Just bought this clear-out specimen from the supermarket. I take it to be a Crassula jade necklace. It is a bit "floppy". Is this normal? Also, there are dark brown leaves around the base and what seems to be thin red threads. Are these roots? Any help would be much appreciated. Composite picture attached. Weeed
air roots. nothing to worry about. could you post a pic straight on of the leaves?? i need to see the growth pattern to be able to give an id (there are a couple that have similar pattern from the side - straight on they are different). also, how long are the stems?
Hello and thanks for your advice. I am attaching three shots to show the leaf arrangement and also the damage at the base of the plant and the distance between leaves, which is greater than most pictures I have seen. I like the nice tight vertical kind of plant, but if this is supposed to hang so be it. The length of the stems is app 5 inches max. Do you know if this would take from a cutting? Again, much obliged.
that's 'string of buttons' aka crassula perforata. (same one i have). yes! it will easily root. mine have a nice almost straight up growth - some of mine (there were 1/2 dozen in the pot) are about 6-7 inches now and are still growing straight up. a friend has one that is much, much longer (almost 2 feet) and it has been laying over for quite a while. since it's a clearance rack item, i'd say it's been neglected - lack of proper light will cause any plant to bend in the direction of the light source if it's needs more light. as for the dark spots - looks like it got burnt at some point (either too much light or fertilizer). you can easily cut that spot off and root the remaining portion. i had mine right in the window - west facing and afternoon sun - and it got a bit wrinkled looking. i moved it out of the direct light and it now looks normal... you're at a higher latitude and might be able to keep it directly in a sunny window without it getting wrinkled-looking. oh, let it try in between waterings and use a good, well-draining, cactus mix.
Well, you have answered just about everything I needed to know about the jade necklace. Many thanks. I have placed it on a west-facing kitchen window sill, which is warm and bright, although we probably get less actual direct sunshine than you do. I don't know if this is a good time to pot up some cuttings and discard the bad bit, but considering the state it is in there's not a lot to lose. Anyway, thanks again.
