Help! My mother in laws Jade Plant is in dire need of my attention and I don’t know where to start! I’m sure it shouldn’t have dangling branches but I’m reluctant to cut it as it’s 15 years old but if I have to I can chop prop and replant. I’ll defo repot it just as soon as I’ve got enough medium haha.
Hey there 👋 I’d be happy to help. Completely understand the fear of giving an older jade a haircut, but as someone with a 30 year old jade that was a prop from a 60+ year old jade, I’m happy to tell you that pruning them from time to time is perfectly healthy for the plant and helps it become bushier over time. (I’ll attach a photo of my grandmother’s 60+ yo jade for reference. She’s pruned once a year and she’s a very happy tree of a jade plant). If you’re looking for help with cutting, cut between the nodes (the stripes along the stem, or where the leaves are sprouting out). The nodes are where the plant will grow new roots, so if you want to remove some of the lower leaves to give more nodes for your props to work with, giving the plant more places to develop roots and more likelihood or successfully propagating, that’s also an option. Cutting between the node diagonally is also often recommended. The drooping could be because it was overwatered or in serious need or a repot, or simply because it’s become top heavy. My grandmother’s jade is pruned as often as it is to avoid this, especially because of its size. I’ve had success with propagating the larger branches in water, but it takes some time for them to develop roots. If you’re gonna clip smaller pieces with more leaves than “trunk”, I would recommend filling some small pots (with drainage holes) with perlite, pouring some room temp water over the perlite, and sticking the smaller cuttings in, adding water when the perlite dries out. I did this recently for my jade props and they rooted within 2 1/2 weeks, a lot faster than the branches in water. Hope this helps!
Another possibility would be that the jade is stretching for light. Would you happen to know how much light it gets in a day, or if it’s in a south window? Jade enjoy lots of light, and can begin to stretch to literally try and reach more light. If you think that might be the case, try to find a brighter window for it, and if you don’t have a brighter window, you might want to invest in a grow light. Do you need any help with the repotting process?
1 like It’s in a window but not a massively sunny one, she has nowhere else to put it sadly. Plus she has a dog that would destroy it if it could reach it, it’s safe where it is. I think it’s a combination of being too heavy and not enough light… I didn’t see your second post till after I’d replied to your first one sorry lol
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Adrian, that potted blooming jade is SO GORGEOUS 🤩 Love reading your advice on posts. Jades are my favorite plant at this point, I rescued mine from a CVS and I'm hoping to grow it for many years, can't wait for it to be more tree-like.
1 like thank you 😊 I can’t take credit for the big 60+ jade, though. That would go to my grandmother and my aunt, who has taken care of it since she passed away. Jades are my favorite, so I try to help out when I can, especially since I know how long they can live 🌱 best of luck with yours
1 like Thank you so much!! I’ve taken a cutting off the plant earlier this year and propped it in water… and it took a while to root lol. It’s now in a pot and doing amazing! With how big some of the branches are I’m worried I’ve not got the resources to prop all of them. Would you suggest I repot it first or chop it first? Or all at once? There’s obviously going to be some level of shock so want to minimise this as much as a can or get it over and done with 😬
0 likes I think either option would be alright. Mine was repotted first THEN propagated, but the shock is gonna come from the repot, not the haircut. Personally, I would cut it first to avoid any injury or loss of branches during the repot process if you have to put the plant on its side or anything to get it out of the pot or remove its soil. I avoid miracle grow like the plague with all my jades, so please don’t risk that brand if you haven’t used it before, especially given the age of this jade. Even their succulent stuff with an extra bag of perlite nearly killed everything I repotted with it within a matter of 14 days. I highly recommend Espoma’s Organic Cactus and Succulent soil. It’s never failed me, I use their brand for all my soil needs, and you don’t have to add extra perlite to their bag when repotting the jade. It looks like yours is in a terra cotta pot, so as long as it’s got a drainage hole and it’s allowed to drain out during waterings, it should be just fine, but if it’s become difficult to lift it to actually water it or let the water drain, you might wanna change it out for a plastic pot with multiple drainage holes. The biggest thing with repotting is that the pot matches the size of the root ball, especially with jades. They enjoy getting rootbound and being snug in their pots, so making sure the pot is only 1-2 inches larger in diameter to the root ball (not the size of the plant itself) is key. And as a lil tip, if you come to find it is very rootbound when repotting and that the soil has become very dense or hard to remove, soak the plant’s roots while it still has the soil on it in a bowl/pot for 30 minutes in a mix of 1 part hydrogen peroxide to 2 parts room temp water. That’ll help kill any possibly bacteria in case of any root rot, as well as loosen up the soil so you can more easily remove it from the roots and replace it with fresh stuff.
