whats the best to kill any germs, pests or fungi as this was a street plant before bringing it home??
also, do i just wait for it to callus or i have to wait to see actual roots? I can wait as much as its needed or recommended, few days or few weeks, just let me know... and keep the great recommendations flowing in :)

It's actually very simple. If you are concerned about pests (which are not apparent in the photo) you can dunk the whole thing in water for 10 - 15 minutes. Pests will float up. Other than that, stick the thing in some cactus potting mix and watch it grow. In California they grow like weeds - but slower. In southern California they grow outdoors in almost any type of soil as long as they don't get soggy.

thanks! am bringing it to Boston

how deep should i plant the trunk?

I asked when are you travelling back, but you didn't answer. If within a month or so, you could leave plant unpotted, it would be easier to transport. Jades (and most succulents) will be ok if out of any medium for weeks and months. Here are some cuttings I took in Oct. 2019. Potted few in Jan 2020, and was to toss rest in compost. But I decided to put them in pots, and I did in Feb. 2020 - some were shrivelling and looked dead. Here they are about 3wks later - there is new growth on every one:

You can see that many grew some air roots, and that is no problem.

You don't need to wait until you see roots growing from the cut. They may, but probably not if plant left unpotted.

There is no need to treat plan unless yo see some bugs or disease. I never 'pretreat' any (only treat if bugs visible) - and have over 300 pots of different succulents. If I ever see bugs, I use only rubbing alcohol. Occasionally, there is a mealy bugs but I do not let them to spread and r.u. is all I use.

Do not put trunk too deep, just enough for it to stay in potting mix. It will be wobbly for a while - it needs to grow roots that will anchor it. That is why I suggested to either use rocks for support, or tie it up temporarily.

After in pot, leave it alone - do not wobble on purpose or pull out to see roots.

travelling back in 2 days

Rina, you are the succulent queen, and the jade queen here! That was a wonderful succinct piece of advice!

Margaret

You are too kind. Just trying to share what I learned here :)

..and modest too! :)

LGTeacher and others.... to be sure its clean of pests and fungi, anything else other than soaking it for 15 mins? it seems its too long to be under water and afraid that it will saturate and rot, no?

Excellent info and detailed photos, rina!

popmama

Thank you.

L Evve

It will not rot if you dry it up after. Put it on something absorbent, out of sunlight. You can swish it in bowl of water rather than let it stay there immersed. But it looks good to me, and maybe you worry too much...sometimes, we can hurt plants by worrying too much...:)

Last summer, I don't know how it happened, a jade in a pot became immersed in rainwater in an old paint tin on a wall under an escallonia - I looked in several times and thought the pot was empty. After about three months a son decided he could use the tin for something and tipped the pot, and jade! out - that jade is still surviving. So jades are a lot hardier than we think, or maybe it's just some jades. They are individuals in the end.

I heavily pruned a jade I am trying to grow, let the pieces dry out a bit before I even attempted to plant, sort of forgot about them, just planted today, the stems already had little roots. We‘ll see how I did. I had a big chunky hunk of kalenchoe I threw in a bucket that I couldn’t deal with, it’s been sitting in there since probably October? Still looked viable, and was starting to root, I took pity on it and planted it too. Will starting such a big stem be a problem? It‘s almost like you’ve got an entire plant, there.

It shouldn't be a problem, as long as it is not rotting. If there is some rot, just keep cutting thin slices off until there is no rot. This work on many succulents. If you leave just a bit of rot, there is much bigger chance that it will just continue rotting.

Little roots on jade are most likely air roots, and they may continue growing if in soil, or may not. If exposed to dry air, they will most likely dry up. Either way is ok, and I never had any problems with them. If you look at the photo I posted couple days ago, there are many air roots visible in first pic.

It may be a good idea to cut up kalanchoe into smaller pieces to get new, rejuvenated and compact plants. It is up to you. This works for most of them. Which kalanchoe do you have?

No idea. It is large, grey and sort of cabbagey. It has been blooming for a while now, pale yellow flowers. Every time I move the pot indoors and out, chunks tend to break off. I also pruned it as it was looking a bit odd.

so thinking about this trunk (see original pics of post) how deep should i burry it in terms of rings? 1st, 2nd, 4th ring or more?

L Evve

I would go maybe 3-4 at most. See if anyone else has any suggestions.

J Williams

Looks like it may be Kalanchoe blossfeldiana.

I would cut it up into shorter pieces - it looks etiolated to me - and pot up few. Only as many as I would like to keep. It roots very easy, but yours likely needs more light to be compact. It sholdn't be breaking when moved - it is probably weak and too leggy etiolated (not enough light). Flowers get bit richer color in good light too. Here are flowers in poor light and much better light (same plant):

It has always been gangly, awkward and Huge like Clifford, the big red dog, I have regular type flowering kalenchoe in the same spot and the flowers in comparison are long, sparse and slender, and a very soft butter yellow. It is hard to give it enough light.

This kalenchoe is blue grey with waxy leaves, not green with shiny leaves. Also, it may be hard to tell, but this kalenchoe is in a patio type pot, ie. it is a big, hefty pot. Each stem is thick and brittle like broccoli stems.

As for the jade stems, for some plants you could push a stem in of practically any length and be ok, but it has been a while since I have tried to propagate them, so i am not certain...

This is one of my “regular regular” kalenchoes.

i planted the jade plant... i am supporting it with some rigid foam as its fairly heavy plant... how long do you think will it take to root enough to no longer need the foam and support by it self??

