A jade plant is a succulent from the family of crassula ovata. It is a common house plant. It is also
used in households as a good luck or decor plant. It is generally kept in north east direction of house for good fortune, requires full sunlight of 4-5 hour to grow and can be propagated
from stem or leaf. It can also be propagated in water or soil. The plant on maturity also flowers. And
jades can also be turned into beautiful bonsai after proper pruning and shaping.
Table of Contents
jade plant is not an indoor plant
Many people treat jade plant as an indoor plant. Due to which the plant starts dying. Jade is not an indoor
but an outdoor plant. And if anyone wants to keep it as an indoor plant then it is recommended to
keep it under sun for 1-2 days. Also the watering rule for succulent is to water a plant only when it
dries up. Also succulents should be watered from side instead of pouring water on stem or leafs. If
one water on the leaf continuously, it starts to get rot.
There are a lot of videos on YouTube about pruning and shaping the Jade. Sharing my favorite
channel on how to prune a jade and shape it into Bonsai?
You can also check this post on How to make bonsai soil mix at home? There should be no lumps in
soil, it should be well drained soil.
How to clean jade plant leaves?
Many times a plant gets dirty due to dust and pollution. At such a time it is important to clean the
leaves. During summer we can shower the leaves of the plant and keep it under direct sun. But
during winter if we shower the plant it will start to wilt so try cleaning the leaves with some milk and
cotton.
Watering routine for jade plant –
Water the jade plant whenever the top layer of soil is dry or dip your finger into the soil and if the
finger comes out dry, water the plant. Over watering is more dangerous for jade than under
watering. If you over water jade plant, the leaves will start wilting and fall. So immediately place the
plant under sun or even re pot it after drying it completely.
- During summer water it almost everyday
- During winter once in 4 days.
- During rains, don’t water; humidity is enough to take care of the plant. Also if the plant is kept in open space, take it indoors and place where it can get enough sunlight.
Propagation of the jade plant –
Once you buy a jade plant, you can have number of jade plants with that just one plant. It can be
propagated both in soil and water. Cut a stem remove the leaves and put the stem in a clean water
vessel soaking the stem. The best season for the rooting of stem is monsoon. It usually starts rooting
in 3-4 days. Similarly we can also root the plant in soil, by removing extra leaves, putting it into soil
and then watering it. The next watering should be done when the soil later dries up. For proper
success of propagation it is advised to dry the stem and use.
Leaf of jade plant can also develop roots. Place the leaves on top of soil and then mist it with water.
It will start rooting soon.
Pruning of Jade plant –
The more we prune our jade plant, the better it grows bushier. It is advised not to prune jade during
monsoon as it may attract mealy bugs due to humidity. We can also prune our jade plant and shape
it accordingly. The best way to prune jade plant is by pinching the two leaflets. When we want to
covert our jade plant into a bonsai, hard pruning of the plant is required. We can collect all the
pruned parts and propagate them for new baby plants. Rest we will wire the main plant so that the
stem grows thicker. We can also shape our plant into a heart shape or topiary with proper and time
to time pruning and fertilizing.
How to get rid of mealy bugs from jade plant?
In order to prune large stem, use turmeric or cinnamon powder on plant at the cuts so that it
doesn’t attract bugs or get spoiled. And if any of jade plant starts developing mealy bugs, the first
thing we need to do, is separate it from the other plants. Then we have to re pot and wash the plant
properly and prune the infected areas. After that we can keep the plant under sunlight.
If the mealy bugs come again you can try a solution of neem oil mixed with some soap water.Spray it
directly on the plant and see the plant bugs free in no time.
How to make and take care of Jade Bonsai –
For converting a jade into bonsai we need to make the main stem strong. It can be done by pruning
the side branches and wiring the main one. It takes almost a year or more for the stem to get strong
and as desired. So converting a jade into bonsai and then shaping it into desired shape is work of
patience. The root system of jade rots easily so it is preferred to always use a proper drainage soil or
use a bonsai soil mix so that water doesn’t stay in the soil.
You can also check other succulents and how to take care of them in other posts.
Where to place the Jade plant?
It is advised to place the jade plant in outdoor area. The area should receive good sunlight of
minimum of 3-4 hours. It can also be used as decorative plant and kept in windows where there is
sunlight.
Fertilizer for Jade plant –
Best fertilizer that works for my jade plant is banana peels water, home compost or cow dung
manure. I fertilize my plants more in winter and during late evenings in the summer. You can check my post on how to get free fertilizer for home garden ?
Leave a Reply