Sedum morganianum or also known as donkey tail or burro’s tail belongs to a species of flowering plant in the family Crassulaceae. This plant is originally from southern Mexico and Honduras. This plant is typically the succulent perennial, which can produce the attached stems. The attached stems can reach 60 cm long. It can be hung out on the basket on the wall.
This plant also produces the combination of the fleshy blue and green leaves and the pink to red flowers during the summer. Sedum morganianum is considered as the easy plant to grow and propagate. If you are planning to grow this plant, here are some following tips to apply for.
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Having the Light
If you are willing to grow this donkey tail plant, you need to pay attention to the light. You need to put this succulent plant under the bright shade or partial sun. In addition, you can also put the plant in the strong hot sun. Don’t put it too long because it may burn the leaves. To get the beautiful shape of the succulent plants, you can adjust the plants to receive the morning sunlight only.
On the other hand, if you want to give the plant both morning and afternoon lights, it is possible, too. Ideally, the plants which receive less sunny and bright will appear to be the beautiful blue and green plant. In contrast, the sun which receives both morning and afternoon sun, the plants will grow into a pale green.
Watering
Another tip to pay attention to is watering. The burro’s tail plant does not need to get full water. It means you only need to spray the water to the soil. Make sure you don’t overwater the leaves of the plant because the leaves themselves have the water storage. If you overwater the plant, the roots will rot out.
If you start growing the succulents, water the soil till it dry before you plant. Once the plant is established, you can water it every 10 or 14 days thoroughly. Watering this plant this way also enables some salts from the water and fertilizer to water the pot. Don’t splash it every day.
During the growing season when the days are longer and warmer, you can often water the plant. Do watering every 9 up to 11 days. You can adjust watering accordingly depends on the weather conditions. If you use clay pots as the media for growing the donkey tail plant, the plant will drain faster. Therefore, more watering is needed during the summer.
Having Temperature
As sedum morganianum is originally from Mexico, where the weather is humid and dry, this plant loves to receive full sun. To have better donkey tail plant care, put the plant near the window during the summer and spring. This plant also needs to be drained well to avoid the rotten roots. The best temperature for this plant is about 16 degree Celsius up to 21 degree Celsius.
The lowest temperature this plant can bear is about 4 degrees Celsius during the winter. During the winter, this plant needs to be placed in a warm place. The ideal pH for the well-drained soil for this plant is around 6.0 or slightly acidic.
Having the Soil
Donkey tail succulent is easy to grow, propagate, or cut. To have good growth, this plant must have good drainage. After being watered, you need to make sure the soil is dry faster. It is recommended that you use the mix of the soil that is formulated for the succulent plants.
You can add horticultural sand, gravel, pumice, perlite, baked clay granules, or lava rock to the potting soil you use for the plant. Try to avoid the sand to add for the soil. The sand tends to clog the soil pores. This plant also loves to receive the worm castings or vermicompost on the top of the soil in the spring as the nutrients.
Propagating
As typical other succulents, you can easily propagate this plant. You can cut the individual leaves and place them into the succulent. Cover the leaves with the plastic or glass in a pot until the leaves sprout.
You can also try to cut the stems to whatever the length you would like to. Peel the bottom of the leaves. Let the steams heals off for about 2 weeks up to 3 months. The callus will appear from the stems you cut. Put the steams in the pot so that the weight of the stems can be carried out.
Insects and Pests
The donkey tail succulent is not resistant to certain insects and pests. One of the problems that may happen is the aphids. To have the donkey tail plant care for the aphids, you can spray the water to the plant. Do it every month. Another care is you can spray the succulent with the mixture of the alcohol and water. The composition is 1/5 rubbing alcohol and 4/5 water.
On the other hand, try to spray the organic neem oil directly to the plant if those following ways do not work. Spraying the organic neem oil to the plant will remove the aphids.
Repotting
The last tip you can try is to repot the succulent. You can do the repotting process in the spring and summer. The first thing that you need to prepare is to make sure the soil is dry. Move the plant from the current pot. Remove the old soil from the roots. This way is to knock away the dead or rotten roots. You can spray the fungicide to the roots if you find the major cuts from the roots. Move the plant to the new pot and put the soil in the pot. Choose the bigger pot if the roots can’t be spread. Let the plant dry for about a week. After that, you can water lightly the plant.
In conclusion, sedum morganianum is easy to grow. As any other succulent plants, you need to pay attention to the tips when you want to grow. The better lighting, watering, temperature, soil, propagating, and repotting will boost the fast growth and the color of the plant.
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