Jade plant (Crassula argenta) also referred to Jade tree is grown an indoor houseplant that is easy to care for and can last for many years. It can also be grown outdoors in frost-free areas where it can get to 8 feet or more.
Care
Jade plants can be grown in full sun or shade. When grown in full sun it will produce compact bushy stems and reddish leaf tips. In shade, the plant will develop spindly growth. The leaves will be dark green and stems can become leggy.
When given short days and dry, cool growing conditions, Jade plant will bloom in late winter with slightly fragrant clustered flowers.
Water
Water the plant sparingly. Jade is one of those plants that you can forget to water for a month or more and the plant will still look good. In fact, it has been known to survive without water for 6 months or more but if kept too dry, it will shrink, shrivel and loose some of its leaves.
Let the soil dry out between watering. Water less in winter and in humid weather as too much water can lead to root rot.
Soil
Jade is a succulent plant that needs soil that drains quickly. Plant in cactus soil, or amend a good houseplant soil with 1/3 perlite, pumice or coarse sand.
Best time to transplant is in the summer during warm dry weather. Don’t water the plant before or after transplanting. This will give the plant time to heal any damaged roots and avoid rot.
The plant is not a heavy feeder but fertilizer will make a difference in how well and fast will grow. Feed it when it is actively growing with a 10-20-20 mix every 2-3 months.
Keep the plant cool in winter (55F) during their dormant period.
Pruning
You can prune to shape the plant or if it becomes leggy. Cut it back above a ring on the stem up to a set of leaves. New growth will emerge from the “ringed” area.
Propagation
Stem cuttings
New plants can be easily rooted from stem cuttings or single leaves in the spring. Take a 5-10” cutting, remove lower leaves so that you have a 1-2” base stem and let the cutting dry for 2-7 days (depending on humidity) on your kitchen counter. This allows the cut to callus (scab over) which will promote root growth. Place the cutting 1-1 1/2” deep into moistened sandy soil mix and keep the soil slightly dry until it sends out new roots. Stem cuttings can also be rooted in water.
Leaf propagation
You can also try leaf propagation. Take a single leaf from an active growing stem, allow it to dry for a few days and then stick it in soil at a 30 degree angle just enough to cover the leaf end. It should root in several weeks.
If you had any leaf drop, sometimes you can find tiny new plants growing at the base of the mother plant.
Troubleshooting
A healthy Jade plant has little problems. An overwatered plant can be susceptible to Mealy bugs, rot and gray mold.
I recently repotted my jade to a larger pot. It was in the pot that I bought it with for almost 4 years. The stalks grew tall and the leaves thick. Now that it is in a larger pot, the top leaves have been growing more flat and broad. Is this due to over watering?
hello, i have a large jade plant that last year looked amazing, we brought it into a heated well lit sunroom, in oct, but now It has dropped most of its leaves, and these long leggy stems are growing with tiny leaves, it looks so sparse, I do not water it often It gets good light and warmth, so what could be happening to it ?
thank you.
hello, yes to most of the above, it is an old plant, It did get cold some nights, in the sun room and the leaves turned yellow, do you think it will ever pick up again ?
Wrinkled leaves
I recently bought a Jade plant online (it actually may be a Portulacaria/Dwarf Jade). I didn’t water it since I got it (which was about 5 or so days) but I suddenly noticed a few wrinkled leaves. I read somewhere that this is a sign to water, so I did. The leaves were almost completely back to normal until yesterday when I noticed even more leaves were wrinkled. The soil is still moist, so it can’t be dry. Are there root problems such as mealy bugs? I would really like instructions on how to fix this! Thanks so very much!
P.S. The plant is still in the pot it was shipped in. It is wired to this pot, and it is the right size pot. It has drainage holes, but the plant is wired to the pot through these holes, but there is still room for drainage)
Oedema/Edema of Jade plant
I have a five year old indoor jade plant that fluctuates between healthy and sick. I live in Florida and it seems decline in health during the winter months. It finally seems be on the path of recovery and great health, then the same thing happens around each January. Leaves rather quickly develop black bumpy spots on the underside, they start turning from deep green to pale green, get limp and shriveled, then fall off. The first time it happens twenty leaves will drop over night, then more over succesive days. This always begins with the lowest leaves on the branch. It is not scale or rot, the plant is in the original pot. In the past I have had problems with spider mites and some other type of knat in the soil and I have successfully treated those with a soapy water spray. I brought the plant indoors several years ago to limit expose to insects, which seemed to help. Could it be that it is not getting enough sun in the winter months, and that I have overwatered? I read that overwatering can cause “Oedema”, black bumps on the leaves. Any ideas? Thank you.
Top-heavy plant
I have a beautiful jade plant that is growing huge on top but the base is still quite small. Is there a way to prune it so that the base grows bigger to support the top?
wrinkly leaves on Jade plant
Hello, I have a jade plant that is about 12 years old. Recently all the smooth plump leaves have become thinner and wrinkly unhappy looking. Basically the whole plant is that way. I have not watered it very often, perhaps every two weeks. I wonder if I need to repot it. It stands in indirect sun most of the day. The pot it is in is 13″ high and 10″ diameter , about one fourth the overall span and volume of the plant.
