Jade plant care

Jade plants (crassula ovata) are hardy, independent succulents with leafy pads and woody stems. Succulents store water in their leaves, stems and /or roots, like most cacti (cacti are usually succulents, but not all succulents are cacti), and require infrequent waterings. Native to South Africa, jades like sandy, rocky soil and lots of sun. In China, jades are known as the "money tree" for their coin-shaped leaves, so keeping one around the house might just get you that raise!

Care for the jade plant is easy, and very enjoyable. For many jade owners (myself included), the hardest part of caring for a jade is knowing when to leave it alone.

Maintaining a healthy jade

• Give your jade lots of sunlight; the more the merrier. If the leaves have a reddish tint, they're lovin' that sun - though this may vary by subspecies.
• As a general rule, water your jades once every 10 days, more in the summer if it's very hot and dry, less in the winter. Some experts advocate watering monthly. Signs of overwatering include leaves dropping off branches, soggy soil, fungus gnats (these bugs love soggy soil, so if you see them buzzing around your plants you may want to cut back on the watering and make sure your pot has adequate drainage), or worst of all, a soggy stem may rot and die. When your jade wants water, the leaf pads get a little squishy with less fullness. It's always better to err on the side of underwatering - a squishy leaf pad will rehydrate in no time, but root rot spells doom: d-o-o-m.
• For newly potted cuttings, water even less frequently - virtually not at all, in fact, until the plant grows some roots! Make sure the stem is placed a few inches into the dirt (this may require clipping some of the lower leaves). Don't worry if the leaves shrivel a little - this is normal.
  

Pruning

• Pruning, ideally in the springtime, will encourage your jade to grow more roots and thicken the girth of the stem. Without occasional pruning, the branches may become long and scraggly, and the jade may become top-heavy without adequate root systems. Finally, many jade owners prefer the "tree" shape that is achieved by pruning; at every place you cut the stem, two new branches will form.
  
• Don't be shy - hack away wherever the green (not woody) stems are getting long. In a few months, your jade will be flourishing with a thicker truck, branching stems, and a more extensive root system. If you're lucky, the jade may even blossom.
  

Propogation (making babies) & Potting

• Jade plant clippings can be re-potted. Leaves that fall off cannot - they're dead by the time they drop.
  
• Clay pots are best as they aerate the soil to keep it from getting soggy, but a plastic pot is o.k. as long as it has good drainage. You can even use a little yogurt up if you drill holes in the bottom. Use the lid as a tray.
• Make sure the pot is not too big - err on the small side - as a bunch of excess dirt in a pot without roots with retain water for a long time, leading to root rot. In my experience, this applies to most plants.
  
• An ideal soil mix is half sand (or gravel) and half organic potting soil. Place some rocks at the bottom of the pot for drainage. You can even use a few stones on the surface to make a little stonehenge.*

May your jade bring you quality companionship, financial success and balanced feng shui.

*Stonehenge is not technically a henge. A true henge is a circular ditch with a ring of piled earth on the inside, like a moat around a little castle wall. Stonehenge has the circular mound outside the ditch. Notice the term "henge" has nothing at all to do with a pile of stones, so by referring stones (above) my use of the term is not technically correct!