to Jade and Ponytail palm. It grows maximum up to eight inches which is quite manageable for indoor plants. It has spines similar to cactus, but is not at all prickly.

Succulent Plant Care

Before we talk about how to care for these plants, let us first try to learn about identifying them. See if the plant is similar to cacti because cacti is also a member of succulent family. Keep in mind that all succulents are not cacti, but all cacti are succulents. The plant can also be identified by its thick fleshy leaves that retain water and have spines that are mostly not sharp and prickly.

As said earlier, these plants require least maintenance. They require water occasionally and even regular pruning is not required. But the most essential requirement of this plant is sunlight, so it should be preferably kept in a porch or around a window, where it receives sufficient sunlight. There lifespan is quite long and sometimes, they self-feed if not provided with water for a long time. The water should be given to the plants once the soil has dried up completely because excess of water may rot the roots or might create a suitable environment for fungus to destroy your plant.

So many benefits and less maintenance and care of these plants makes it one of the favorites of not only gardeners, but also of housewives. If you are planning to have a succulent species as the primary plant of your landscape, then it will definitely look beautiful, save your money on water and of course it will also contribute in conserving this precious resource!