Thank you for your insight
Sticky leaves
My Jade plant leans a little and I just found that everything that has been under the plant is VERY sticky. do they normally produce ‘sticky droppings’?
Top-heavy jade plant
How do i know when I need to re-pot my jade plant. My plant is growing tall and is top-heavy. The pot looks small to me — it was given to me about 3 years ago. If I repot, does the pot need to be wide to allow for root growth or deep — or both?
Cold temperatures
Hi
I have several jade plants, some over 20 years old. I grow them outside in the summer and inside in the winter. It has become unseasonable cool, with highs in the 60s and lows in the 40s for the next few days. Should I bring the plants in now or wait until it is consistently these temperatures? (Normally I bring them in mid to late October.)
Thanks!
Blooming Jade plant
About 15 years ago I started a jade plant from one leaf. I still have the plant but it has never bloomed. I live in Maine, the plant is growing indoors, by a large window that gets eastern sun. I don’t tend to it much, water occasionally. Do you have any ideas as to why it doesn’t flower?
Jade leaf drop
I have a large indoor jade plant, about 15 years old. Gets light but not in direct sun and temp in room never exceed 85 degrees F. It’s been in different locations (moving around over 15 years) and always healthy. In the past 2 weeks it is dropping leaves that look healthy (about 10 per day). I water it about every 2 weeks. Pot has good drainage. Reading your blog, that may be too much water but it’s been doing well on that watering schedule all these years. What could be causing leaf dropage now?
Shaping plant
I have a jade that I started from a leaf. It is healthy, but just growing straight. How can I get it to branch out?
I have a Jade plant which has just in the past week started having black spots and black edges on the leaves, what can I do?
Insect problem
I have a small jade plant that I started from a small piece that got knocked off of my neighbors house plant. It’s doing wonderful except there are these incredibly tiny bugs that come out of the bottom (from the soil) of the pot in the drainage water. There aren’t any on the plant itself though. The foliage is just fine, but I’m afraid these bugs are eating the roots and will eventually cause damage. Any ideas about what they are and how to get rid of them? By the way, there are several hundred of them, if not thousands, floating and actually swimming, in the catch basin for the drainage water.
Watering Jade plants
I acquired a jade plant that was transplanted by the florist. It is situated in a sunny window (southern exposure) and I water it every couple of weeks. I have been watering the center of the plant and not sure if this is an issue since the outside leaves seem to be shriveling/wrinkled. The florist seemed to think so but doesn’t know much about jade plants. There is no drainage whole on the bottom of the pot which is aproximately 11″in diameter and 10″ in height . The plant fills the pot and is robust in size at this point it would be heavy & awkward to try and drill a whole in the bottom of the pot where is probably should have been drilled by the florist, in the first place.
Thank you,
Beatrice
Overwatering
I have two beautiful jade plants which we keep on a partially shaded outside deck. we live in Austin, TX, and it’s been unusually hot here, over 100 degrees for many weeks. One Jade is getting yellow leaves, and the other is showing signs of stem rot. The branches are falling over, and the broken sections show rotted areas. They are in regular potting soil.
I fear they may be getting too much water, in my attempt to protect them from the high heat with no rain. Other plants show wilting within a day or two if they don’t get replenished.Please help, what can I do to save my jade plants!
Thanks in advance,
Dan
Heat stress
I don’t have a reply but I also am having leaf-drop problems with my 30+ year-old jade plant. The leaves are turning black on the edges and shriveling up. Many are falling off that look very healthy. I live in TX and have never had a problem with this plant. I water it about every 3-4 weeks. We are having extremely high temps and a severe drought now. HELP!!
Root cuttings
Hi – I live in Austin, TX and we just returned home after being away for 6 weeks to find our beautiful big jade just about entirely dead. The branches have laid down, the beautiful leaves are almost all gone, and there is only a little green left at the tips of the branches. Our house-sitter said it started dying 4 weeks ago, though confessed that she watered erratically. Our other plants look fine, so I doubt it was her watering that caused it. I wonder whether it isn’t likely that the extreme heat – it has been outside in the sun with 100+ temperatures the entire time – killed it. This was it’s first summer in this spot, as my mother-in-law brought it to us from her home in Colorado last fall. Also, can I do anything to take a part of it, even just a small cutting and try to re-grow it?
Thank you,
Sarah Beth
After many years and great growth, My Jade plant is suddenly showing browning on it’s leaves. I doubt it is lack of water as it has rained some in the past week. I am keeping it on the patio now but put it in the garage in the winter.
Does it need food?
Leaf drop
I have a large Jade that is about three or four years old. It was fantastic until about three weeks ago when it started to shrivel its leaves and now has dropped all of them. Should I prune it back and change the soil or what. I really like this plant.
Ron
I have had a jade plant for about two months. I have watered it twice, the last time about three weeks ago. Today I picked it up and lots of leaves fell off. They were plump and healthy looking. It it is in a light room…not direct sunlight. Help!