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What is a Mother of Thousands Plant?
The Mother of Thousands succulent, scientifically known as Kalanchoe daigremontiana, looks like a high-maintenance plant thanks to its attractive foliage.
Whether you’re a gardening enthusiast or beginner, you’ll love that it’s easy to take care of.
What is the Mother of Thousands succulent?
This succulent plant is striking and unique because it has tiny plantlets that keep growing on the edges of its leaves. These can take root and produce new plants.
Hailing from the tropics of Madagascar, the Mother of Thousands is an intriguing plant. If you want to grow it in your own garden, there are some important things to know.
Does Mother Of Thousands bloom Flowers?
One of the most appealing things about Mother of Thousands is its plantlets, but it is one of those succulents that bloom flowers.
The Mother of Thousands blooms clusters of lavender that appear on its stems.
However, this doesn’t occur regularly. You might find that your Mother of Thousands succulent never actually blooms.
When the flowers go away, the main succulent plant will die.
However, those small Kalanchoe plantlets along its leaves will be dropped from the plant, which can take root wherever they fall!
This is why the Mother of Thousands is sometimes thought of as an invasive plant.
Never keep your Mother of Thousands near other plants by keeping them in the same pot.
When those plantlets take root and grow, they could suffocate the other plant, which is why this succulent will need its own space.
How To Care for Mother Of Thousands Plants
If you want to grow the Mother of Thousands succulent at your home, you’ll have to ensure that you give it temperate conditions so that it will thrive.
Here is what you should know about caring for your Mother of Thousands, based on its water, light, and fertilizer requirements.
Water
You should ensure that its soil is moist but not too wet. The container you choose to plant your Mother of Thousands should be a pot with excellent drainage.
When you first water the succulent plant, you want to give it water until it comes out at the bottom of the pot. Then, only water it when the first two inches of soil are dry.
Sun
Along with enough water, this plant, as with other succulents, requires bright indirect sunlight. It survives in extreme heat, but it isn’t resistant to frost.
So, if you’ve found the perfect place for your Mother of Thousands plant in the garden but you live in a cold region, make sure you keep it in a container so that you can move it indoors when the weather is freezing.
The best temperatures that Mother of Thousands needs to survive and thrive are between 65- and 75-degrees Fahrenheit.
So, your best bet is to place it somewhere in the garden where it will get strong but indirect sunlight for many hours a day.
Pro tip: You will know that you’re giving your Mother of Thousands enough light and sun by checking out its leaves.
If they’re bright, healthy green, with red edges on them, those are signs that the plant has enough light to meet its daily needs.
Keeping Your Mother Of Thousands Indoors
If you want to grow this succulent indoors, you should make sure you keep it out of any bright afternoon sun as this can burn its leaves.
It’s also a good idea to place the plant outside to get enough sun and then move it back inside when it’s cold.
However, when moving your plant so that it’s not exposed to harsh weather conditions, it’s always recommended that you do this slowly.
The extreme change in temperature can be stressful for the plant.
A good idea could be to bring it in from the garden and keep it in a sheltered spot, such as on a balcony, for a day or so before moving it to a sunny spot inside the house.
Pot or Container put Your Plant
Make sure you put your Mother of Thousands plant in an appropriate succulent pot.
As mentioned earlier, since it needs well-draining soil, a terra cotta pot is a good choice as it has holes in the bottom to drain excess moisture.
Adding pebbles to the bottom of the pot can be a good way to ensure that the drainage works well.
However, note that if you want to move your Mother of Thousands plant from outside to inside when the weather becomes cold, a terra cotta pot might be too heavy. It can also break easily.
You can control the size you want your Mother of Thousands to become by choosing the right pot size.
If you keep it in a small pot, it will remain small.
If you’re looking for a pot with drainage holes, how about one that waters itself? This self-watering container is what we use for our indoor plants. There’s no need to worry about overwatering or preventing root rot.
If you want it to grow larger, a bigger pot will encourage it to grow with larger leaves and greater height.
If you want your plant small, make sure you still have enough space for your plant – about an inch of space between the plant and container should be enough.
When your Mother of Thousands becomes too large for its pot, you’ll have to repot it.
Do this during the springtime as the warm temperature will encourage the plant’s roots to grow once transplanted into its new pot.
When you do repot your Mother of thousand plants, make sure you use the right succulent soil.
Fertilizer
From March to September, you should give your Mother of Thousands a liquid fertilizer every month.
However, make sure you dilute the fertilizer by half to give the plant too much of it.
When it comes to the soil that this plant needs to grow, a commercial cactus soil mix is sufficient for its needs.
For what it’s worth, the fertilizer we use is this slow-release fertilizer. It’s super simple to use, and once you set it in the soil you don’t need to worry about it.
Pruning
If you’ve planted your Mother of Thousands outside, it can grow up to three feet tall.
This plant can easily get out of control when left to its own devices, so it’s a good idea to prune it.
All you need to do is pinch off the top of the plant at a height that you prefer it to remain.
This will force the plant to produce offshoots from its sides.
It would help if you also snipped off any dead leaves on your plant.
While not essential, this will give the plant a healthier and more attractive appearance.
Propagating Your Mother Of Thousands Plant
If you want to leave your Mother of Thousands to shed its plantlets and watch where they take up root in your garden, that’s great.
However, you might want to have more control over the process of growing these fascinating plants.
If so, you should follow these steps to grow your own Mother of Thousands.
