There are many good recipes, but for an easy potting mix I use roughly one half potting soil or compost and one half decomposed granite. I might mix in some perlite to further lighten the soil and a small amount of pelleted fertilizer also, maybe a little pea gravel as well. If I'm planting in the ground I mixed a bag of decomposed granite in with the soil, most of which has already been improved with applications of compost, mulch, etc., making a little mound even though the soil I have is well draining. If your soil naturually does not drain well I'd make that a pretty high and wide mound. I always mix in a little pelleted fertilizer. It works well for me. I haven't lost anything even with all this rain. Wishing you the best!

Hi, Thank you everyone very much! To answer your questions: - Location: Melbourne, Australia - Sun: this area gets a good half a day of direct sunlight - Water/Drainage: This photo as I mentioned, was taken immediately after it rained, so it looks very wet. It is generally well protected from the rain by the leaves. Yes the rocks and sand and coal (i think perlite is another name) is ⅔ of the pot from the bottom. There are 4 big holes in the bottom of the pot and it drains really well. The plants were growing like crazy in this pot for over a year. And I replanted them 3-4 month ago, adding those rocks and sand. So the drainage issue is unlikely. The roots looked healthy. I could put some more rocks on top to protect it from the rain even more. -Plant type: don't know the name, it certainly looks just like K. luciae pictured above in Crenda's comment. There is a different succulent on the side. The very tall fast growing one. The leaves start to develop these black spots or dried edges and then bubble almost in an acid burn looking manner and die off. Should I trim those effected leaves?

Yes, Joanna =D That's how I took my leaves off too. I kind of twisted and tore each one because I was going to discard anyway. Allison: Not sure how come mine has woody stems, maybe mine is older?...I would cut clean off those shrivelled ends and put them into a gravelly, rocky, gritty mix. If you can't get your hot little hands on that, you can amend C&S potting soil with perlite at least 50/50. If you previously watered, it will rot the cuttings. Rule of thumb is, no roots; no water =D Once you see new growth, you can assume roots are present and begin to water. If you put the fresh green cuttings in regular C&S soil, it might be too moisture retentive and again, run the risk of cuttings never taking. As Crenda mentioned, she doesn't need to let her cuttings callous and dry because she's putting hers into gritty mix, as did I. A little bit different when using actual soil. So trim off the shrivelled ends, allow to dry for a day or so on a paper towel or dish, in a shady place while you get your mix set up. Good luck!!! Edited to add: Oops, I see you don't have the usual mix in your pot there, wondering what it is =)

The two leaves are goners. In the growing conditions shown, the plant will not survive. Does it even have roots, or is it just a cutting sitting in that purple stuff? I'm sure it was pretty before the two leaves started to fail, but succulents will never do well in such conditions. If you want it to grow and thrive, you can get a small pot with holes in the bottom (plastic or clay). You will need a bag of cactus and succulent mix and a bag of perlite (or pumice) from your nursery. Mix them together 50/50. When you repot, get all the potting mix/purple stuff off the roots, then repot in your plant in new proper mix and don't water for a day or two. When you water, let the water run out the bottom holes, then don't water again until the plant is dry. No "sips" of water. Gradually transition your plant into the brightest light you have. I hope you don't mind all the instructions, but plants sold this way don't last long. It needs help!