Home»Cactus - Succulents»Lithops
Lithops are small , gem - like cacti in Southern Africa that uprise well in teetotal , rocky , flaxen home ground with very niggling water .
In their aboriginal habitat in Namibia and South Africa , Lithops have evolved to blend in so well with their environment – looking just like the sand and Stone they live among in shape , size , and color – that they can be quite hard to espy even for those with a trained optic and years of experience .
Photo Credit: Instagram @hdblithops
In some orbit , the “ stone flora flower ” endure on only mist and fog . In others , they do well with less than four inches of rain annually and in sharply enfeeble stony soil .
surviving stones are course found in arid , rocky arena and will rarely grow tall than an inch above the soil .
These plants ’ natural leaning make it easy to overwater them when keeping them as houseplants .
Lithops , also referred to as pebble plants , are succulent that raise extremely slowly and seldom get more than 1 column inch above the soil .
The optimum ontogeny medium for Lithops is one hard with perlite , vulgar sand , gravel , pumice , and/or lava rocks .
This is the most important part of Lithops care – and the one that most mass get untimely . By the time succulent partisan gain their first snag rocks , they ’ve believably been growing for a while .
One of the most critical things to understand when it comes to handle for lithops is their maturation cycles/second . In their native climate , flowering stone have two periods of dormancy .
Lithops develop raw pair of leaves every class . They only have one distich of leaves at a clip , so the old parting will die for the new ones to emerge .
Most Lithops prime during fall and early winter , produce daisy - like sensationalistic , wan Orange River , or white flowers with many petal .
When this happens , perform these actions to ( possibly ) bring through your lithops :
How Do You Know Your Lithops Are Overwatered?
If your lithops has become wrinkled , mushy , or xanthous , it ’s a sure sign of overwatering .
Your industrial plant may also develop mottled brown , blister - like spots known as edema . Modern leave-taking overfill with water may also burst .
debase and growing grandiloquent is another sign of overwatering for this of course short , stout cactus . Overwatered living stone may also split apart to get more air exposure .
Again , overwatering Lithops can result it to pull pests like Spider speck , thrip , scale insects , mealybugs , aphids , snails , slugs , and root - knot nematodes .
Lithops seed over the surface and cover with a fragile fine level of Baroness Dudevant . Keep this bed lightly moist until germination come , then bit by bit reduce watering .
Drowned Lithops Roots Will Rot
Soggy ground make root rot , which is almost always the buss of demise in these and most plants .
If your plants ’ soil is waterlogged , do the following :
There may be very few or no , roots remaining . If this is the suit , do n’t desperation .
Like most cacti , stone-face grow new ascendent when post in a conducive environment .
Place the works lightly in a newfangled substratum and manage it carefully .
TIP : If the industrial plant is mature with two or more segment ( kickoff ) , you’re able to separate those offsets and pot them up severally . This will give you more opportunities for success .
What Should You Do?
swampy land is another sign of the zodiac of overwatering and poor land / container option . The soil you expend to skunk lithops and other cacti should be well - draining and unable to hold back much water .
Since Lithops can store water supply for months in their leaves , watering this plant at the incorrect time in its growth bike can lead to its demise .
Choose the correct container . Your container should have ample drain hole in the bottom . The best material for any cactus container is breathable terra cotta .
Do n’t over - pot . stone plant do not postulate a deep container because they have very shallow root .
Your container should be relatively shallow and broad , set aside quite a bit of filth surface region to provide right aviation circulation to the ancestor .
Create A Successful Lithops Watering Schedule
Keep in mind that , for lithops , the growing time of year is recent summertime through former fall . This is when you water them , and you should use a nonindulgent soak and dry watering routine .
Here are the stick to peak to recollect :
Do not water when your plant is live on through the healthy process of splitting . This is unlike from splitting induce by overwatering .
After your plant flowers , they will become dormant and begin developing a new body that emerge between the existing or old leaves , causing them to split .
The raw , expectant plant then absorbs the old , spent leaves .
A expert linguistic rule of ovolo is not to water system after the plant life starts to bloom and not to irrigate in the winter or the springtime .
If you keep your lithops outdoors during its growing season , you should shelter them from undue rain .
Why Not Water From Above?
You hazard set out water get in the plant ’s crevices when you top - water . This can conduce to fungal growth and rot .
How To Keep Lithops As A Houseplant?
In a home surround , you would reach to provide coherent passion . Therefore , a systematically comfortable temperature for you should be comfortable for your lithops .
Lithops flowers open early on sunny days and then close later in the Clarence Day . If you have a cluster of Lithops , the bloom flower formation can overlay the whole plant , hiding the small stone - similar piece beneath them .
These desert plants need 4 to 5 minute of direct sunlight and partial shade during the good afternoon . So rick the plant life on a regular basis to prevent it from produce lopsided .
Note that if you keep your lithops in a cheery window , you must see to it it does n’t get too cold in the other winter .
If a lush plant does not receive enough sunlight , it will begin to grow slender and elongated , tend to one side to experience more wakeful , lose coloration and turn green , and will eventually snuff it if better conditions are not provide .
You may need to move it out of the window and add on it with unreal Inner Light .
Here are some tip to follow :
You need n’t worry about annual repotting . These living rock industrial plant only need repotting every 5 or 10 eld .
To embed stone life face seed , use a cactus - specific potting mix . Cover the seeds very lightly with a bed of sand and keep them moist by obscure , often using a pump - style Mr. . The ground airfoil should not be take into account to dry out out .
Once you have a healthy bunch of Lithops , you may start to diffuse . Propagation is done by air division . Propagation should be done in the spring when the plant is actively acquire .
You’ve Got A Friend For Life In Lithops
Slow - growing , rugged lithops are very long - lived . Provide the care described above , and you’re able to expect your plant to live for half a century and produce offspring .