Materials you Need to Propagate A Kalanchoe
- Plantlets (taken from your Mother of Thousands plant)
- Pot
- Soil mix
- Plastic wrap
Steps on Propagating Mother of Thousands Kalanchoe Plant
- Remove some of the plantlets from the leaves of your Mother of Thousands succulent.
- In a pot, pour some commercial cactus mix soil.
- Place the plantlets on the surface of the soil, then cover the pot with plastic wrap.
- Make sure you leave the pot in a sunny place.
- You should keep the soil moist. Do not overwater it.
- When the plantlets start to grow and can reach the plastic wrap, remove the plastic. You should now plant them in a larger plant so that they can grow more comfortably.
- Always handle the plant’s roots carefully as they can be easily injured. A good tip when transplanting your Mother of Thousands is to make a large hole in the soil so that you don’t get too close to the roots.
5 Other Types Of Mother Of Thousands Succulents To Consider
Here are some of the most interesting types, but first, we need to understand Bryophyllum plants as you’ve probably heard this name when Mother of Thousands is mentioned.
Bryophyllum is a group of plants in the Crassulaceae family, part of the Kalanchoe genus but is sometimes thought to have its own class.
Like the kalanchoe daigremontiana, the Bryophyllum has plantlets along its leaves’ edges, and these can drop off to create new plants.
One of the biggest differences between Kalanchoe and Bryophyllum is that the flowers of the Bryophyllum are in a pendant design. In contrast, the flowers that sometimes bloom on the Kalanchoe remain upright.
However, to make matters confusing, their names are sometimes used interchangeably.
For instance, some of the plants listed below can be called Kalanchoe or Bryophyllum plants.
Mother of Thousands is scientifically known as Kalanchoe daigremontiana but can also be called Bryophyllum daigremontianum!
Let’s look at some of the fascinating bryophyllum and kalanchoe plants.
Kalanchoe Pinnatum
The Kalanchoe Pinnatum plant is a fleshy plant that can grow to heights of between 23 and 47 inches. It has broad leaves that give rise to small plantlets, and they have pretty scalloped margins.
The Pinnatum has bell-shaped flowers that can be yellow, pink, or red, and they appear in clusters at the top of the plant’s stems.
Kalanchoe Laetivirens
This plant is sometimes called “Big Momma” because it is such a prolific plant.
It blooms in red and pink flowers, and you can see these appear above the plant’s leaves during early spring.
This plant is considered quite unusual because it has blue and green plantlets that appear along the edges of its leaves.
It can grow up to eight inches in length and three inches wide.
Kalanchoe Tubiflora
The Kalanchoe Tubiflora is a succulent commonly known as the Mother of Millions. It has narrow leaves that are gray and green in color and burgundy spots on them.
You’ll find baby plantlets appear on the tips of the succulent leaves before they drop off onto the ground.
Kalanchoe tubiflora is also known as the “chandelier plant” because of how its leaves stick out from its stem, and it can grow up to four feet in height!
Kalanchoe Marnieriana
Also known as the Mariner’s Kalanchoe plants, this succulent has blue-green leaves that are flat and round so that they look a bit like clamshells.
Sometimes the edges of the leaves can turn red.
They have flowering stalks that appear from their center and bloom in beautiful pink and red flowers.
This succulent plant can grow up to two feet in height.
Kalanchoe Fedtschenkoi
This plant, sometimes called “Lavender Scallops,” has fleshy blue-green leaves and scalloped edges tinged in lavender, making it very striking.
The leaves tend to form in bunches, making them an excellent plant to use as ground cover.
During the spring and summer, this succulent displays reddish-brown bell-shaped flowers that appear in clusters.
The plant can grow between one to two feet in height.
FAQ
What Causes The Leaves Of Mother Of Thousands To Curl?
This may occur for a variety of reasons, the most common of which are: either you are not providing your Mother Of Thousands plant with enough sunlight or you are providing it with too much water. You’ll be able to prevent its leaves from curling if you address the issues identified.
Is Mother Of Thousands Prone To Disease?
Many factors may have contributed to a mother of thousands starting to droop and finally dying. The most typical reasons why a mother of thousands plant seems to be dying are over-watering, exposure to excessive direct scorching sunshine, and under-watering, among other factors. Despite the fact that Mother of Thousand plants is disease-resistant, you may encounter aphids or spider mites on your Mother of Thousand. [1] You should remove them from the plant by scrubbing them with water.
Is Mother Of Thousands Poisonous?
Yes, the mother-of-thousands is poisonous. All portions of the plant are toxic and may be lethal if consumed by tiny animals or newborns. When consumed, the Mother of Thousands plant may cause nausea, heart palpitations, and diarrhea. [2]
Conclusion
Mother of Thousands is an intriguing plant that every succulent lover will want to grow. But there’s not just one type of Mother of Thousands.
In this article, we’ve looked at the different Mother of Thousands varieties and provided you with everything you need to know to grow your own Mother of Thousands.
It’s not just beautiful but sure to give your home or garden an unusual touch!
Other Kalanchoe Succulent Plants to Consider
There are many varieties of Kalanchoe plants. If you are looking for another type of Kalanchoe plant, check out our other related posts:
References
Lindsey Hyland grew up in Arizona where she studied at the University of Arizona’s Controlled Environment Agriculture Center. She continued her gardening education by working on organic farms in both rural and urban settings. She started UrbanOrganicYield.com to share gardening tips and tactics. She’s happy to talk about succulents and houseplants or vegetables and herbs – or just about anything in a backyard garden or hydroponics garden.
