If you have a stretched succulent that has grown tall and leggy you can use this simple trick that will help bring it back to its original beauty.
This pretty Echeveria 'Perle Von Nürnberg' was looking so leggy, losing its pretty purple color, and some of the leaves were falling off.
Why Do Succulents Grow Tall and Leggy?
The most likely reason is that they are stretching to find the light.
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Last year my daughter, an avid plant grower, and botanist wrote a post about caring for succulents and one of the main tips is to give succulents tons of light. I'm not sure what happened to this guy. I think it may have started in the nursery and the window I had it in wasn't getting enough light on an ongoing basis. Lack of sunlight is often the problem.
In addition, I have read that succulents with green leaves have a better chance of growing well indoors with lower light.
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How to Fix a Stretched Succulent
I decided to cut it off at the bottom. You can see after a little while a new rosette started forming.
I kept the top portion of the plant and a couple of leaves and allowed them to callus over for several days.
If you look to the left there are a couple of leaves on top of the soil that have started to regrow. To be honest, these almost never do well for me.
However, waiting until the top portion began to send out roots before re-planting worked really well.
Here it is 7 months later. The rosette in front is the top portion of the original plant. The two on the back right side are growing from the original cut stem. You can see a new one growing between the two.
The plants in this container are growing nice and tight. They look healthy and display beautiful color.
Now you know of one option to try if your succulent stretch and grows tall and leggy.
You may also notice a baby Kalanchoe upfront. Soon I'll transplant elsewhere eventually as it will grow to be too tall.
That shriveled leaf was an attempt to propagate the plant from a leaf. Though this works well for many succulents I haven't had a lot of success with the process. The leaves start to send out growth but they never quite take to the soil
Succulent Light Requirements
This planter is sitting in a south-eastern facing window. It's watered lightly every 1-2 weeks with the rest of my plants.
If you don't have an adequate sunlight source from a window consider setting up some grow lights. You can find them at the nursery and hardware store. A good full-spectrum light should work. However, if you want the nitty-gritty details you can read this article about indoor grow lights from Epic Gardening.
Here it is on the windowsill of my office right next to my desk so I can enjoy them as I work.
More Succulent Tips and Ideas
How to Fix Stretched Succulents
Equipment
- Sharp knife
Materials
- Stretched succulent plant
- Succulent potting soil
Instructions
- Cut off the succulent about 1/2 inch from the soil.
- Take the cut portion and remove the bottom leaves and set aside.
- After you remove the leaves cut the stem leaving the top portion and about 1 inch of bare stem.
- Let the bare stem sit out in a cool sunny spot and wait for it to grow roots.
- Once you see roots growing. Plant it back in the original pot and watch it grow.
Patty
I have my succulents on a screened in porch. I know that don't require much water, only when the soil is dry, & the pot they are planted in has holes at the bottom for drainage. They seem to be drying up. Can a succulent get too hot? Do you think it would be better if I brought them inside & set them by a window & keep rotating them so they won't stretch out?
Patti Estep
Patty, I think it's probably because there's not enough light on your porch. It shouldn't be a heat problem in my opinion. It's also slightly possible that they need water. Try experimenting. Water them so that the water runs out through the holes and then let them wait until the soil is dry before watering again. A good sunny window is also worth a try.
Pat Long
Patti,I have what I was told was a mini jade plant and it's gotten leggy after I took one of the 2 plants and gave it to a friend. The plant gets plenty of light and I don't water excessivly. Should I take some of the "leaves: and see if I can start anew??
Patti Estep
Pat, you could do that but I might try pruning it. Similar to what I've done here. However, you probably only need to cut some of the top not all. Look up pruning a jade plant for more specific details.
Jo
Hi I’ve had a lot of luck using a shallow planter and using soil right from a nursery it’s nice and fluffy dries out quickly so that they don’t get root rot on top of that I use clay rocks and then set my leaves on there and in a couple weeks you will see the roots coming in they will begin to grow down I also water the babies once a week and let drain out mine are in a west facing window I’m not sure how to add pictures or I would share those as well
Patti Estep
All great info Jo. Thanks for sharing.
MARGARET WOOD
Thank you for the good information. Really like having a printed version available! Wish more would do that.
Patti Estep
You're very welcome. Enjoy the rest of your weekend.
Kathy Boylan
Thanks very much Kathy. I learned a lot & also did this with one of my cactuses. I cut the top off & got 2 plants from it I believe.
Kathi Reed
I am new to succulents. I killed quite a few that came in a planter I received for my birthday. I have 2 stems left, both of which only have a few leaves on them. Did you leave the bottom of the stem in the soil after you cut the top part off? Is that where some of the little ones came from? Thank you.
Patti Estep
Yes Kathi, that's correct. Leave a small amount of the stem in the pot and some new rosettes will grow from it. Also, leave a little bit of the stem on the top rosette for roots to grow. The rest I threw out. However, I wouldn't be surprised if you cut it up, let it callous, and replanted it the rest of the stem might start sending off new growth too.
Sue
Thank you for the info.
Mae
OK, will put it outside - I bought if for the lovely container and cut it back as stated in previous comments. Thank you.OK
Mae
I have 3 leggy plants set on a sunny morning shelf that is growing out of control! Why leggy when lots of sun?
Patti Estep
Mae, though it might seem sunny, it's possible that the shelf is not sunny enough. You could try supplemental light or if the weather is nice where you live see how well it does outside.
Mae
OK, will put it outside - I bought if for the lovely container and cut it back as stated in previous comments. Thank you.
Amber
I am working on reviving some ratty-looking perennial succulents, so I will definitely try out these tips. Thanks!
Patti Estep
You are very welcome Amber. Enjoy!
Jean Klinger
I have a small pot filled with Aloe Vera plants that are long and leggy. Any help to get these replanted would be appreciated.
Patti Estep
Jean, I repotted my aloe when they got top-heavy. Check out my transplanting aloe post to see how I did it.
Rachel
I saved a big succulent planter from a fellow teacher when she moved and she had let them grow, almost like they are vines, spilling over the sides of the planter. A lot longer than the photo you show. Is there hope if I cut off the long, woody stems that I can try and save them?? I want to revive it back to its former beauty but I also do not want to ruin them in the process. 🙁
Patti Estep
Rachel, It should work though I found that a lot of succulents like to spread out. I think you should try with one or two first to test it out. Let me know how it goes.
Holly Masters
I have some new succulents, and I would love to try and propagate them.
Patti Estep
Give it a try Holly. Let me know how it goes.
Carole
What a helpful tip and can you believe i still haven't tried to do anything with succulents? I think it's because I try to spend as little time indoors as possible. However with that being said I have this interest in Orchids that I want to explore. Any books you'd like to recommend?
Patti Estep
Carole, considering you live in the sunny warm south you should have no problem growing succulents or orchids. I don't have any recommendations for books on orchids. I have only grown phalaenopsis orchids and I'm pretty sure they are the easiest, so I suggest starting with them. Like most plants, they hate to sit in water so drainage is crucial. I usually water mine once a week in the sink and let them drain in their plastic interior pot before moving them back to their containers in a sunny indirect spot.