Living rock (pleiospilos nelii) care questions, with pics

[mfedukovich]

So I have had 2 other living rock plants and killed them both. I love this plant though, its odd and beautiful, so I keep trying! I find a lot of contradicting info about them online, so I wanted to see if anyone here had some advice for me.

I've seen pics that have several pairs of leaves like these that say they are healthy and also info that says they should only have one pair and if more they are destined for rot. I've read to water thoroughly when dry and to just lightly water occacionally. So if anyone could clear this up for me I would be very grateful.

And also should I repot? And I've read a sunny windowsill is the best place for them, is this so? The only sunny windowsill out of reach of little hands is my kitchen window above my sink, would this be a good place for them?

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Thanks in advance for any and all help!

[Kisal]

Your cactus is Pleiospilos bolusii, a native of Africa. I couldn't find any information that said the plant should only have 1 set of leaves. In fact, many of the pictures I looked at appeared very much like yours.

Like other cacti, it needs to grow in a coarse, gritty, sandy soil with little organic content, which drains very rapidly. Allow the soil to dry between thorough waterings.

My preferred method of watering cacti is to immerse the plant, pot and all, in water up to or just over the rim of the pot. Allow it to remain submerged until you see no more air bubbles rising from the surface of the soil. Then, remove the pot from the water, but do not replace it in its saucer/drainage tray. Instead, set it aside for about half an hour, until all excess water has drained out of the pot. Watering with this method assures that water reaches the center of the root ball, and doesn't just run off the surface of the soil, down between the root ball and the sides of the pot, and out the drainage holes.

Your particular cactus looks to me as though it would appreciate a larger container. Get one large enough to allow about 2" of bare soil between the edges of the plant and the sides of the pot. I like to use pots that are slightly wider than they are deep. They are frequently sold under the names cactus pots or azalea pans. I also cover the soil surface with coarse aquarium gravel. At the present time, I have white gravel, but I'm thinking about buying some in black and some in gold. It comes in many different colors, so if you decide to use it, just select a color you like.

A sunny window would be fine for your plant. I keep mine in the west-facing window over my kitchen sink. I've installed a shelf there level with the window sill ... actually, it rests on the window sill ... to allow room for pots up to 8" in diameter.

[mfedukovich]

Thanks Kisal for the info.

Both of these plants have a pleiospilos nelii sticker on them, they were bought at Lowe's. I looked up pleiospilos bolusii and the plant in the top picture definitely looks more like a p. bolusii, the 2nd plant could be either one, but I'm new at succulent plants so I trust your opinion over my own! I read that when they're young they look a lot alike but as they get older the p. bolusii has a more triangular shape while p. nellii is more globular. So that's why I say the 2nd plant looks to me like it could be either one.

The plant in the bottom picture looks like its about to flower. Should I wait to repot til the flower dies or does it matter? With other non-succulent plants I've always heard not to repot while in bloom and I've always followed that. And I'm assuming a cactus potting mix will be good to plant them in? Or should I do anything to that?

Oh, these are 2 of the sites I saw that said the p. nellii should only have one set of leaves to be healthiest.
https://plantsbulbs.suite101.com/article.cfm/pleiospilos_nelii
https://welcometocactusland.com/Succulents/Aizoaceae/Pleiospilos/pleiospilos_nelii_00.htm

I'm just afraid of overwatering and over caring for them.....again.

[Kisal]

The blunt truth I have learned about myself over the past 30+ years is that I kill cacti when I try to maintain them by watering lightly and frequently. Other people, however, have absolutely wonderful success with that method. It's impossible for me to say that one method is at all times "right" and another always "wrong."

"Flooding of the substrate" means the soil doesn't drain rapidly enough. The plants growing in the wild get wet in the rain, and it doesn't kill them. That's because the water drains away rapidly and any moisture on the plant quickly evaporates into the hot, dry air. The length of time between rains means there is too little moisture to maintain multiple sets of leaves, so the older ones dry up. If moisture stayed on the leaves, or gathered where the old and new leaves joined, then rot would very likely set in. This is one of the reasons I do better watering my cacti from the bottom, rather from the top ... I almost always get water on the leaves when I water a plant from the top. I guess I'm just sloppy that way.

The best suggestion I can offer, since you have to choose from among differing advice regarding care, is just to do things differently than you did with the plants you lost. I realize that's very vague, but if you watered your previous plant once a week, then you might want to water the new one no oftener than every 2 weeks ... or maybe only every 3 weeks. Water it even less often in the fall/winter months. That should force it into dormancy and cause the old leaves to dry up. Use pots made of unglazed clay, which will actually wick water away from the roots and allow it to evaporate into the air.

[mfedukovich]

Your suggestion is very vague but I understand completely. I agree that it is rare for one solution to be the absolute best for everyone. And that goes for most everything, not just plants. I just didn't know if I was doing one thing in particular that was REALLY wrong.

I think what it was with my last plants was that I was watering from the top lightly once a week maybe, sometimes I'd go longer. It was hard not to get water on the plant itself. So this time I'll follow your suggestion and water from below, letting the pot soak. And letting it dry thoroughly between waterings.

Something else that may have played a part in my plants' death was last time I used 50/50 mix of potting soil and sand, (I just stole some of my kids' play sand, hehe) but this time I"ll use the cactus mix and see if that helps. It seemed the mix I made got compacted and hard easily.

So we will see how things go this time. Wish me luck! And thanks again for all your advice Kisal!

[Kisal]

Please post now and then about your progress. I'll be very interested to see how your plant fares.

If I had to point at one thing you did wrong with the previous plants, it would be the soil mix. If the soil doesn't drain rapidly enough, there is really no way to adequately control the amount of moisture around the roots.

I think you'll find that with the proper soil; an unglazed clay pot; plenty of sun; and thorough, but infrequent waterings, the Living Rocks will thrive for you.

[mfedukovich]

I will definitely post updates every once in a while!

[mfedukovich]

So I've been meaning to post these pics of my plant for awhile but things have been hectic here.

The one plant bloomed! I was very excited because 1- I've never seen one bloom, and 2- I managed to keep it alive long enough for it to bloom! Both plants are still doing very well. I only had a pic of the one and I don't have recent pics of either...I'm a slacker!

Anyway, just thought I'd show it off, and thank Kisal once again for the help!

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[Kisal]

How very pretty! You're doing a wonderful job! Congratulations!

[mfedukovich]

Thank you!

[I like plants]

Very nice. I have Lithops too. One is having small blooms. The others are growing. Just remember that when there is a new growth coming let the plant die. The old growth will die and give it's humidity to the new growth so that it can grow. Continue the good work!

[Sarytta]

Mine is also blooming, the flower is now dying. I don't have a picture from the first bloom, but here is how is looking now.
When should I harvest the seeds and how to do it? Should I cut the flower off?
There is another flower sprouting, I'm so excited!!

[rainbowgardener]

Your pleiospilos is looking very good! Don't cut the flower off if you want seeds! The flower is the seed making organ.

I guess they are self-fertile, so it may (or may not) set seeds. Usually they are propagated vegetatively, by offsets they produce.

[Sarytta]

Thank you!
Actually I had a problem with it, I overwatered and the first pair of leaves started to get mushy. I started to look for answers online and learned that they don't need water that much. So I had to remove it from the pot, left to dry for a few days, the repotted. This picture was taken two weeks after that. I'm hoping I won't lose it.