Very well done. They're so beautifully grown. Congratulations :)

Thanks! First time growing these particular ones, so it was a big mystery on how it would be beneath the soil. Feeling pretty happy that my mix is working out!

They look great! What are you using for mix? Several of mine have been unhappy in gritty-type mixes, to my frustration...

Breton - Here's the mix I used on my repot. The original mix had a tiny bit of sifted perlite added in as well, which I think is helpful for plants with poor roots. All the original mix was reused in the slightly bigger pots since it was still in good condition and already moist.

In this case, I think it was probably something like 65% grit, 25% turface, 5% perlite, and 5% fir bark. It's a lot easier for me to just mix it by eye.

For plants with issues in gritty mix, I think the top reasons I have experienced are:

1. Roots are tiny and deep in center of plant/hard to reach (water by soaking slightly above soil level).
2. Plant appears drought stressed (water more frequently).
3. Plant appears drought stressed (reduce light exposure until roots better established).
4. Mix is too dry and cannot hold moisture long enough (modify ingredients/particle size).
5. Plant is over watered/potentially rotting (sift mix particles if not done).
6. Plant is over watered/potentially rotting (reduce pot size).
7. Pot is taking too long to dry (add ventilation fan).
8. Pot is taking too long to dry (don't use a saucer, raise pot on plastic egg-grid).

Does this cover any of your issues? Or are you having any other problem? Hopefully I can suggest something!

Additional note: Of course, establishing roots is the hardest part and when conditions are least forgiving.

By taking non-invasive steps such as fans/light/watering adjustments, I often find an imperfect mix can be managed long enough (as long as it was reasonably close in the first place). Then when the roots have started growing it's a breeze from there out.

Nice to see fat healthy plants ready for the next size! I love the windows on the tip of the leaves.
see some of the issues I've dealt with in your list, as well.

I've gone to small clay porous pots. I water shallowly until plant is firm when tugged. I'm glad mine are forgiving as well. I find that if I maintain some watering throughout the entire year, even on hottest and coldest times in California, my plants do not go dormant.

ewwmayo, do you find that dormancy has a an impact on plant growth size or anything else?

ewwmayo, thank you for posting so thoroughly with photos and all the percentages of your mixes. I have learned a lot from reading here, and especially your posts which are very complete. I have a difficult time with some of my Haws, although they do better overall in some kind of gritty mix (with or without bark, with or without perlite, more grit, less turface etc). I remember someone on GW once describing Haws as house decorations, meaning they could sit comfortably on a patio for more than a year, doing absolutely nothing but being decorative. Again, thanks for the info and instructions -- very valuable. And your new plants are lovely.

Kevin (ewwmayo) - I am not sure, but thinking about your light set up and watering & fertilizing routine, I wouldn't think they have real dormancy period? - or is it different (the routine) for these plants than what you mentioned about your succulents?

Thanks Kevin! I kind of suspect my overall problem is under watering. I have been a bit leery of watering these too frequently, as I switched to plastic pots for several last summer and a gritty- type mix, and they promptly lost their roots in the heat of summer, the first time any Haw has done this under my care. I give them a good drenching when I water (but won't be in heat of summer anymore) but am thinking a soaking might work a bit better for these plants. The ones I have switched back to a more water-retentive 1:1 mix of lean soil and perlite rooted quite quickly. I've been using a gritty type mix of about 45%grit, 40% turface, with 5- 10% lean soil, a mix that my Aloes, Crassulas and Echeverias seem to love. Other Haws are thriving in it now, also in plastic pots.

Most of my Haws are in a south facing window for winter, moved outside to a shadier spot for summer.

Aztcqn - Graduating plants to the next size post is such a good feeling! Thanks for your care method too.

Some of my plants go semi-dormant, even though I water throughout the year like you. I don't think anything goes fully dormant though, at least not to the point where I worry about watering.

I find dormancy mostly affects growth rate: Some plants of mine grow vigorously, but then just slow down to a crawl as the season changes (winter or hottest part of summer). They do get dehydrated/thirsty and respond well to watering, but don't do much other than plump back up.

I only have one plant that is supposed to go totally dormant, a Cheiridopsis peculiaris, but mine was in a weird stage for the time of year when I got it. It seems most people don't have that happen anyway? Still have no idea what's going on with it!

The second biggest change I find for dormant plants is root condition: Active plants have nice white roots with lots of feeders like my photos from above. Inactive plants have a much lower root mass and most are desiccated. Thicker tap and primary roots stay, but may become a little shriveled.

I've found this by unpotting succulents throughout the year (including Lithops and Mesembs), mostly out of space-saving and curiosity.

Probably dormancy is the most confusing part for me if I'm not familiar with a particular plant or species. Hard to tell what I'm doing wrong when nothing is wrong! (Except my lack of knowlege.)

Robin - Thanks! I hope you eventually figure out those Haws that are giving you trouble. How are you changing up your mix with more of less of each ingredient? Just curious. =)

Rina - I'm still running 'seasons' indoors by light duration and temperature (somewhat). Most of my succulents didn't go dormant and continued to actively grow throughout the winter. Definitely the rate of growth changes throughout the year though, it's noticeable!

