Hi I'm new to growing succulents and I have a few questions! Unfortunately mine have been through a lot because I'm a university student, so I had to take them home for the summer and then bring them back to school. First picture: how long will it take for leaves to grow back on stems? Because the succulents were getting leggy, I cut the stems and got a grow light. I wish they were even shorter but I don't want to cut the stems too short and not have any leaves left. I'm trying to figure out if there are other problems keeping the leaves from growing back because they've been like this for a few weeks. Second picture: any idea how to fix leaves that are curling downward? I thought the problem was dehydration at first, but they didn't improve upon watering and the leaves feel still feel firm. Any help would be much appreciated!! Thanks
Hey kwl11, succulents are fairly tough plants, but they are easy to damage with overwatering or too moist of a soil medium. I assume there is no drainage in the glass bowl, so that will be a difficult situation to maintain a proper water and air balance in the soil. You might want to look for some shallow unglazed clay pots to grow your plants in. Be sure and always use a gritty soil with good drainage. Cuts on succulents can be slow to grow back and sometimes do not resprout. It does not always end up making the plant look fuller and leafier. You will get new stems with the same sparse leaf arrangement. I don't usually try to shape them in any way, it's much easier to grow succulents that grow in the shape you want. Did you root the tip you cut off? It is often very easy to start new succulent plants that way. You just let the cut dry and heal for a few days to a few weeks and then lay it on moist cactus soil and forget about it. The curl on Crassula happens due to stress--it can be cold, too much water, too little water and probably a few other things. I would not worry too much. Just give it the best care you can. Crassula seem to tolerate a bit more moisture than other succulents, but they do not want to be wet. Good luck! Your plants actually look pretty healthy.
Thank you so much! Turns out the droopy one was rotting at the bottom, but I took the healthy-looking leaves off the top, so hopefully I can propagate them successfully. I bought some grittier soil and am getting a better planter with drainage, so I'm planning to repot them within the next week or so. The succulent in the first picture is growing a new rosette, so that's exciting. Again, thanks for the advice!
