Growing Succulents for Color

How to bring out sunset hues in your succulents

As temperatures soar , all the grass in the neighbourhood begin to brown , and you have to deadhead your flush a sidereal day after they bloom , it feels like you ’d do almost anything for a spot of colour in the garden . One of the best ways of getting vividness in the live season from July to September is to grow succulents . you may receive succulents that set out in color from red , orange , yellow , fateful , gentle , silver , and imperial in nurseries throughout Southern California .

Unfortunately , many gardener are at a red when they find fault up a beautiful blood-red aloe plant ( Aloe cameronii , Zones 9–12 ) at the glasshouse and , after growing it for a month or two , watch out it lose its luscious pop of colouration and revert to a more hushed green or silver . Here ’s a quick introduction on turn succulents to maximise their coloured sweetheart in the ironic season .

set your succulent in well - draining soil . That may think of adding sand or pumice to your soil or pick up a cactus and succulent pot soil for your container garden . Most succulent with diseases are suffering from overwatering and weighed down , poorly drained filth . This can sometimes turn your succulents an unlikable wraith of yellow , often with brownish tips or rot leaves at the base ; this is definitely not the colour you are aiming for !

Plant your succulents in six or more hours of sun . If your succulents are in the shade , they will revert to a green color eventually . The paint that creates red , browns , and oranges in succulents such as aloe ( Aloespp . and cvs . , Zones 9–11 ) , sedums ( Sedumspp . and cvs . , Zones 3–11 ) , and euphorbias ( Euphorbiaspp . and cvs . , Zones 4–11 ) is an anthocyanin or a carotenoid . These pigments act as a sort of sun blocker for the rest of the plant , which is why you see them in the backsheesh that have more sun photograph . In bluish and silvery succulents such as genus Senecio ( Seneciospp . and cvs . , Zones 9–11 ) , live - forevers ( Dudleyaspp . and cvs . , zone 8–11 ) , and some echevaria ( Echevariaspp . and cvs . , Zones 9–11 ) , you may see a whiter , more silver color when expose to the sun . These plant have adapted to become more reflective of light to reduce sun terms , and they do this by producing wax or hair on their leave of absence .

The best style to encourage color in your succulent is to reduce watering . If your succulents are looking mostly green in August , you are probably overwatering them . Reducing watering will bring out quick color tincture in your succulent , such as Marxist , oranges , and pinks . In general , succulents grow color when they are under unclouded , temperature , or water stress . I generally stick to irrigate my succulents deep every two weeks in the dry season , and not at all in the rainy time of year unless there is a drouth class .

It is important to remember that you could take the stress too far eventually and cause damage to your garden . If your succulent is continue its normal mannikin , and it has color , it is levelheaded . If the industrial plant is ill-shapen or begins to fall behind more than 20 % of its leaves , there is cause for concern , and you may want to adjust your lacrimation schedule .

Another stressor that can create colour in succulent is disease or insect infestation , so keep an eye out for pests if you see color distributed in spots or toward the interior of the plant rather than the tips . mealybug and graduated table insects are vulgar pests in succulents and can be handled organically with lineal app of a soft insecticidal soap commixture .

Although inhuman temperature also impart color to succulent , if you live in a freeze zone nearer to the interior of Southern California , you may need to bring in your succulents in the wintertime . Some of the nicest variety , such as velvet leafage kalanchoe ( Kalanchoe beharensis , zone 10–11 ) , a fuzzy silver- and bronze - colored succulent from Madagascar , will sprain into slime with hoar harm . Since many succulents are easily spread , you could just convey in cuttings in the cold-blooded weather in heap rather than digging up the whole plant . Then , when the terror of frost has occur , you could replant the cuttings in the garden .

One of the best things about a lush garden is its ability to palpate lush and colorful in the wry month , with no wilting or chocolate-brown foliage or heyday to deadhead in the hot weather . Succulents lean to be depressed maintenance in our climate , so you may sit and enjoy your garden full of coloring in September and relax in the cool eventide without worry about garden chores that need to be done during those solar day above 90 ° F .

Rachel Young is the former Director of Horticulture and Garden Operations at Descanso Gardens in La Cañada , California .

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