I have a longish yarn about me and my jade.

Ive always been fond of jade. I remember many years ago admiring the jade hedges on our block in Santa Monica. When I look at my jades they impart a sense of peace to me. WeÂve been together for a few years now. I donÂt remember if I have the original cutting/plant. Probably not. Which one is Memorex?

IÂve moved the biggest plants at least 3 times, to different houses, within the last twelve years. This has meant finding summer and winter locations for them. Summer outside and winter inside. They canÂt enjoy ideal spots inside, too big, so I think that they need to go outside in the summer and get some direct sun annually.

IÂm 43"18ÂN Â 79"46ÂW, around Toronto, Ontario Canada. Almost the same lat/long as Minneapolis.

I only keep the two biggest now. Forced to by the size and weight. Along the way IÂve had many misadventures, losing plants, but theyÂre resilient and hardy. Probably another reason to bond with them.

We moved to our latest house in September of this year. I located them outdoors, on the south side of the new house. They were happy. They still got some of that burn, as shown on another post, which I too regard as sunburn. But leaves stayed healthy except for the fried patches, and the plants thrived.

We have a split level. I decided that the jades would winter on the floor of a level which is half underground. They had a north facing window, which is at ground level. Weak winter sun, for short days because of an adjacent house and angle.

In they came. And I worried and I tried very hard not to over water. Well the great news is they flourished. And they bloomed & the leaves got plump and shone. Plants were happy. The only things were they shed some leaves (shriveling up), which I think is normal and the leaves lost some ÂgreennessÂ. I kept my eye on them but they were very happy.

I have never kept any record and have difficulty remembering everything. But I know for a fact that this was the best winter ever for them. (Last year they were kept in a garage, never went below 45 degrees.) They loved their new location!

They were doing so well back then that I found this forum and was going to post some pictures to brag a little. They sure looked pretty in bloom, the best IÂve ever had.

So now spring arrived and I was pretty sure that we were not going to get any more frost, late April I think. I wanted to get them out early so they could start on some shorter days and weaker sun and they would adapt easier to outdoors. Too big to move daily, for cover, so theyÂre Ârooted to the spot. IÂve moved them outside later in the year only to have the leaves burn so went this way.

I placed them back on the south side of the house.

And then it started. Leaves falling off both plants.

Some leaves were burnt but the majority fell almost like a rot. Plump leaves falling off and the joints/breaks were fresh and green. I didnÂt know what to do. I thought theyÂd adapt. They nearly denuded themselves while I waited. And even stems started falling off. Stocks still felt firm and dry.

I moved them to the west side of the house, and put them under an eave so they wouldnÂt get any rain water. That way I could put them back on their winter watering regime. And they didnÂt get any direct sun until the afternoon.

Well they are coming back strong. Here are some pics. You can see lots & lots of new growth on the big plant. The small pot really took a kicking. Bit of an ugly duckling. After reading here I realize itÂs made up of a few plants/cuttings. Think IÂll study some of the plants here and do some shaping. Compared to some here my big one has more of a cluttered look than I prefer.

I think I need to repot them too. TheyÂve been at the new location for over a month. IÂd pot them back into their same pots, but with new soil. IÂve used 50% sand & 50% potting soil forever - ok? Been at least 2 years in current pot and soil.

So repot now or wait till the fall?

Same thing with pruning  now or the fall?

And somebody said cinnamon for rubbing on the prune cuts on the plant?

After reading the FAQ IÂll leave them in situ for the rest of the summer.

thanks for reading.

{{gwi:566283}}

{{gwi:566284}}

{{gwi:566285}}

{{gwi:566286}}

{{gwi:566287}}