Succulents Among the Redwoods
i purchased a succulent arrangment in the summer from you for my mother and we have both subsequently become OBSESSED with them, i now have a huge garden of whatever succulents i could find, we have several redwood trees around us, and wondering since so much of the leaves are falling right now, will the excess acid from it harm the succulents? also if im planting the succulents in the ground, aside from the potting soil and lava rock we added what is the benefit from adding mulch/or rock? and is there a certain type of mulch to use?
we cant wait to come back and visit you now that we are so excited about succulents, thanks so much.
Oh ya and all the sudden there are some little white specks on the schawrkopf in the arrangment and a small amount of cottony white material on the leaves…is this mites? are there specific solutions or natural remedies for treating succulents for this?
thanks for any help you can give
jack
Jack,
I little bit of leaf drop from the redwoods isn’t a problem, but a good healthy coating would be a problem. Not only will it reduce the sun get through to the plant, but when wet it can cause rot problems. It also can make the plant more prone to pests, which it sounds like you already have. Without seeing the plants I can’t be sure, but it sounds like you have aphids or mites (the little white specks) and mealy bugs (the cottony white material).
We recommend using 100% Neem oil on the succulents to kill the pests, while still safe for the plants (if sprayed when not in full sun).
As for a mulch, in general the succulents really don’t need any mulch. We use a lava rock mulch mostly for decorative purposes. Bark mulch will hold in too much moisture which can cause rot problems, especially in winter.
Peter
