The Latin name for Jade plant is Crassula argentea, that is native to South Africa. It is a popular plant in American homes as it can tolerate household environment. The jade plant is a slow grower and will reach a height of about 5 feet when grown as an indoor plant. If you follow the jade plant care instructions carefully, your plant will thrive for many years to come. After many years, it may produce small, white flowers during spring. The plant remains evergreen throughout the year. The following jade plant care instructions will help you take good care of your plants.
Instruction #1
You need to place your plant in direct sunlight. If you need to move the plant from a low light area to full sun, you should keep it under direct sun for a few hours everyday. This will help the plant get accustomed to the new light settings. Also, the leaves will not get sunburned.
Instruction #2
The air temperature for jade plant is to be kept around 65 – 75ºF during day time and 45ºF at night. The plants need low humidity conditions.
Instruction #3
The plant needs to be watered once a week and for that, pour water in the pot till it drains freely from the bottom. When the top inch of the soil seems dry, its time to water.
Instruction #4
You need to add a water soluble liquid fertilizer to your jade plant containing trace elements. You need to feed the fertilizer from April to October. Once every month, you need to feed 10-10-10 fertilizer to the plant throughout the year.
Instruction #5
You need to drench the plant once every month with water for about 2 to 3 minutes. Make sure the water drains out of the pot as this will help in removing any excess fertilizer residue in the soil.
Instruction #6
You need to watch out for jade plant disease like bacterial soft rot, that can spread and kill the plant. This disease is caused by bacteria Erwinia that is related to E.coli and Salmonella. If you discover a soft rot, you need to remove the affected plant part to prevent it from spreading further. Another jade plant disease includes powdery mildew, that looks like scabs on the waxy leaves of the plant. This is caused by a fungus Sphaerotheca that can be treated by application of thiophanate methyl. You can purchase these pesticides from a garden store or plant nursery.
Black ring disease is another disease that causes black rings on the underside of the leaves. This disease does not cause plant death and all one can do to treat the condition is to remove the affected leaf.
Mealy bugs are parasites that infect the stem and leaves of jade plant. These are wholly aphids that cause damage to the plant. You need to take a cotton swab and dip it in alcohol. Then apply it to the plant to kill the mealy bugs.
Instruction #7
One of the important jade plant care instructions includes the pruning process. Pruning jade plant needs a lot of care as any damage can make the plant susceptible to bacterial or fungal diseases. You need to prune only over grown or older jade plants. You should remove only 20 to 30% of the branches while pruning. Use a clean, sharp pair of pruning shears to trim the branches. The best time for pruning jade plant is spring or summer. However, you can prune the plant anytime around the year, if required. You can use the plant cuttings to grow more jade plants and gift it to your family and friends.
These were some jade plant care instructions that will help your plants grow healthy and happy. A little bit of attention from your side, will be enough for your jade plants to thrive. I hope this article has been able to answer your question how to care for a jade plant.
