Hi Britni. I would let the cuttings scab over for about a week before planting them in soil. Then once planted you will want to watch for new growth to begin before you water. This could take 4 or more weeks, so if you are questioning whether your cuttings are beginning to root, you can carefully take them out of the soil each week to check them.

As for your soil, the ingredients all sound okay to me. The only one I would question is the sand. From just what I have gathered I believe if you use sand you will want it to be course and porous, not the very fine sand. Very fine particles can cause compaction of the soil which can lead to drainage issues.

The plants that are already rooted can be planted right away. I would hold off on watering for about a week to give the roots an opportunity to heal.

Good luck to you!

Tracy

I agree sand is bad. I learned the hard way about the roots though when i was first starting out. I would only try a light tug at most. Seeing new growth is probably the best way to tell. Pulling a plant in and out of your mix all the time is kind of counterproductive. You could damage,what roots were growing. Just my 2 cents worth. Hope this helps. Good luck! :)

Awesome thank you guys! I'd heard you can just leave the cuttings on the mix and they'll start to grow roots towards the soil? is that ok or better to actually plant the end of the cutting once it's rooted enough? And as for the al's gritty mix can I mix a couple bags of it with what I have to use up what I have? (I only have the amount of sand u see in that bowl mix and maybe one more bowl mix to plant all my critters.)

If not that's ok id rather them be happy than saving the stuff I have. It did seem quite compact to me so I'm glad I checked it. Quite moist too.

That fertilizer, is there a specific nutrient ratio to look for or is it all the same? And how much do u use say per gal? And if u dont use the whole gal can u keep it to use next time or should u only make what u need?

Another question are they better inside my 73 degree kept non humid house facing south (only window option) or outside in the very humid 83 ish degrees?

Thanks again everyone and yes this is an addictive hobby for sure! :)

Britni

And would the cuttings be better healing over inside or out (same temp conditions obviously)

Hi Britni,

You mentioned not knowing which plants you had there. The larger one in the back of the first pot is a Kalanchoe fedtschenkoi 'aurora borealis' while the one front and to the right is a Portulacaria afra variegata 'rainbow elephant bush'.

-Erica

I live in florida where there's only 2-3 winter months of a year. Is that ok to use the rest of the months as growing months? Or should I start sign down there feedings and waterings in fall so they think it's winter time?

I think it would definitely benefit you to pot these all separately. I know Florida is very humid. Hopefully Crenda sees this and can add to the discussion of your climate.

I think when they think it's winter largely depends on the actual temperature and light conditions. There are some plants that will not do well outside during the Summer due to the humidity. A lot of species go dormant in the Winter while a few are considered to be Winter growers.

I would advise you to be very careful with watering during high humidity months.

-Erica

It's seems most of your questions have been answered. Except one regarding mixing the gritty mix with what you have. I do not suggest doing that. Mixing any kind of fine particles in with the gritty mix defeats the purpose of the mix. The purpose of the mix is (basically) to create a media that has little spaces between the particles for air to flow through and limits the perched water (basically no water retention). The water sits on the surface of the particles, where the roots use it, and the rest just flows right through.

I think you could sift the fines out of the mix you have and reuse the coarse stuff that is left.

I'm more worried about the humidity here.. (but just an FYI if I can figure out the humidity I'll be buying everything to change to the al's gritty mix) I kinda feel like there may be no point as everything won't live with the humidity.. Does anyone here grow succulents in florida? If so what do you use to keep the humidity down or how do you alter your watering schedule to accommodate for the humidity?

Hi Britni! Welcome to the world of succulents! Where in Florida are you and what zone are you in? I'm in Cape Coral. I don't adjust water or fertilizer by time of year, but by whether the plant is actively growing or not.

All of my plants are outside, even cuttings and leaves that I am rooting. Do you have a covered lanai? Mine is south facing. I get lots of bright light without direct sun, so it has worked well for me in propagating succulents. I also have a ceiling fan in the lanai, so that helps with air circulation when I need it. Can you believe my husband wanted me to move the plants so we could eat outside last night! LOL

These guys are in full sun like nearly everything else. The green pot on the right has been a dumping ground of leaves from my burro's tail. It's been in full sun the whole time. The sedum on the left was just moved into full sun. And your south facing window indoors is ideal for propagating.

hi crenda I'm in venice and same zoning as you. I was going to make up some of the al's gritty mix is it worth it? Or should I do something different? def need to get rid of what I have. Think they're staying too wet without even being watered.. pulled them all out and laid them on my tray of cuttings. How long can they live out of A soil/gritty mix?

