This is a topic I need to cover. So many people including myself kill succulents year after year. You see a cute succulent plant or succulent arrangement and you buy it before anyone else can. But what happens when you get home?
You put it in a dark corner or on a table with low light and a few weeks or even months later it looks like crap. Leggy shriveled crap.
Why is this happening? You water it, you give it light and still it looks horrible. It wasn’t easy figuring out how to keep these babies happy. It takes trial and error but you’ll get it.

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Something that may come as a surprise is that succulents don’t need a lot of water. They have juicy leaves that store water.
Now I’m not saying no water but you can probably go a month and they will be fine. Watering is tricky with succulents.
Succulents require a sharp draining soil. That means that the water does not linger. The soil needs to be able to dry up in a few days. There are many varieties of succulent soil that you can find at your local big box store or garden centers.
How do you know if they need water? One way to tell is if they visually look wrinkly or the soil is bone dry. I always do the pull test, where I pull the plant and if it all comes out the pot and it’s bone dry then I water!
If your pot doesn’t have a drainage hole you can kiss your succulent goodbye. Chances are if you’re reading this you have killed many plants/ succulents and you are looking for help.
The worst thing you can do for any plant is to not provide a drainage hole for the excess water run out. If you purchase a plant and it doesn’t have a drain hole, repot that plant as soon as you get home.
You’ll have the peace of mind that water isn’t sitting at the bottom of your pot causing root rot.
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Last but not least succulents need tons of bright direct/ indirect light. Direct light is where sun rays are actually touching the foliage and indirect it’s not but still very bright.
The minimum hours I’d give for a succulent is 8 hours of light. If you cannot provide this type of light you can buy grow lights.
There are a lot of really nice grow lights on the market that are very affordable. Amazon has so many to choose from. The best place to start is with lights with the highest reviews. South facing windows are the best for succulent plants.

If your just in it for the short term novelty then none of this matters. Use them as a cute display and toss or give them away when your done, no biggie.
If you want to keep them around for a while these tips will help you grow succulents indoors.
Happy Gardening!
Houseplants are gorgeous living home decor. It is worthwhile learning how to properly care for them.
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This blog post may contain affiliate links. Which means if you click on a link and go on to buy the product I recommend, I may get a small commission at no extra cost to you.
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Ciearra is a gardener and houseplant enthusiast of over 10 years! She has been growing indoors and outdoors. Supplying food for her family and beautifying her home with annuals, perennials and houseplants! Ciearra is passionate about sharing her knowledge of plant care with anyone who needs help or a quick plant growth tip! When she’s not blogging you can find her tending to her chickens, dogs and hanging out with her family
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