As with any pests, early detection is key to controlling them. The most common pest that you may encounter are mealybugs. If you prefer non-synthetic fertilizers, you can choose to mix in some blood meal or bone meal into the soil in the Spring. Avoid fertilizing during the winter time. FERTILIZINGĪs with succulents in general, avoid high nitrogen fertilizers and use ones that are low-nitrogen but high-phosphorus like Schultz Cactus Plus. Again, this is during the active growing season.ĭuring active growth, as soon as the soil is completely dry, give it a good soaking, let it dry out again, and repeat.ĭuring the winter time, you can keep the soil drier for longer periods of time. You can (and I usually do) let the soil go completely dry during the growing season and this is fine as long as you don’t let it stay completely dry for too long. Water thoroughly, allow excess water to exit the drainage hole and wait until at least the top inch or two of soil is dry before watering again during the growing season. I follow my standard watering for succulents. If you can find shallow pots, these would be ideal, but mine has been doing just fine in a standard, small terra cotta pot. If the pot is too deep, it will cause issues because the soil will take too long to dry out. Huernia roots experience root dieback during their cool season dormant period. They are heavier and make it less likely to knock over since the plants can be top heavy, and they will dry out more quickly than plastic pots.Īlso, avoid pots that are unusually deep. Mix it up together, and it is a fantastic and very quickly draining medium for your lifesaver plant or ANY succulent!Īs far as pots go I prefer terra cotta pots for many reasons. I used 2 parts succulent/cactus soil with 1 part 1/4″ pumice. The mix below is what I’ve been using and my plant is loving it! There is no magic blend, as long as you have excellent drainage. POTTING MIXĪll Huernias require very sharp drainage. These extremes are not ideal for long periods of time though so try and avoid them. Huernias can take down to 40F (4.5C) as long as they are kept dry and up to 100F (38C) as long as they’re not in full sun. If you move your plant outside during the warmer months, be sure to return it indoors before temperatures dip below this.ĥ0-80F (10-27C) is a great growing range for this plant. To be safe don’t let your lifesaver cactus plant go below 50F (10C). If you see this, you may want to decrease the amount of direct sun just a bit.Ī few hours of direct sun inside are necessary for good growth and flowering, but avoid harsh sun during mid-day. On the other end, too much sun can start to produce reddish or purple coloring in your plant. Some indications of not enough light include weak growth and no flowering. Of course every window is different and you’ll have to experiment. My own plant has been growing well and flowering in front of my Eastern window. Inside the home, the ideal location would be right in front of an Eastern facing window (morning sun) or a Western facing window (afternoon sun). You need enough light to produce strong growth and flowering, but not too much light that can cause scalding. Keeping this information in mind, you need to strike a balance with the light that you give your indoor Huernia. They are actually in the milkweed family of plants. These low-growing perennial succulent plants are native to low-altitude areas of eastern and southern Africa, and grow underneath other shrubs. It is important to get the light right for this plant. LIFESAVER PLANT / HUERNIA ZEBRINA CARE LIGHT It is easy to see where name lifesaver comes from because the central part of the flower looks like a lifesaver candy (or one could argue, a chocolate glazed donut!) and surrounded by 5 points with zebra-like stripes.
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