Sowing &Growing Tips

Inside this box you will find everything you need to start growing your succulents.

These plants enjoy huge popularity and it is said they can brighten a person’s mood and are even known to lower the levels of indoor contaminants. Here you can grow your own and they don’t need much watering or looking after. at any time of the year indoors!

You can sow the seeds at any time of the year indoors!

Agave Mix (Includes ‘Fox Tail Agave’, ‘Black Spined Agave’, ‘Mexcalmeti’ and ‘Garciae-Mendozae’)

Aloe Mix (Includes ‘Krantz Aloe’, ‘Coral Aloe’, ‘Bitter Aloe’ and ‘Red Cape Aloe’)

Kalanchoe Mix (Includes ‘Red Pancakes’, ‘Yellow Kalanchoe’ and ‘The Six Angels Kalanchoe’)

To give you the best experience, we have selected several species in each of the three mixes:

Getting started:

01. 02. 03.Once you are ready to sow the seeds, place peat discs in a bowl or on saucers and moisten each pellet with 4 tablespoons of water, allow 20 minutes for the water to be absorbed (the discs should have swollen to approx. 4 cm high). Then remove the netting and crumble the peat into the pots provided, (you have two pots for each variety and can keep any remaining seeds for another occasion).

Then mix 1/4 teaspoon of Vermiculite into the top 1/2cm layer of the compost. Reserve the rest of the vermiculite to sprinkle a fine layer over the seeds once sown. The mixing of the vermiculite and compost will allow the roots to grow without getting water logged and helps replicate the natural growing conditions.

Sow the seed, (say, 3 seeds per pot) on the surface of the compost/vermiculite mix above, push gently below the surface so that the seed is the same depth as the size of the seed, then thinly cover with a fine layer of the reserved vermiculite to just cover the seeds (1/4 teaspoon). Agave seeds are flat, disc-shaped seeds and should be sown on their edge rather than flat side down to avoid the seed rotting.

04. 05. 06.Cover the pot with a plastic bag and seal with an elastic band. Maintain a temperature of about 18-24C. Remove the lids or bags regularly to remove any excess damp inside, clean and quickly replace to maintain temperature. A warm, well-lit part of the house is best but somewhere where you can check easily. Germination takes place from 14 days up to 2-4 months.

To avoid the compost drying out, occasion-ally water, do this by placing the peat pot in a plastic container (such as a recycled food lid) and adding say 4 tablespoons of water to the bottom to allow the peat pot to draw up the water rather than water from the top. Water very sparingly, as Succulents generally thrive in poor dry soils. Remember with Succulents it’s bet-ter to underwater than overwater!

Once germination has taken place remove the bag covers to stop dampening and or rotting of the seedlings and transplant into small pots once the seedlings are large enough to handle at about 3-4 cm tall. Don’t leave your seedlings growing in direct hot sun to avoid damage.

Transplanting and potting up plants

Fill small pots (with a hole in the bottom) with a mixture of seed sowing compost (or well-sieved general-purpose compost) with a gritty mix added. For example, 3 parts compost, 2 parts perlite, 1 part horticultural grit or horticultural sand (not sand off a beach, as it’s too salty!)

This mix will allow the roots to grow without getting water logged and will replicate natural growing conditions.

The bottom of the pot can be lined with a small layer of grit or fine gravel to ensure good drainage.

When transplanting seedlings don’t pull out the seedlings from the tips but gently lift an area of compost up with a kitchen fork or large plant label so you keep all the baby roots and the compost it’s growing into together – that way the fine roots are protected.

Don’t “firm” the mix down too much. Stand the pot in a shallow plastic tray (such as a recycled food tray) filled with tepid water and allow the compost to draw up the water.

Remove the pot and allow excess water to drain away before placing on a saucer in its final growing position.

Repotting is ideally done in the spring – probably every 2 years to provide a fresh growing medium.

Aloes and Agaves produce baby off-sets around the stem (in the US they are called “pups”) and these can be carefully removed off the parent plant and transplanted to make new plants during the spring (late March to early May).

Remove the whole plant out of its pot carefully and follow the instructions for transplanting and potting-up baby plants. Aloe roots grow outwards in a shallow, horizontal root system and so are best grown in wider pots.

General Tips

Succulent plants can consist of up to 95% water in their leaves so don’t require much water (this makes them very tender to frosts and cold temperatures).

Water only when the compost is completely dry in the summer (only a small amount of tepid water) and allow any water to drain away.

A diluted strength special cacti and succulent liquid plant fertilizer can be added to water in the spring.

Most Succulents are slow growing so be patient. In the UK flowers may not appear in house-grown pots.

All plants will grow to a smaller size when grown in pots compared to outside in their native environment.

These plants are best grown indoors or in a bright sunny conservatory but may be carefully grown outside in hot summer months.

Plants will tolerate full sun but make sure they receive consistent light whether grown outdoors in the summer or inside throughout the year on a bright windowsill.

Watering in the winter months (from late September to March) is minimal as the plants are dormant and don’t require much water.

Remember, with Succulents it’s better to underwater than overwater!

AgaveMix Details— 4 Species

Agave garciae-mendozae Medium sized plants from central Mexico. Bright green leaves with white edges & sometimes a red tinge to the thorns or teeth along the edges. Grows into a symmetrical rosette shape.

Agave horrida (‘Mexcalmetl’) Grows into a symmetrical rosette shape with glossy green leaves with white edging as the plants mature. Used to make the Mexcalli liquor in its native Mexico.

‘Fox Tail Agave’ (Agave attenuate).Broad silvery pale green leaves without teeth or spiked edges.

Native to Mexico

‘Black Spined Agave’ (Agave macroacantha). Smaller clump-forming compact plant up to 60cm tall and wide in its native Mexico. Pale blue/green leaves with brown teeth and black spines at the leaf tips.

AloeMix Details — 4 Species

‘Bitter Aloe’ (Aloe ferox). Thick, fleshy blue/green leaves with red/brown ‘teeth’. Native to South Africa

‘Red Cape Aloe’ (Aloe microstigma) Blue/green leaves that often turn a red colour with red ‘teeth’ along the leaf edges. Orange/ red flower. Native to South Africa.

‘Krantz Aloe’ (Aloe arborescens). This has similar medicinal properties to Aloe vera, the leaf sap can be used to treat burns and has wound-healing and anti-bacterial qualities. Sword-shaped leaves are green/blue coloured producing orange/red flowers on mature plants. Native to South Africa.

‘Coral Aloe’ (Aloe striata)Red flowers, Broad blue/green leaves with a red/pink tinge to outer edges. Native to South Africa.

KalanchoeMix Details — 3 Species

“The Six Angles Kalanchoe” (Kalanchoe sexangularis)Shrub-like habit in its native South Africa growing to 90cm tall with yellow flowers but house grown in pots will be much slower growing and smaller. Green cupped leaves with scalloped edges tinged with red.

Paddle Plant or Red Pancakes (Kalanchoe luciae). Large thick, grey/green rounded leaves that mature with red edges during cooler temperatures. White or cream coloured flowers. Native to South Africa.

Yellow Kalanchoe (Kalanchoe grandiflora). Mature plants can grow up to 3m tall in its native India producing occasional yellow flowers. Blue/green oval shaped leaves with a rose/violet tinge. Shrub-like habit.

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