These little Haworthia don't get any different treatment from my other succulents anymore. They're watered at the same time and I've increased their light levels a bit as well.

For some reason, I haven't seen fertilizing to have caused any changes in dormancy? The plants that had little-to-no-growth-periods didn't seemed harmed/different by having the nutrients available. Seems to go along with the theory that plants only use nutrients when they are needed.

Haven't done extensive testing on this, but that's my current understanding anyway!

Breton - I had trouble with a few plants in the hottest portion of the summer as well. If the roots weren't quite ready, it was a bit too much for them to handle on my rooftop.

The concept of using a more retentive mix (like your perlite + soil) and switching to a less retentive one (gritty or other customized mix) later is a good one. As long as the temporary mix is chunky enough that minimal root damage occurs when repotting, the re-establishing time is quite minimal. I've favouring this technique more often actually, results have been good.

I've also switched many plants (including Mesembs) to plastic pots. The differences haven't been wildly different for me. Maybe in the very beginning I have to be a bit more careful about staying wet for too long, but after a little while the roots colonize the space and the water is used up fairly quickly anyway.

Kevin

I've also switched many to plastic, partly because I can fit more square pots in my space than round ones, and because it decreases watering frequency for most. Large plants (6 inch pots or larger) stay in clay, mostly to decrease overwatering risk but partly to increase stability in my windy climate.

another thing I have been wondering about is pot depth for Haws. Do you use deeper pots for yours? I've rooted a haw offset in straight turface and the roots were surprisingly long, so long I could not put it in a standard square pot without twisting or cutting the roots.

Breton - Think I forgot, did you mention where you get your square pots? I'm needing many more for the space reason!

I managed to get a few taller/deeper plastic pots, which came in handy. I try to pot so the tap roots don't hit the bottom. All other roots, I'm not so picky about how they end up. Just preferably not all on the bottom of the pot.

Kevin,

Years ago I purchased a bunch of 2 and 2.5 inch squares from a local seed supplier (Halifax Seed) but they no longer carry anything smaller than a deep 3.5 (at least not in retail) which is deeper than I would like for most plants. I have some dollar store ones too, but I am reluctant to try them out, as they are supposedly biodegradable...this summer I may put some spare plants in them!

the search for larger shallow squares continues....

Kevin great pics as usual. Seeing your Crystal Ball makes me wish I would have purchased one from STC when they were available... now they're gone. So if it ever throws an offset, please keep me in mind. I did get the truncata and hope I will live long enough to see it mature. The windows on your obtusa look "brighter" than mine, but could just be time of day or something. There's no question that the gritty mix makes a major difference for me and survivability.

Breton - I'll see if seed suppliers here carry pots too, thanks for the tip. I bought those dollar store pots, but didn't take the plunge in using them yet either.

Aztcqn - I've found the same, none of my three cymbiformis types go dormant either in the heat. They seem to pup rather well, so I'm sure yours will be more than back on track soon.

Last fall I bought one nice ceramic bonsai pot that I haven't dared to use yet. It's a little shallow like yours, but not quite as wide. Once the weather gets nice enough outside, I'll definitely fill it up and experience the watering-difference. Those two emelyae x herbacea have a pretty cool pattern!

Howard - Definitely will keep you in mind if my 'Crystal Ball' ever offsets. =)

Wish I knew how old the STC reference 'Maruko' plant is. Right now it seems like quite some time away. At least I can see the distinctive leaf shape taking form though.

'Murasaki' appears quite dark unless light hits it at the right angle. It appears quite green inside the leaves, but on the outside the colour is more purplish. From what I've seen online, this is not unusual when they are small? Is this your observation as well? Really hoping by the end of spring it will start looking nice and interesting.

Kevin,

Forgot to mention I got a nice lot of small square pots from a generous forum member south of the border! I am still using them up for smaller plants!

Breton, I would be interested in a DEEP 3" or 3.5" ridged walled square pot. Many Haworthia send out very deep roots.

Howard, I will show you a photo of them shortly...

Howard, I emailed you a photo of the pots I found..

Sorry for being so rude and not responding. I have 3.5" X 5" thin wall square pots but want something more substantial like my 2.25" X 3.25" green square pots.

Haha, you are not rude at all, sorry I took so long to respond in the first place! The ones I found are not flimsy, but maybe a little less stiff than the small green ones..let me know what you think.

Today at bought a Haworthia Truncata. The soil was way, way too moist as it's been raining quite frequently in the afternoons. It was also clear that the mix was mostly soil so I decided to remove it from the pot to take a look. To my surprise, the plant looked almost root bound. The roots look otherwise healthy. Actually, it seems like a lot of root for a small plant. I was planning to use a bonsai dish which is only 2" in depth - that's 1 1/2" less that the pot it currently sits in. Should I or can I cut the roots without damaging the plant, is it OK to let the roots lay horizontally, or should I just go to plan and get a different pot? I will appreciate you sharing your experience.

That's called J-rooting, and it's to be avoided. Yes, you can trim the roots if you need the same pot, and the roots should be culled for anything unhealthy anyway, but they should be pointing down when you repot it, always.

Thanks, cactusmcharris. I replied on the second post. Sorry! Thought of opening a thread as I was unsure if anyone would look at this older post.