Al's gritty mix was definitely worth it for me. I have left a trail of dead succulents from Ohio to Illinois to Memphis, TN. I am absolutely horrible at growing plants indoors! So I decided to give it another go. I started with 2 compacta jades. I now have 30 or so of different varieties. That is just the jades! Honestly, it is the weather and the mix that has made me a success of sorts. If you think you will be trying more succulents, then by all means I recommend getting the ingredients for Al's mix. It also makes repotting easier in the future.

For my mix I use Reptibark from Pet Smart (or any pet store), granite chicken grit from The Farm Store or perlite in a pinch, and NAPA Oil dry #8822 since I have a hard time finding turface. Sift and rinse, drain, mix and use. You can always tweak the ingredients for your specific plants or conditions.

Your plants can stay out a few days with no soil or mix. You can mist them if they are looking a little dry to you.

On the vinegar - I guess it depends on your well water. Adding vinegar to water for acid loving plants like gardenia is fine. I have never done it with other plants. BTW - if you plant any gardenias, be sure that they are grafted. Otherwise nematodes will kill them.

so which of these is better more or less weight? Or does it even matter? I found a great deal on chicken grit stage 2 3/16th size 50lbs bag for like 13 bucks shipped!

And where did you find the Napa oil dry? Did you order it or did u go to a local store?

Yeah, That's pretty cheap!

I don't know that the weight matters so much as the actual particle size. You want each ingredient to be the same size. The Napa floor dry is just am alternative that people use who have trouble finding Turface. The original recipe does call for Turface but they essentially do the same thing.

http://www.fleetfarm.com/detail/Cherry-Stone-2-Poultry-Grit---50-Lb./0000000096432?utm_source=googleps&utm_medium=shopping%2Bsearch&utm_campaign=google%2Bproduct%20search&gslfah&gclid=CMuslbeGxcQCFQpk7AodynQAVg

Here's the grit. I ordered two bags outta fear I'd miss it with my luck the price would go up.. so 100 lbs for 26 bucks shipped. Can't order both at the same time tho they throw on a 50 dollar shipping charge. So two 13 dollar shipped charges for each bag. Im having to get the floor dry too.. I ordered 2 24qt bags and have to go get them today. Not sure how much that'll make but have to wait on my sieve till Monday I think.. or tomorrow it could be here! :) getting excited! What do you all store yours in? I saw a 50gal tub or something but does it start to mold or anything?

And does anyone use any type of water that is available to everyone? Like bottle water or everyone use tap? Is there any tests I need to do to my water to be sure it's ok? What are adequate levels? I bought some ph litmus papers that should be here tomorrow. Other than that anything that should or should not be in the water that I'll need to fix?

I also bought some dyna grow foliage pro 9-3-8 (suggested on the al's gritty mix discussion on here) it'll be better at half strength right?

I keep mine in plastic tubs like you mentioned. I make sure to keep the lid on when I'm not using it. I did get some snow in the turface bin one day but it didn't really seem to matter. The ingredients come dry so unless you wet them they shouldn't get moldy. I have a lot of bins in my shed, it's a lot of product to sift and sort all at once so I have several bins for organizing.

I use tap water. I ordered some bonsai screens from Bonsai Jack on Amazon to use to keep the gritty mix from falling out of the drainage holes and it came with a free pH test. I had used it all along but I figured it couldn't hurt to check it. It came out almost a perfect 7 surprisingly. Honestly I don't really know what it should be but I am almost certain 7 is neutral.

I just ordered Foliage Pro as well. But I have a lot of plants already in gritty mix that I haven't fertilized yet. I am going to start once they make the move outside into warmer, sunnier conditions. I would definitely cut down the strength but I am not sure how much yet.

I usually buy the Manna Pro bags of chicken grit, 3 at a time. That makes a pretty decent sized amount. So far I haven't used the entire bag of Repti-Bark and I have gone through 5 bags of that chicken grit. I just ordered 3 more so I will probably need more bark soon. To me, buying all these ingredients, sifting it, and mixing it myself is definitely worth the trouble over buying pre-made soil.

By the way, that supplier is perfect for chicken grit. I am going to order a bag myself so I don't have to keep buying the smaller bags! Nice find.

Is the pH all that really needs to be tested? Or should other tests be done too?