I have few suggestions - not about plant yet: The container...it is very nice but probably not most practical since it recurves on top and is quite narrow. It will cause bit of a problem whenever repotting. If my, I would keep just 1 plant in it. It is easier to use containers wider on the top. More practical problem for you...

It is advised to make sure there is good drainage - well draining soil and drainage hole in the container. There are ppl that grow succulents in containers without drainage hole very well, but I would suggest that they are very experienced and knowledgeable and can provide best conditions for their plants.

Jades respond to very drastic pruning, we even call it whacking. There are many threads on subject of whacking here. Severe pruning and often no leaves left at all.

Your plant looks very nice but IMO it is little etiolated. That happens if plant wants more light. Branches keep growing fast, skinnier than if more light was available, and the leaves are spaced further apart.

I would say that you did good job pruning. If the result doesn't please you, plant could be pruned further. Bu it is difficult to suggest where to cut: everyone has different idea as how they want their plant to look, so you really need to know how do you want it to look in the long run (not so easy!). It also takes a while before new growth fills in and you can really see new shape.

I can only tell you what I would do if my plants:

I would pot them separately - that way each plant has plenty of room to grow in each direction.

I would make sure there is lots of light - if not enough available, it will continue growing in very similar way. If not enough indoors, maybe you should consider adding supplemental lights. Many of us do, light coming thru the windows is not as strong as it would be outdoors. I also put them outdoors, into full sun, as soon as it is warm enough. If you can't or don't want to, supplemental light indoors may be of great help.

I would most likely shorten few long branches - but that is personal preference.

I would make sure plant is in fast draining potting mix and provide drainage hole.

I never fertilized my jades, and they grow just fine. Few of them bloomed first time this year, these are not very old plants (perhaps 5-6 (?) yrs old, I got them quite small - definitely smaller than your plants - 4yrs ago). Your choice - but IMO, fertilizing plant that grows in less light only makes it to grow fast and thin. Your choice :)

At this point, maybe you should leave them pruned as they are. They should start growing new leaves and branches. It may take 3-6 weeks before you see new growth; how long since you did pruning?

As above the pruning is personal preference and I think you did fine. Not much to add to Rina's post but I am also in New Jersey. I like to get my jades outside in the summer and they respond very nicely to the extra light and heat during that time. If you do so start bringing them out after the risk of frost (say after May 1st or so depending on where you are). You want to start them out someplace relatively shady (which still might be brighter than inside) and gradually acclimate them to more and more sun......first just some morning sun......then maybe morning and evening.....then a little more. Do this over the course of about 2 weeks. If you move them directly into full sun you will sunburn the plant......it will survive but have ugly burnt leaves for some time. Anyway it will reward you with a lot of good growth and good branching.

Hoo boy! Thank you all SO much for your generous advice,
which I’ve tried to learn from. I wanted to update you on my jade’s adventures
in the interim…

Reading your replies, and these forums, forced me to realize
that I was an actual jade sadist (my plant was etiolated, had no drainage, and
was living in… miracle gro soil!) I’ve been working to remedy all this while
living car-less in a cutesy, overly-curated downtown with no outdoor space. So
for the past few weeks, I’ve been gritty-mix ingredient tracking (all over NJ
and NY), particle sifting (in a colander, on my fire escape), and drainage
hole-drilling (which sounds simple, but I literally don’t know one person with
a drill).

Anyway: I finally made the gritty mix, drilled a hole in my
pot, and assembled my materials. The rootball was surprisingly easy to get out of the pot. But that's because the roots themselves were pretty sad/small, compared with the container size...

I’m sure the unhealthy roots are due, in part, to the
pottery-shard “drainage layer” that I’d cleverly stacked halfway up the pot –
ugh :( Note how the center of the would-be rootball is just a hard mound where nothing grows:

The roots themselves were so compacted with soil that I had
to go in with tweezers to try to remove it (I experimented both wet and dry,
since there are four separate plants here. it didn’t seem to make a big
difference either way)…

I thought that I’d be pruning the roots, but in the end I
didn’t prune anything intentionally. The fine roots were so brittle that trying
to remove the soil took the roots along too. I was left with these sad
specimens (there’s still a bunch of soil clinging to the roots, but I dared not
remove any more).

I put three of the four plants back into their original pot
(this time with gritty mix and a drainage hole) (I understand the caveats about
the shape of the pot, but I’m kind of attached to it for now).

Then I put the fourth plant – the thickest, straightest,
tree-iest one – in its own pot.

They all look wonky, but I think aesthetics are probably a
problem for next year. Right now I’m just hoping these friends decide to live
(and that I haven’t killed them with kindness). Thank you all again for your
extremely generous help (in this thread and others). It’s such a joy learning a
new world.

Bridget

Bridget

Great job, and I am sure I was quite an experience for someone that did it first time!

IMO, it would be most important for them to get great light. It may not be sufficient indoors - but you mentioned fire escape? - is there some sunlight there and could you use it during this summer? It will help plants to grow more compact and with stronger stems.

They look great! Nice work.

Thanks Rina :)

You're absolutely right about the light. A couple of months ago I gave a friend some rooted cuttings from this original jade, which she's kept outside. It's like a totally different plant: the leaves are large and tightly spaced, and are this gorgeous red color underneath. I would love to give these jades the same treatment, but I'm too worried about the plants being confiscated if I put them on the fire escape (it's technically verboten). I'm moving in early August, and a top priority for my next apartment will be outdoor space (or at least southern exposure).

I understand though that I should keep the recently repotted plants out of direct light for three weeks or so, until they recover (fingers crossed) from the considerable trauma of the repotting. Should I also wait to water?

This might be a subject for another thread, but does anyone have advice (or links) about how, in the future, to loosen severely compacted soil from roots, with minimal trauma? Asking for a friend...

Bridget

Bridget

If repotted plant has healthy roots, wait just day or 2 for any possible transplant injury to heal and then water when needed. No need to keep plant too dry for too long. They will need little time to recuperate, but I would keep them in good light, especially indoors (that is not as intense as outdoors).

Cuttings without roots should be watered once the roots start growing; that may take 1 or 3 weeks, occasionally longer (depends how healthy cutting was and the growing conditions). Do not keep digging in the mix :) - some ppl do - to see; after couple of weeks give plant very gentle tug. If you feel slightest resistance, roots started to grow. Another sign is new growth. And excessive wrinkling - but that would take a while. Jades can last without any water for a long time (few or many months...)

Very compacted soil could be loosened up by picking with a chopstick or another blunt-end stick; combing with a little rake, more caked on with a spray (jet setting) from the garden hose. Hard peat is very difficult to rewet, and swishing the root ball in a bowl of warm water will help (warm is OK - same temp you can comfortably put your hands in; or baby bottle test on your wrist...)

Some roots will be broken off, but that is better for a plant in the long run. New roots will grow in, old ones that are encased in hard clump can't breathe or take any water/nutrients in anyway. If all fails, re-cutting and re-rooting existing plant is good option. Temporary trauma vs constant trauma...:)