How to prune a jade plant

15 years ago

I've seen many postings on how to prune jade plants but they all seem to be for larger, well established plants. The plant I have is about 9 months old and it would be laughable to even compare it to a tree or bush. I need detailed instructions on where to trim it. For example, above the lowest leaf, or below the topmost leaf? right on the edge of the leaf growth or more in the middle of the stem?)

Here is a picture of my plant. I want to encourage a wider, stronger trunk and a more "tree-like" appearance with more branches.

also, can anyone tell me why my leaves are more pointed and not as thick as the other plants on here? i water my plant about once a week which i now realize is waayyy too often. is that why the leaves aren't storing as much water?

As a side note, can anyone identify this plant for me? I got it at wal-mart for like 50 cents when it was 3-4 leaves big.

Oh, this is my first post on the forum by the way! Hello, everyone =]

Featured Answer

joscience

15 years ago

If you are serious about wanting a more tree like appearance, you have to provide this plant with way more light. Over the course of three weeks or so, gradually introduce it to more and more light. Ultimately it should be getting full sun for a minimum of half a day, but would even be better all day. You plant is currently etiolated (severely lacking light) which is why it looks so stretched out and the leaves are elongated. Pruning it now will only result in more of the same, unhealthy growth. The other thing the plant needs to get thicker stems is time. Not a year, not two years, but many years. In maybe five years you could expect to have a plant that doesn't look like a cutting anymore, assuming you start giving it an appropriate amount of light. When properly grown, the stems will be much thicker and the plant will generally look much more substantial.

Despite the fact I've recommended against pruning at this point, no one ever wants to do things the patient way, so here are some quick tips about pruning Jades.

Always prune just above a leaf node. The stem will die back to the node, so there is no reason to leave any more than necessary.
Jades will almost always branch at the node you just pruned above. So, if you want it to branch in a particular spot, prune just above that node.
You can prune as little or as much as you want. You could prune all the way down to the soil, and as long as the plant had some roots to begin with, and is kept warm, it will produce new leaves and go right back to growing.
Spring and early summer are the best time to prune.

That second plant is "Elephant's Food," Portulacaria afra. Everything I said for the Jade goes for that plant too.

Finally, welcome to GardenWeb!

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Comments (7)

greenman28 NorCal 7b/8a
15 years ago
Yep, Welcome, Green Claws! I agree with everything Jo wrote!

Pruning will encourage a thicker trunk.

Next question: what kind of soil is it in?

