Miniature succulent marvels!

A must for every plant enthusiast.

These are true miniature plants, never growing large.
They are the perfect choice if space is limited as they will never take over.

Slow growing but equally rewarding they add a much needed zest of life in winter when most other plants are resting or not looking their best.

Conophytum grow beautifully in decorative miniature pots.

These plants come in an incredibly broad range of forms, colours and patterns.
Something we will see a mere glimpse of throughout this post.

Every year the old leaves are absorbed by the plant and form a protective sheath which protects the new leaves from the harsh summer sun.

They also multiply through this process when 1 head can become 2.

The following is a complete guide to growing Conophytum.
This guide was written from scratch and is based off our experience in growing these incredible plants at Spine City nursery.

Conophytum pellucidum
An expansive grouping of Conophytum.

How do we grow them?
This part of the post will be an in-depth look at all of the facets of growing Conophytum with a quick reference guide at the end.

The first step is to understand their growth cycle which is unique to say the least.

They are considered winter growers.

Key growth times are late summer through to early winter, there is a small pause during the dead of winter and then another flush of growth from late winter into spring.

Conophytum are dormant during summer.

Conophtyum, should, during summer being covered in a sheath .
They look dead. There are no two ways about it.
A shriveled up husk.

This is their adaptation to their natural environment where the majority of rain falls during winter and there is little to no rain during summer.
They essentially enter a hibernation stage and tough it out until rain arrives.

Husk mode
This is how Conophytum should look during summer.

The awakening.
Conophytum will begin to awaken anywhere from late summer through until mid autumn.
They will do this all of their own accord even without being watered.

Good morning, it’s nice to see you again.

It is important during the awakening phase to introduce water slowly and lightly.
A very light psst psst with a spray bottle is enough to get them engaged and growing again.
This is done every 7-10 days.

After a few weeks, the roots will have re-engaged and the plant will begin to take on water, increasing in size.

Conophytum maughanii
After a couple of weeks of light watering.

Once you are confident the plant is actively growing and taking on water again, you can begin to increase the volume of water applied.

Frequency can remain at every 7-10 days (adjust for climatic factors)

These plants can easily be watered using a spray bottle only.
They are very efficient at taking up water.
Full saturation of the pot should only be done a few times throughout the peak growing phase, mid autumn to early winter.

Conophytum are very expressive plants, if they are full and juicy looking then there is no need to water even if the schedule says it’s time to.
On the flip side, if you are following the schedule and they just aren’t perking up and looking pretty and juicy, give them a little more.

What happens if you over-water them?
They can rot, but what is more likely is that they will split.
This is not a death sentence and they will, more often than not, recover fully but have a scar until the following season when the new head comes through.

Splitting due to over-watering.
Keep the split dry until it has healed.

As the dead of winter approaches, watering is reduced in volume and frequency.
Every 10-14 days with volume closer to the awakening stage amounts.

From late winter into early spring we increase the watering again to capitalize on this final flush of growth and to prepare them for the long drought ahead.

From mid spring through until early summer they will begin to prepare themselves for the summer rest phase.
During this time, they will look sad, go squishy and develop dull or unpleasant colours.

You will likely think they are dying, but they are not.
This is your sign to reduce water drastically in both frequency and volume.

Once they have fully husked over - watering is ceased entirely.

There is some contention around whether Conophytum should be watered a little during summer.

If you are going to water over summer - it should be extremely lightly and infrequently once every 3-5 weeks only.

What about soil / substrate?

By now throughout the images you will have seen there is a lot of gravel in the pots.
This is not a top dressing, I do not use top dressing for any plants.

The substrate used for Conophytum must be very free draining.
In the nursery, we use a full mineral mix with just a few small pieces of potting mix bark per pot.

Substrate mixes high in organics (potting mix) lead to overly bloated plants which do not look true to type and are much more susceptible to rotting.

Particle size is also important, fine to small particle size works best.
We have trialed larger particle sizes and whilst they do work, it is more difficult to get the plants to establish and maintain proper watering.

Where to find smaller gravel?
The easiest place is an aquarium shop, whilst not the most cost effective you can be sure they’ll have fine quartz pebbles which will work perfectly for Conophytum.

Sand can form part of the mix but must be used in small quantities, too much and it will suffocate the roots.

You can use other gravels you may have on hand just be sure to remove the very large pieces.

A small amount of potting mix can be added but should not make up more than 10-20% of the total mix.

Let there be light!

Conophtyum appreciate moderate to strong light.
They can be successfully grown in a fairly broad range of light levels, indoors however is not an option.
During the summer rest phase it is advantageous to move them somewhere more sheltered, just make sure they don’t get wet or they will wake up prematurely.

What’s for dinner?
Not the Conophytum!

We are talking about their dinner here.
A general purpose soluble fertiliser applied at half strength twice per growing season is all that is required to keep them happy.
The first application is done when they have fully woken up from the summer rest.
The second is shortly after the dead of winter has passed.

Well hopefully your head isn’t spinning after reading all that.

These plants are genuinely not difficult to grow, will tolerate a wide variety of conditions and are also very forgiving.

The quick guide is up next…

A mixed planter.
There are around a dozen plants in here.

The quick guide:

Water
Late summer to early winter:
Light to moderate every 7-10 days

Dead of winter:
Light every 10-14 days

Late winter to early spring:
Moderate every 7-10 days

Summer:
None

Light
Moderate to strong with some extra protection during summer

Substrate
Free draining - high gravel content minimum 75%

Fertiliser
Soluble general purpose applied at half strength in autumn and spring.

Writing growing guides is always challenging, especially with the eccentricities one naturally develops growing unusual plants.

3 extra drops of water for this plant, slight shift to the right for that one…..
(this will make sense to some and others in time)

Best wishes
Cori

Conophytum

The 300 collection

Spine City

Follow