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Cacti & Succulents

Hens and chickens need help

SnailLover (MI - zone 5a)

9 years ago

These guys are starting to look a little sad. I need to repot them but I don't know how to deal with all the dead leaves. Can I pluck them off? I usually leave the pot outside in the summer and bring in for winter. Could they survive a harsh Michigan winter if I planted them outside somewhere?

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Comments (7)

brodyjames_gw
9 years ago
Hi SnailLover,

Yes and yes. Sempervivum are alpine plants, so they can take our winters just fine.

Nancy
SnailLover (MI - zone 5a)
Original Author
9 years ago
Thanks Nancy. I'm probably overthinking this, but I'm unsure about the transplanting. Will the plants all be connected by the same roots and come out in a big mass? Or will I be able to pull out each individual, um, chicken(?) and clean off the dead leaves, and plop it in new soil?
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brodyjames_gw
9 years ago
No, I'm pretty sure they are all separate. The roots may be quite the tangled mess, so if you break some, don't worry about it. I pluck off the dead leaves too; I can't stand how sloppy they look.

I believe that your plants are stretched from not enough light (understandable what with being indoors for the winter) so just make sure you acclimate them slowly to both the sun and cool temps (if you choose to start putting your pot out now). Once it stays steadily in the 60's, I think you could transfer them to the ground. Ideally, these are rock garden plants, so if you have an area like that, these would fit in nicely. The plants will also stretch like that when they produce a flower stalk.

FYI: The "mom" is the hen and any little plantlets that she produces are called chicks. After blooming, mom dies, leaving the chicks to carry on the circle of life.

Nancy
SnailLover (MI - zone 5a)
Original Author
9 years ago
Thank you! This is on my to-do list for the weekend.
KittieKAT
9 years ago
Ipluck the dead leaves and mine seem to stretch regardless of the full sun they get Lol! But that might be cause they might be flowering soon. Some chicks are on rollers and others just pop right off, these are prob not on a line so you can just pluck them and plant them after you take all the dead leaves off.
bikerdoc5968 Z6 SE MI
9 years ago
I'm not great with some succulent ID's but I must question the ID and wonder if your plants aren't Aeonium. If they are, they certainly will not handle our Michigan winters. I may be way out in left field about the ID and apologize if I'm wrong.

This post was edited by bikerdoc5968 on Sat, May 17, 14 at 15:11
SnailLover (MI - zone 5a)
Original Author
9 years ago
Thanks all. I cleaned them up and repotted today. They came apart fairly easily. I used the same pot, put gravel in the bottom, and mixed some sand with succulent potting soil. I just used materials I had on hand. Hopefully that will make them happier.

One of the smaller ones broke off from the root stem. I stuck it in dirt anyway. Think it will take off?

Bikerdoc, if that is the case, I ended up keeping them in the pot anyway. I have way too many outdoor garden projects planned as it is!

This post was edited by SnailLover on Sat, May 17, 14 at 17:59

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