Finally finished repotting the epi cuttings from Calif_Sue, thanks again Sue!
Now let's see how these ones will grow:
The various epi cuttings:


Repotted today 08Jul2013
Teki


White Splendour

Campfire


Noid H


Noid red

Tarev, your cuttings look very healthy. Do you have a good recipie for your potting mix for succulent plants?

Annette

Hi Annette,

I use ordinary cactus soil and adding some perlite when I repot, but lately I have been mixing some akadama and kanuma with it. But not always, as they are a bit expensive and I only get little baggies of it. I like adding them though because they change color when wet, so it makes it easy for me to gauge if the soil is still wet and their size is like little rocks that can hold some water but releases them quickly too, allowing good drainage. This is with the regular succulents and cacti. But for epis, I add some fine orchid bark mix and the usual cactus mix, so there is a bit more water retention.

One thing I have learned, is to use shallow and wider containers for the succulents, unless they have really grown to specimen sizes that really needs a bigger container. It helps to make the dry out process faster. If I run out of shallow containers then I add fillers below so that it will not be using too much soil that may prolong drying time.

Tarev, thanks for sharing your information. I learn something new from these forums all the time. I had to wiki
akadama and kanuma, since I am not familiar with these products.

Also, great idea about using the fillers to the containers, if they're not shallow. I have a few cacti that need to be repotted, so this information is very helpful.


Annette

Same here..I learn as I go and read more in the forums here and elsewhere. Before, I just use cactus mix as it comes, then learning more, improving on it, and it also helped me seeing how they grow in other botanic gardens, how they set it up. I am learning now to pay attention as to which succulent truly loves more sun, or if they thrive better with more shade. But either way, both needs good drainage, so have been doing my own mix.

Learning more now which ones are Alpine succulents, desert succulents, tropical succulents and being aware of their specific needs.

Some of my epi cuttings have adjusted well and I see some new growth
White splendour shows this reddish new growth:



Campfire with its new growth:

I'm glad your plants are doing well, The growths you're seeing should turn into new leaves. Buds also start off similarly

It took about 3 years on my very first epi to make a buds, though it was quite active with the leaves...hopefully this batch will not take such a long time since I have them outdoors right away. The other I had took a long time I guess since the first 2 years it was mostly indoors.

Yep, they like being outside. I've got to move the last 3 outside now, with the last one blooming this week. I was afraid to move them when the buds were forming.


I can also get the plants to grow a lot of leaves, the buds not so much until this year.

I was glad they like being outside and since my first one had already stayed outdoors during winter, I know the rest will likewise adapt nicely. That was initially my first concern, will they like the cold temps and rainy winter we have sometimes. It seems they do not mind. Loves being damp, good thing, as long as I make sure that media drains well.

Hey Annette, question for you..I know these plants like being root bound..do you change some of the media .., or just leave it be till it outgrows the container after the blooms are done?

Tarev, I have not repotted any plants since the cuttings were planted in 2009. Unless the plant has been knocked over, I don't add any soil either.

You're so lucky to be able to leave your plants outside all year. I read somewhere, when I first started growing cuttings that they're okay with temps down to 35 degrees, of course the growth slows, but no freezing temps allowed. I understand that they do want some colder temps to help the bloom cycle the next year.

Ah okay, just checking if you do the same as I do I have not repotted either my first one..seems at home in that container anyways. Yeah, I am surprised how cold resilient they are, we do get down to 28F at times, but not for a long time, and definitely no snow here just the occasional hail usually around mid Spring.

We get in the 20's here too, and we're now considered 7b instead of 7a. This past winter was the coldest and wettest for the longest ( how many "ests" LOL) that I recall in years.

I do have 1 succulent plant that was left outside all winter, and it survived, surprisingly. I'll have to figure out what kind it is. I'm not brave enough to leave the epies outside yet. They'll be taken inside to the basement in October or November.

How old is your oldest epie?

My oldest epi is about 3.5 years old. Our last winter/spring was drier compared to previous years. So I will have to really see this coming winter if the plant is truly outdoor winter resilient.

Yeah, there are succulents that can stand the cold. Most of my succulents are outdoors too, there are some that really pout big time when they get cold and wet...and that is the deadly combination. But I am learning now which ones I should really bring in..there are some really that hate being cold.

I keep my epis in the garage over winter. As far as I know, it doesn't freeze in there, and they are fine. They just quit growing. Last year I kept a pot of graptopetalum under a tree and it too survived and thrived. We get frequent frost and freezes here regularly.

I started collecting the epie cuttings in 2009 and 2010, but I haven't gotten any new ones since. The plants have multiplied so quickly, and I keep breaking pieces off as I move them around.

I'm not brave enough to leave them outside. I'd be very upset if I lost any. The one succulent that was outside all winter was under a covered deck, so the only water it got was from me.

This is my oldest epi - epi newport- when it finally bloomed for the first time this year in spring:

Tarev, your Newport is gorgeous, just delightful! I love the epi blooms.

Thanks Annette