3 likes If you wanna repot multiple ones at once without running out of pots or glass jars or bottles for the props, you can try the perlite method in a larger pot and stick all of the props together. I did that with mine, then once they developed roots, I removed them from the perlite and placed them together in soil. The key with the perlite is that you remove them once they started forming enough roots, otherwise they can rot quickly (that’s the downside to how quickly they can root in perlite)
That’s super helpful!! Thank you again! I used Westlands cactus and succulent mix and found my jades love it! Even my Gollum loves it! I’m going to have to invest in some perlite I think and give it a go (never used it before) and also will need permission from the mother in law to prune it 😬. The pot it’s in is plastic and I’m assuming it’s got drainage as it’s sat on a dinner plate 😂… couldn’t tell you often it’s watered either lol! It’s going to be an afternoons work for sure 💚 the taller one in the picture is the cutting I’ve got from it.
This is one she’s bought me and I’ve repotted in the Westland mix
And my wonderful Gollum 💚
Cuties! 🥰 so relieved to hear you don’t use miracle grow 😮💨 you have no idea how many people I’ve had to sadly tell that it’s the soil that’s killing it. 70% of the time I come across folks with jade problems here, it’s got to do with them repotting with miracle grow recently. Never their fault, especially with those new to plants, but it’s heartbreaking how many folks blame themselves when it’s the soil killing their plant. Had to ask just in case. A lot of folks around here joke that it should be banned 😂 best of luck with your mother in law’s jade 👍 sounds like it’s in good hands
3 likes This one’s my pride and joy, Elena. I’ve got about 5 jades now (7 if you include recent props), but she’s definitely one of my favorites. I’m hoping to turn her into my grandmother’s jade someday
And this one’s a variegated jade, if you’re looking for any different types of jades to try.
Stunning!! This is what I’m striving for too! I’m going to repot mine in the spring and have 3 in one pot rather than 2 pots! Likely I’ll end up keeping a handful of cuttings off the mother in laws! 😂… not sure how I discovered Westland tbh, it suddenly appeared everywhere and was good value for money. Think I stumbled upon their orchid mix on Amazon when I was repotting my phalaenopsis orchid and it started thriving and even produced a second bloom! Been my go to since then 😍 thank you so much for all your wonderful advice! I shall come back and re-read everything once I’ve plucked up the courage and carved out a few hours one weekend lol!
2 likes I’ll have to check Westland out!🤔 I found Espoma from my Ace Hardware and my local nurseries, mostly because they refuse to sell miracle grow, so I was lucky enough to start off with quality soil. I hope you get some props from your MOL’s jade! My aunt gives me and my cousins cuttings from my grandmother’s jade, so it’s become a fun family heirloom to grow our own from the props 😊
2 likes Hey there 👋 any update on your mother-in-law’s jade?
1 like Hello! How nice of you to remember!! Not as of yet no, I’ve not had the time. Planning on doing it this weekend if I get a couple of hours free 🤞🏻 but with a 5 year old and a house to keep on top off I’m not holding out much luck lol. But I will try and I’ll keep you posted! 🙂
1 like That’s great that your mother-in-law signed off on letting you repot it, though! Wishing you good luck! 😊👍
1 like Hello! The repot and chop has been done! She’s also surrendered it to me as well! She’s not really bothered with it! It’s been downsized and put in the best mix I can make 🥰… the soil it was in looked like it was from a garden and was almost clay, was horrible! It’s got barely any roots either and I’m praying I’ve done enough to save it 🤞🏻… I’ve also got 6 cuttings in perlite as well. Perlite is very new to me so I’m hoping I’ve done it right 😬 x
🤞🏻🤞🏻🤞🏻
Looks great! Great job! The trick with perlite is to check on the roots at least once a week, and only add water to it when it dries out. It’s a great medium for propagating, but because it grows so much faster, it’s important to monitor the roots so the props don’t sit in there for too long and start to rot. Once they start forming fairly long roots (likely within about 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 weeks), put them in some soil and bottom water them so the roots are getting the water but the soil isn’t so wet that it’ll overwhelm the prop.
1 like That’s wonderful thank you for the advice! 😀… I think also once the main plant is established and starts growing I may have to prop it again to encourage more full growth, it’s a bit spindly right now. Given it’s had a hard day today (house move, repot and chop) I’ll let it do its thing till next year and reevaluate. I’ve got those 6 props as well as 3 other established plants so I think I may combine them somehow. Got plenty of time to plan 🙂
1 like No problem! And if you’re worried about it taking a while for the roots to grow, especially on the main plant, you could try to dipping it in some rooting hormone. I like to add a couple of drops of hydrogen peroxide to the water to kill any bacteria and give the roots more oxygen. Seems to really help the roots develop and reduce the risk of rot during the prop process.
1 like Good idea! I have some hydrogen peroxide somewhere so next time I water it I’ll pop some in to give it a helping hand. The medium is made up of potting mix, orchid bark, cactus & succulent mix and perlite… I’m hoping it’s happy. Although I think anything is better than what it was in lol. I’d of just used a succulent mix but I didn’t have enough 🤦🏼♀️ nevermind, itll be fine.
1 like Hello!! Thought I’d provide a little update on the mother in laws jade… it looks like the mama plant has taken and it’s pushing out new growth already! You’ll have to zoom in but I can see 3 little sprouts here! I’m made up!