It will take a while. You could try to find some rocks to prop it up later on.

Your jade piece looks awesome! I like your foam idea! It will probably be at least 90 days before you can rely on roots to hold that up and you may still need to prune some of the longer lateral branches to balance it. You can always use some larger rocks to help balance and they will look more natural but I do like your solution.

when should i water it for thw first time? it was cut off from the main plan like 2 weeks ago and i waited for callous to develop, the i planted into potting soil today... no water since i got it...

Water it lightly.

you mean water it now?

How dry is it? Dusty desert, or plumply moist?

What amazes me is that Rina always seems to have the perfect photographs to reply to someone’s question. I am another who appreciate your knowledge and wonderful replies, Rina. (And patience)

its brand new soil from the MiracleGro package...

So, is it moist already? When you grab or pinch some soil together, is it like a damp washcloth, and it kind of holds together, or is it bone dry that is dusty and crumbly? Lightly moist is good for this situation. Don’t water it so much that when you squeeze it out, you are wringing out water.

Just keep in mind, you need some moisture for the roots to establish, but the root mass is minimal to none as it starts out, so all you are doing right now, supporting the barest framework of roots. And new roots are fragile. A pot bound plant will need more water as the plant will be taking up water almost as soon as you put it in, and the roots are more robust.

socks

Thank you (I appologize it took so long, I haven't been around for a while :)...I am a visual learner, and am assuming many others are...

L Evve

When I pot rootless succulent, I usually do not water for a while - weeks rather than days. Thicker the stem, longer I wait. You'll be surprised how long they can be without any extra water, especially jades. Another reason to wait is the potting mix: unless it has good drainage, soil could stay moist for too long. Temperature is also to be considered.

Did you add anything to the soil to improve drainage?

For support, I also suggested rocks (and posted photo too...) or if plant is too large, temporary tying it may help. It will take long time for roots to anchor plant well if it is wobbly.

i added a bed of gravel at the bottom and also plenty of perlite

I use everything I can when it comes to gardening, smell, touch, visuals, some people find it odd but it helps me truly focus on the situation. If you are very new to gardening, you could try getting your soil and do some experiments with it, how long to dry out, what happens when you pour water on it, does it stay water logged or drain and dry fast Etc.

L,

I know Rina is diametrically opposed to this suggestion (we agree on everything else, so I'm good!), but I've found, particularly with rooting thicker specimens but generally with all cuttings), a misting of the plant's leaves every other day or so, assuming there's adequate light/warmth/air circulation, improves rooting.

I'll estimate that you can remove those supports in less than three months, assuming you have an area to place the pot where it gets bottom warmth (this stimulates rooting, as do various rooting hormones like Rootone).

I think this is also why it sometimes helps to put a plant in a darker place or tent them, to reduce leaf activity and water loss thru respiration.

L Evve

Bed of gravel a the bottom isn't needed (sometimes, it could cause problems). Well mixed ingredients that create fast draining mix are much better. There should not be any layers in he pot. May I ask how much is plenty?

Jeff

You often suggest misting, and I believe you have very good experience with that. I have killed plants doing it (I am sure I did too much), and have been much more successful without misting, that is why I recommend it :) I also find that ppl overdoo things - suggestion is:...misting of the plant's leaves every other day or so, assuming there's adequate light/warmth/air circulation..., but many will do it too often, too much and do not pay attention to air circulation...

i will say that 50% cactus mix and 50% perlite, both of MiracleGro

i usually put in the pots a layer of gravel and then a mesh before putting the soil in, just to make sure water doesnt sit in contact w the soil

L,

No layer of gravel, just the mesh over the hole, then your soil mix. The layer of gravel inhibits proper drainage.

how long should i wait until adding water for the first time?? it has been 2.5 weeks so far...

I usually wait until there is sign of new growth, others start earlier...

UPDATE

Wanted to show you all how the plant is doing... i am very excited and its growing very quick... i did trim all branches and also remove all leaves with the exception of a handful.

i have noticed that where there were singles leaves originally, now leaves are not growing but actual mini branches with multiple leaves... like mini plants if you know what i mean... this perhaps means that the plant will not look exactly as it did on the original photos...
is there a special way when trimming and removing leaves to do it to get the same as before? meaning leaves for leaves?

Plant is doing what it is supposed to do :) Even if you only pruned branches to 2 - 3 sets of leaves, it would branch. Most likely from the cut, but also along branches. As you can see, they grow from many nodes, and that is normal. Branching cold be desirable. If not, simply rub off what you don't want while tiny. You not only pruned, but defoliated too. Btw, defoliating is not a problem. It is used to achieve certain results.

If my plant, I would wait to see how the branches grow. They can be pruned anytime.

I don't think you can 'order' it to grow just leaves. When defoliated as you did, it will branch, maybe bit more than if just pruned parts of etiolated branches (BUT, I am not absolute sure). At the same time, it needs leaves to be able to photosynthesize - to feed the plant. So plant is in a hurry to grow as many as possible :)

Here are couple of CC jades that were defoilated as yours. Here it is, and now with lots of new growth:

Here is another (one I posted previously); It had only 1 leaf left on 1 stem. Here it is, then and now:

There was no pruning done at all since original.

It’s always nice when people come back to follow up. Thanks.

just wanted to report back and show progress... still a lot to go back to normal, perhaps years, but moving along...