Josh
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Very beautiful! Okay, start by trimming off any downward hanging branches to reduce the overall weight and to allow you better access to the branches. Then, identify the branches that are throwing the whole thing out of balance (whichever way the plant is leaning), and chop off the tips at a convenient location. Don't concern yourself with bare spots or ugly stubs right now....trust me, those areas will fill back in over the next year. Essentially, "chase" the foliage back to a point closer to the container so that the weight is distributed more evenly above the main trunk/s. Josh
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I have had branches fall off of a jade tree before. It generally left a clean 'scar' on the trunk or branch. Like this - When that has happened, my plant was too wet. It can be a problem for me during the wet and rainy summers with high temps (which can also cause the jades to sort of shut down for a little while). You may want to be sure your pots are drying out well between watering intervals. On the left side you can see where I had trimmed a branch. It is rougher, but healed over well. You can get new growth from that area where the branch was jettisoned. (a different plant here - I guess I've had it happen a few times!) And of course, after pruning you will get new growth. This jade plant looked similar to your plant. Its branches were shaky or bouncy or floppy acting, too, because all the leaves were at the end of the long branches. So I gave this one a good whack. It looks pretty good now - about a year later. You can clearly see a pruned area that has branched with new growth on the upper right. Like Rina said, I like to leave some leaves on the plant when I give it a good whack. I don't think it is necessary, but I feel like the leaves help feed the plant and lead to a faster recovery. And after the plant recovers from the first cuts (as marked by Rina or others of your choosing) and start showing new growth, you can go back and prune more from other branches if you choose to do so. I have the advantage of keeping my plants outdoors all year long. So adequate sunlight is not a problem. Be sure you are getting the best light available during the winters. If it can go outside during the summer that would be great. Just introduce it to full sun slowly so it doesn't burn. Good luck! I'm sure things will work out fine for your jade.
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NP, they are showing now. Pretty good looking plants. 1st needs support because it has big branches growing bit 'wildly' (that is not a criticism :), one I can see is too much to the side. Not a problem, you can just prune one off, or prune some of the smaller branches off to make it more balanced. I am only looking at the photo - but think I would prune off the left branch and the lowest big branch. When repotting, I would get original plant into more upright position. Just a suggestion... As jades get bigger, you should decide what shape you want them to grow into. That is personal preference - I like one thick stem/trunk (that's why I said to prune extra branches off). Once you decide, pruning in early spring will help to keep plants balanced and grow the way you like. Variegated jade looks like 'Tricolor' (but I can't see it clearly), and they are as easy to propagate from leaves as green ones. Sometimes they revert to all green, but will grow. They just grow bit slower in my experience. But plant is very small, and you should grow it bigger before taking leaves on - they feed the plant and help it grow. I have many grown from leaves and also from stem cuttings. The colorful plant is probably sedum and could be propagated very easily from leaves or stem cuttings.
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green_claws
Original Author
15 years ago
=[ just in regular old potting soil. i didn't know what it was when i originally bought it, it only had two leaves at the time and was 2' tall! i read somewhere that a mix of 50% potting soil and 50% perlite makes a good succulent soil. so, where do i get this magical perlite? or is there a better thing on the market that's easier to find like... at walmart or something?

oh, i pruned my plant!! I cut it all the way down and left about 1.5 inches of the two stems. each stem has one leaf on it, and one of those leaves has a tiny cluster of baby leaves on it (maybe you can see it in the picture?) it was a pretty risky move on my part, but knowing that i could replant the cuttings helped ease the anxiety. should i go all out and wack off those two remaining leaves? if all else fails, i've got 4 cuttings which have atleast 4 leaves each, and also one large leaf to replant.
naturalsucculents
15 years ago
as far as those few leaves you left on before pruning, personally id leave them till they either decide to remove themselves or look ungainly... your choice of course....

just like to say, phew!!! been trying to find a cool site like this for a while... From Ca, living in France now, and yikes they dont like gardening here.. hahahha

luckily, in the south, that means finding stray succulents is nearly around every corner... i must have 20 unidentified types growing on my balcony now... having a little bit of an aphid problem atm, or i'd post some fotos...

let me get them looking tops again, and ill share then... probably near end of summer... again... great to be here....
sjm1108us
13 years ago
Hello all,
I've been reading green claws back and forth Q & A been very helpfull to me in "how to prune a jade", only problem for me is the when. I'm in new jersey where its still in the high 40 mid 50's in the middle of april. if anyone can come back with a good tempurture so the jade will at least feel like its spring time, that will help alot.

When I prune the plant how big does the cutting have to be to propigate?

Thanks
Stephen
Ryan
12 years ago
Hi Stephen.

Last year I was at my financial advisor's office, and during our meeting, a stem (~1") of her jade plant with two leaves on it fell off her plant. She handed it to me, told me to put it in some dirt when I got home, and now I have a foot tall jade plant. My understanding is that if you put just about any part of a jade plant in the ground and water it, it will grow.

I'm afraid that I don't know about the temperatures. My plant is indoors in Toronto. Although the temperature of the plant hasn't changed, it has been growing much better in recent months, so I think it knows that it's spring because of the hours of light that it's getting.

Peace,
Ryan
aseret
12 years ago
I'd be very careful with sun on the jade plant..I once put one in full sun & it got "sun-burned" Many of the leaves got scortched...just give it lots of light & some sun. Good luck

How to prune a jade plant

joscience

Comments (7)

greenman28 NorCal 7b/8a

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How to prune a jade plant

joscience

Comments (7)

greenman28 NorCal 7b/8a

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naturalsucculents

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Ryan

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