Autumn Succulent Checklist Amazing tips

You're aware of autumn in sun and shadows, shorter days and drier air, and so is your garden. Smart plant parents are attuned to wind, rain and frost. And they're vigilant. Succulents recovering from summer heat and sun are especially vulnerable to pests.

These seasonal succulent must-do's are for southern and coastal CA, from the Bay Area south. If you live beyond, please visit my site's Succulent Care By Season and Region page. 

Blue Senecio mandraliscae and aeoniums, from my latest video: How to Fill Gaps in Your Succulent Garden

In September and October...

(1) Aeoniums and senecios (shown above) are emerging from summer dormancy. Cut back leggy aeoniums, replant rosettes, and discard old plants roots and all. See how in my video, How to Refresh an Overgrown Succulent Garden (4:48).

(2) Trim Senecio mandraliscae by several inches, and plant cuttings in gaps. Old stems branch where cut, which helps mass plantings grow fuller. See how in my new video, How to Fill Gaps in Your Succulent Garden (2:21).

(3) Apply a weed preventer (pre-emergent herbicide). This nontoxic, granulated powder stops seeds from germinating. Spread it before the first rainstorm wherever you don't want annual weeds. More.

(4) Check your garden's run-off. Create channels that divert rain from succulents in low spots. If they sit where water collects, they may rot.

(5) Treat agaves for snout weevil. This essential preventative needs doing in spring and fall. It also saves infested plants if caught early. What to use. 

Autumn succulent wreath

(6) Create a wreath that'll transition from fall into winter. See my video: Make an Autumn-Themed Succulent Wreath DIY (3:58).

(7) Fertilize in-ground succulents with Ironite. Ideal for newly planted gardens, it boosts spring growth. Take care it doesn't stain hardscape.

(8) Scrub cochineal scale off opuntia pads. Remove the bumpy white colonies with a soft-bristled shower brush dipped in Safer soap. Read my article. Watch the video. 

Ants on gasteria

(9) Check for ants in outdoor potted succulents, especially haworthias, gasterias and aloes. A tell-tale sign is soil in the crowns, pushed up from below. What to do.

(10) Heat, sun and Santa Ana winds can desiccate succulents. Cuttings are most at risk because they lack roots, so plant them after the winds die down.

Cochineal Scale on Paddle Cactus, What To Do

White fuzzy lumps on paddle cactus are cochineal (coach-en-ee-al) scale, a parasite that pierces the plant’s skin and consumes its juices. It’s used to make carmine dye.

Read More

Agave Snout Weevil Prevention and Treatment

Agave experts, growers, and pest management specialists advise drenching the soil around healthy agaves with a systemic insecticide containing imidacloprid.* Untreated agaves are at high risk of infestation. If treated early enough, an infested agave may survive.  The agave snout-nosed weevil is a half-inch-long black beetle with a downward-curving proboscis that enables it to pierce an agave’s…

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Succulent Pests, Large and Small

Common succulent pests, diseases, and problems include agave grease mite, aloe mite, ant infestation, aphids, black spots, cochineal scale, deer, desiccation, etiolation, frost, gopher, hail, mealy bugs, mildew, rabbit, rot, snails and sunburn. Also find out how NOT to deal with a skunk!

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Ten Edible Succulents and How to Prepare Them Amazing tips

These ten edible succulents can go from garden to kitchen. Most are fairly easy to obtain, cultivate and prepare. The mucilaginous (goopy) texture of certain edible succulents makes them---to spin it positively---great in soups and stews. Vitamin C is one reason for their sour taste; another is the plants' sophisticated "crassulacean acid metabolism" (CAM). This peaks in early morning, so wait until later in the day to harvest.

Ten Edible Succulents and How to Prepare Them

I've listed these in order of personal preference. Those that are more difficult to find or cultivate, are less palatable, or that I've yet to try, are farther down the list. And because I couldn't resist (it's just so interesting!) I've included an edible succulent that'll get you high. Why haven't I included aloe vera and tequila agave? Simply because they need processing.

