Journey of living stone flowers over winter: watering issues
The editor answers questions about succulent plants, specifically living stone flowers, regarding the watering issues during their winter journey. This information will definitely help you, so let's learn about it together!
Firstly, although we are using living stone flowers as an example here, it actually includes other mesembryanthemum species like肉锥 (fleshy thorns), 虾钳 (shrimp clips), etc., and will not clarify each one. The planting environment and winter temperatures are probably characterized by rapid temperature drops followed by persistent dry and low temperatures, with the lowest at -5°C. The conclusion is that the cold tolerance of living stone flowers is显然 higher than that of Haworthia, so all varieties spent the entire winter outside the south window without any damage, including 2-year-old living stone flower seedlings.
There are several points that need special mention:
1. Although a complete and proactive water cutoff was implemented starting from last December (occasional rain exposure is possible), the living stone flowers generally maintained a plump shape throughout the winter. This confirms that excessive watering in winter can cause the fleshy leaves to split, and it also indicates that living stone flowers can still grow at temperatures around zero (whether they grow below zero cannot be absolutely verified). Therefore, even though living stone flowers are in their growing period in winter, it's better to water sparingly.
2. This natural overwintering seems to be very beneficial for maintaining shape and shedding. It can be confirmed that the water cutoff plays a role, and I think full sun exposure also helps maintain the shape. Is it because of the low temperatures that living stone flowers have an instinct to compress their bodies and burrow into the soil? Anyway, I think this year's shedding was the smoothest, and the shape was well maintained, even some tall varieties like Dajin Hui became shorter and stouter. Of course, there are still some extreme individuals.
3. By the way, let me mention past issues regarding watering. Initially, it was thought that for the Xianrou variety, watering could be fully liberalized once they enter the growing period. This conclusion is correct in itself but only proves that the plant has sufficient moisture tolerance during the growing period. However, having this ability does not mean the plant likes such an environment. Taking living stone flowers as an example, although they can be watered more in winter without major issues, it is still extremely disadvantageous for shedding later on. Therefore, watering should be based on the plant's own habits and not just for the sake of watering to pursue growth speed, which is not the ultimate goal of enthusiasts.
Photo captions:
1. This is a picture of young living stone flowers sown in autumn a few years ago.
2. Besides Zixun (used as a control), these are some representatives that have shed better than previous years.
This article shares a detailed introduction to the watering issues during the winter journey of living stone flowers, hoping to bring some flower knowledge to flower enthusiasts.