I suppose it is a matter of taste, but I think your COTs look great. That's the look I'd like to achieve, however, mine are PIG.

I have found that I can prune mine any time of the year. In fact hubby says you can't kill it. (no, he doesn't like COT) Again - this plant is in the ground outside all year round with our mild winters. I have used clean hand pruners, loppers and a sharp knife. All worked well for me. I prefer the loppers to avoid getting poked.

This is the plant that I pruned yesterday. I cut fully 1/2 of it back. It was a round bush touching the ground and I am shooting for a more interesting form. I'll let it rest for a while before I take off some more to thin it out a little. I will (try to) root the long stems to get a look more like yours.

Crenda,
Oh wow, I like the look of yours, so bushy!

Can I prune mine back seeing as the stems on mine are more leafless than yours (If I prune mine back, it'll leave behind several stems with no leaves, as pruning them back will remove any leaves they have; just wanted to be sure that's okay)? How far back do you think I could prune them without killing them? Half or just a third? Thanks for the information!

Planto

I've never pruned mine,have thought about it,but that's as far as it goes.Here are the ones I have.

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PB quit working,so that's all for today.
Kathi

This is an 18 inch piece that I removed. It seems to have a lot more leaves along the stem than yours does. That could be the summer weather or the cultivar. But I thought "maybe" that is why I can cut back so far with no problems Just a thought. I would really hate to steer you the wrong way!

There's someone on here that has a lot of them,and she posted a few months ago,so she may be the one you need to talk with.

Put crown of thorns in the search box on this page and her link should come up. HTH
Kathi

Beautiful, Kathi!

Hi Planto,

There's a lot of these, in different varieties, colors & types. I've got 5 or 6 different ones myself.

Will you be growing indoors or out? I only grow 'em indoors. They can take pretty serious cutting back (which I've done).

I don't find yours particularly leggy, some of them grow that way.

If outdoors, maybe cut it back now & change the mix & the pot. Cutting it back now gives it all summer outside to grow back in.

If indoors, maybe correct the mix (fast draining mix is a must) & pot first, then cut back if you're still wanting to cut back.

This plant's sap is not among the famously horrid ones, still it's excellent you already know about it. I handle mine bare-handed w/out any trouble.

The key about this plant is to give it more water & fertilizer than one would think for a succulent. Ever since I adopted that advise, mine are in bloom more often & more profusely.

Kathi,
Thanks. I found her thread, Itran54. She does have some really nice looking COTs.

PG,
I find the pink one more leggy than the yellow one (I'll leave the yellow one alone). The pink one just has four stems, a couple are branching out, but I'd like more fullness. I hope I did okay, I repotted both (had to switch pots believe it or not, the pink one had a larger rootball and needed to go into the blue pot; it was bigger, and the yellow one went into the pink one's old pot). I changed the mix, nasty stuff! I went ahead and cut back the pink one, about halfway down each stem. I'm going to wait 2-3 days and stick them in water (I found your post about someone you know growing them in water, not to mention you did it successfully). They will both be grown outdoors until it gets too cold this winter. Can I stick the cuttings in a plastic or glass container and stick it in my south window, or should I just stick it somewhere bright in the house (or... stick it somewhere bright outside)?

Planto

Here's a picture of the repotted and pruned COT. *crosses fingers*

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Planto

Hi Planto,

Looks good, I'm guessing it'll be just fine. You'll see, some outdoors, fresh air, abundant water & fertilizer & bet you'll see how well it'll grow in.

All of mine grow in unobstructed west window -- my maximum direct sunlight, the water cutting somewhat shaded by a taller plant.

(PS to above, where I meant to say 'advice' I'd been given about abundant water & fertilizer.)

I only recently put a cutting in water 'cause I've failed repeatedly at rooting them in mix (at least 3 times). Given that, one of the elders in my plant society reminded me to do it in water. Well, it's doing so well, I plan to leave it there.

Bright is fine for yours, either indoors or out, (plastic or glass) don't know that it matters, maybe experiment trying both?

Mine are smaller since indoors, but here's a couple.

My red is quite leggy, given me that way, I'm cutting it back 1 arm at a time.

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This is one's small enough that's a styrofoam coffee cup (came that way, I just changed the mix).

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Happy little thing
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Hope I answered everything.

I start mine in a gritty mix. I have been doing a lot of cutback now. I just pot them up like they have roots and they strike fast. Let the cuts heal for about 4 days. No direct sun till rooted. COT comes in just about every color, make and model. Short bushy ones with small flowers to some that scare me how big they can get. They are addictive. Yours look great.

PG,
Thanks for the advice. I can afford to experiment! I like your little white COT; I'm normally not into white flowers, but yours is cute.

ilovetogrow,
I will keep the cuttings out of direct sun then. Thanks for sharing your picture, I love the coloring on yours!

Planto

Looks good, Planto! I saw some COT at HD that had cart jumper written all over them. Larger flowers, different colors. Looks like I'll have to go back after seeing everyone's pictures here!

Good luck on your cuttings. Let us know how they do.