Oops, forgot to mention they were watered immediately before taking the photo lol. I hadnt watered the Jade in a week and the soil was so dry that it was blowing away from my breath on it :( Probably not the best watering schedule but you know lol. Better under than over right? xD

The compact ones just came in the mail about an hour before I took the pics so hopefully they will spread out and be beautiful in no time :) I'm really enjoying the interesting looking succulents! I plan to put them in a pot together except for the Jade which will have its own pot but I haven't gotten to the garden center yet :) Thank you!

Is it normal for them to ship them in the pots dry as a bone and each wrapped very tightly in newspaper?

Yes, it is. Better dry than wet. Succulents have plenty of moisture stored in their leaves and stems, so can take it. Shipped wet, they could start rotting - they are enclosed in box, air exchange is poor and they could be even hot - or cold, dpending on where they are coming from.

It may be best for you to research growing conditions required by each of your plant before potting them together. One thing they have in common is good drainage - and that is for potting mix and also the container. Some may need watering at different time of year, some would prefer full sun, others maybe less. Planting many different plants together could make it more difficult to provide for their needs.

As for why I mentioned discoloration of perlite: it doesn't happen if the plant is watered generously when needed. It happens if soil is wet for prolonged period of time. If there is lots of peat, it could be very dry on surface and yet the rest (around roots) quite moist. I am not saying that's what you do, just looking at 'indicators' (haha, just made that up). It is best to water succulents generously, when the substrate they are potted in is almost totally dry. Try bamboo skewer/chopstick test before watering next time, just to make sure. If you were to use well draining potting mix, excess water will drain out fast and only smaller amount will be held by particles of perlite, pumice or other substrates used. This would be released to plant's roots as needed, rather than keeping mass of soil around root ball wet for long.

Maybe I will keep them separately planted just so I don't have to deal with that mess lol. The one I am most concerned about keeping alive is the Jade as it is from my mothers plant and my mom has leiomyosarcoma which is terminal. I want to keep it happy and healthy. :) I can't wait to get repotting. Would now be a good time for reporting since the growing season is just starting? I could grab my kids from school and head straight to the nursery for pots and potting mix. I have a bag of perlite left from my carnivorous plants and I have peat moss but doubt that would be good for succulents as it holds water quite well and that isn't desirable for succulents. I figured I could just grab a bag of succulent mix and mix the perlite in 50-50.

Also, when people say 50-50 are they going by weight or just amount like 2 cups soil to 2 cups perlite?

Volume, you would need loads more perlite if it was by weight as it's so very light!

I was assuming so but just wanted to make sure

I'm really excited to be starting my succulent journey!

And we are excited for you!!!! There are few things better than helping you, but remember, benign neglect should be your password for the app.

That's probably why all the succulents in Home Depot and lowes look so good HAHA!

Moved the one with roots already and put in some new cuttings. Not much water at all so hopefully they root!

It should be NO water.

I only sprayed the top once with a mister bottle, not even a spray bottle. The soil was perlite and dust and I needed the dust to stop blowing around when the air conditioner kicked on xD

It's soil I mixed up last year and kept in a ziplock bag for my carnivorous plants :)

Then that's OK, then. You've done well. One early lesson, at least when it comes to watering.....when in doubt, don't.

Haha! Truth! I think they will need to be watched closely since they go outside in the morning and come in at night. I'm afraid people will steal them if I leave them out sadly. Vegas is a hot and dry place lol