Hi Summer. Happy New Year's. You heard right, Crotons are fussy. :) But, they're also beautiful, colorful tropicals. Do you know which Croton you have? Can you post a pic or describe? The reason I'm asking, some Crotons are hardier than others. Location makes a big difference too. This is how I care for my two. They're in an unobstructed west window. Room temperature is around 70F during the day, 65/6F at night. Crotons need humidity and fresh circulating air. If the area is too dry and stuffy, Spider Mites are likely. I spray/mist daily, and shower in the sink once a week. Keep away from heaters. Far away. Dry/gas heat will suck foliage dry. Fertilize with a balanced fertilizer, (10-10-10 or 20-20-20) during growing season, when new growth sprouts..then stopped when growth slows down or stops completely. In winter, place in the brightest window, color fades if given poor light. In summer/ soil should be kept moderately moist, but when days shorten, soil needs to dry between waterings. Don't let plant sit in water. The aquarium will help, as long as the bottom of pot/roots aren't sitting in water, where it can be sucked up through drainage holes. Inspect your Croton for insects, once a week. This is most important. Look under leaves and between stems. That's about it...good luck, Toni

I got some decently lit pics today, here's a few more from the collection! A better view of the big one: A bonsai-esque dwarf variety of some kind: This one is a broadleaf cultivar with blotchy colours.. I had to cut it back as its old leaves were not acclimating well and spider mites were starting to have at it. So, I went for a drastic haircut, which seems to have worked out okay, as it's been growing back slowly the last couple months! Might be same cultivar as the big one, not sure though as the "rippled" effect seems to appear in some leaves. I've cut it back each year for two years, hoping to develop a nice looking bushy plant some day out of it. Hard to get a good pic of this one on an iPhone camera but it's certainly one of the stranger ones I have. I think the cultivar was labelled as "devil's paintbrush" or somesuch. Didn't handle going from the garden centre to the home very well as first, but after a couple haircuts its growing well enough. Haven't fully recovered the colour yet though, wondering if it needs more or less sun. Bit of a weird one I haven't seen at any garden centres since getting it.. long leaves like the Banana cultivar but fades to red/pink instead: The second croton I ever bought. When I got it it was very leggy and in a tiny 2" container, I've given it regular haircuts which have done well for it. (The third one I ever bought has since died, as has any of that cultivar I've bought since.. the very-long-leaved brght-yellow ones just don't last long with me for some reason!) This one seems to be a relatively close cultivar to the previous, but the leaves seem different to me, enough to nearly convince me it's a different cultivar.. it certainly grows slower and with larger leaves: Bought this one last week. I noticed today as an added bonus it has started to product a flower stem! I guess it likes me. As usual, came with spider mites, I have it in quarantine away from my sunroom at the moment: Here is a link that might be useful: All these photos on a Google Plus Album

i thought croutons were a piece of stale bread in a salad.. go figure... hit the link .... from my short review.. i don't see propagation by leaf ... but whats the harm in trying.. slice it clean.. stick it in some media in a pot.. cover with a plastic bag ... it either rots or grows... good luck ken Here is a link that might be useful: link

Interesting. Maybe I'll try it both ways - see if one roots in water, although I seem to recall trying that once before without success.