 

Young, bright green pads are best. Older ones can be woody.

Opuntia cactus (paddle cactus)

Eat tender, thumb-sized new pads raw and in salads. For the Mexican dish nopales, use young pads about four to eight inches long. Opuntia ficus-indica is the species most often sold in markets. Scrape off spines and cut into bite-sized pieces. Boil or roast until tender. Use as a side dish or add to salsa and tacos. Dislike the goop? Grill the pads. Score in a cross-hatch so the goo oozes out and evaporates. Gosh they're good!

 

Dragon fruit makes a lovely addition to a fruit plate.

Dragon fruit

Although the fruit of many cacti are edible, you have to contend with spines and abundant small seeds. Those easiest to harvest and prepare are dragon fruit (pitaya, in the genus Hylocereus). I do grow it in my inland Southern CA garden, but clearly it prefers its native habitats of Central and South America. The climbing vine needs sun to thrive, bloom and set fruit, but (here) if not shaded, it burns. Dragon fruit, sold at farm stands in the fall, is beautiful but bland. Tiny black seeds make the flesh crunchy. Peel, slice, and eat raw or juiced. There exist dozens of cultivars.

 

Elephant's food is sour and crunchy.

Portulacaria afra (elephant's food)

I wouldn't be without this versatile landscape succulent. It's native to South Africa (where it's the primary diet of elephants). It grows effortlessly here in California, yet also thrives in desert and tropical climates. See how I use elephant's food as a garnish in this video. Learn more about this remarkable succulent's attributes.

 

Purslane is a weed worth having.

Purslane

Purslane (Portulaca oleracea) is both a vegetable and an annual weed. The taste is similar to watercress, so use it as you might spinach or lettuce. It's loaded with vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, and is higher in omega-3 fatty acids than other greens. I occasionally run across it when weeding my garden, so do watch for it in yours. Or start it from seed. Use it as an ornamental filler for succulent container gardens, hanging pots and window boxes.

 

The challenge with yucca flowers is not how to prepare them, but how to get to them.

Yucca flowers

Please don't confuse yucca with botanically unrelated "yuca" (cassava root). Yucca roots are not edible. (I occasionally see the two confused in markets and on menus. Makes me crazy.) Harvest blooms while yet in bud, because open flowers are bitter. Remove pistils and steam or sauté petals until tender. Add to egg dishes, casseroles and meat stews. Or as they do in Yucatan, make yucca-petal tamales.

 

You're more likely to find edible sedums in cold climates.

Red-flowering sedums

The peppery leaves, stems and roots of fine-leaved stonecrops (as opposed to fat-leaved sedums) add flavor to stir-frys. Cooking moderates bitterness. Large amounts can upset the stomach. Use only red-flowering varieties in salads; those with yellow flowers are mildly toxic when raw.

 

With its pink and orange tips and powdery blue leaves, Dudleya edulis is too pretty to eat.

Dudleya edulis

The common name, chalk lettuce, is a hint. This California native has upright, grayish, powdery leaves shaped sort of like green beans. It needs to be cooked to be palatable.

 

It's easier to forage Salicornia than grow it.

Salicornia

Salicornia europaea (sea beans, sea asparagus, marsh samphire), an annual succulent found on the edges of salt marshes, is tasty cooked or raw. It's gaining popularity among chefs as a garnish because of its salty, crispy crunch (blanch first). The plant is common in the wild but challenging to cultivate. If you want to try, grow it in sandy soil and when watering, add 1 tsp. sea salt per pint.

 

I'm not aware that the Hoodia gordonii flowers are edible, but I just had to show you them.

Hoodia gordonii

This stapeliad is used by indigenous peoples of South Africa to assuage hunger pangs during Kalahari hunting trips...hence its renown as an appetite suppressant here in the Land of the Overfed. Slice off the spikes and consume raw. The taste and texture are reminiscent of cucumber.

 

These are peyote "buttons."

Peyote

You didn't hear it from me, but impressive specimens of this muffin-sized cactus often are on display at Cactus and Succulent Society shows, labeled merely Lophocereus williamsii---an inside joke that generates grins and elbow nudges. Because it's a source of the hallucinogenic drug mescaline, peyote is illegal to possess and ingest except for members of the Native American Church. It's an emetic; vomiting is not uncommon during religious rituals. Sadly, peyote is endangered in its native Texas due to over-harvesting.

 

Note: This article is for educational purposes only. I am neither a culinary professional nor a medical herbalist. I take no responsibility for any allergies, stomach upset or other concerns that might result from cultivating or ingesting plants mentioned. -- Debra Lee Baldwin 

Related Info on This Site

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Post-Summer Succulent Concerns Amazing tips

Following a brutal, early-September heat wave, I tackle common, post-summer succulent concerns. See them in my new six-minute video: Post-Summer Care for Succulents (6:49).

Video: Post-Summer Care for Succulents

It's a candid, warts-and-all, behind-the-scenes, damage-control assessment. You may notice that my garden is not quite the Eden I showed you six months ago in Debra Lee Baldwin's Idea-Filled Succulent Garden (15:00).

Yet as sad as many of my succulents look (perhaps yours do too), I have good news: These are resilient plants. Follow my simple suggestions and---if they're still breathing---your succulents will likely bounce back.

Diagnose and fix post-summer succulent concerns

Numbers in parenthesis indicate where these topics appear in the video.

Scorched tips (0:52). The method I demonstrate for pruning Agave attenuata works for winter frost-burn, too.

Sunburn (1:32 and 4:59). I show you preemptive measures, but once the damage is done, there's not much you can do except trimming.

Echeveria with edema, mealy bugs

Echeveria edema (1:46). Shading my echeverias during the heat of the day helped most of them, but unfortunately not all.

Mealy bugs (2:05). These lint-like pests snuck up on my echeverias when I wasn't looking. I immediately dosed them with alcohol.

Sunset jade with shriveled leaves

Shriveled leaves (2:49). Succulents naturally draw on stored moisture to survive dry spells. No worries, leaves will plump when it rains.

Yellow stems and burned patches (3:08). These can be serious, but it depends. My dragon-fruit cactus surprised me.

New plants, wrong location (3:18). Looks like I need to redo (and rename) my "mangave terrace."

Dead-looking aeoniums (4:31). It's tempting to yank them, but wait! Take a closer look. They may merely be asleep.

Hose-watering opuntia

Keeled-over paddle cactus (5:29). Oops. Guess it needed more hydraulic pressure (i.e. water).

Cochineal scale (6:16). Another sneaky pest! I take a two-for-one approach: While hand-watering opuntia, I blast off the bugs.

View the video

Cochineal Scale on Paddle Cactus, What To Do

White fuzzy lumps on paddle cactus are cochineal (coach-en-ee-al) scale, a parasite that pierces the plant’s skin and consumes its juices. It’s used to make carmine dye.

Read More

Late Summer Succulent Care: Six Essentials

These six late-summer care essentials for succulents come from my own experience with growing hundreds of varieties for decades. In my inland Southern CA garden, late summer heat can do as much damage than midwinter frosts. Below is what I do routinely every year.

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No-Water Succulents for Southern California Gardens

  Certain readily available succulents not only get by on rainfall alone, they’ll grow in nutrient-poor soil and can handle searing sun and frost. No-water succulents for Southern California gardens that are native to the Southwest and Mexico include dasylirions, agaves, cacti and yuccas. They thrive from south of the border to the Bay Area and…

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Succulent Pests, Large and Small

Common succulent pests, diseases, and problems include agave grease mite, aloe mite, ant infestation, aphids, black spots, cochineal scale, deer, desiccation, etiolation, frost, gopher, hail, mealy bugs, mildew, rabbit, rot, snails and sunburn. Also find out how NOT to deal with a skunk!

Read More

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