Cheers to another beautiful member among one of the most popular plant collections, the Echeveria nodulosa. The plant grows beautiful rosettes on erect or sprawling heavily branched stems. These leaves of the rosettes are olive green with hints of red on the margins and center.
The bold colors and patterns justify the name Painted Echeveria, commonly used for this peep. So, now you know where this name comes from.
This Mexican native succulent can grow up to 20 cm. This size makes it a relatively cute option for indoor plantations. However, it grows equally well outdoors.
Want to know more? Continue reading this post and everything you need to know about the Echeveria painted nodulosa will be found right here!
Echeveria Nodulosa Classification
Family: Crassulaceae
Order: Saxifragales
Genus: Echeveria
Species: E. nodulosa
Genus Echeveria:
This is a genus of about 150 beautiful blooming plant species. These easy-to-care plants are popular in both indoor and outdoor plantations. Moreover, they are proud winners of the American horticulture award.
Unique and attractive appearances with thick fleshy leaves are the main features of all the members. Also, the majority of them bloom beautiful Echeveria flowers in the season, preferably spring and summer.
Features of Echeveria Nodulosa Plant
Origin:
The name nodulaosa is derived from the Latin word nodulus. It means small lump or knots and refers to the irregular branched stems of the plant. The Limestone hills of central Mexico are the origin of this species.
Size:
The stems have the maximum capacity to grow up to 8 to 10 inches on maturity.
Leaves:
The leaves of the echeveria nodulosa are concave from the inner side and relatively irregular in shape. A mature one can grow up to 2 inches long and 0.6 inches wide.
Flower:
Beautiful, yellow bell-shaped flowers are seen on a mature plant in the warm days of spring and summer. These flowers are fragrance-less and grow on long stem-like stalks erecting a few inches above the rosettes.
Toxicity:
It is generally harmless for both pets and humans. However, it is not recommended that they should be eaten.
Echeveria Nodulosa Care
These are easy-to-care plants. Everyone is welcome to enjoy their beauty including the beginners and busy freaks.
Quick Guide:
Water: Infrequent (after the soil gets dry)
Sun: Full Sun to Partial shade
Humidity: Average
Fertilizer: Monthly dose in spring and summer
Keep reading to learn details about How to take care of the Echeveria nodulosa?
Watering Requirement
Painted echeveria gets more beautiful when handled appropriately. Just like the majority of other succulents, this one too needs infrequent but scheduled watering. The basic succulent watering strategy is perfectly suitable here.
Water the soil thoroughly and let it get dry before watering again. Make sure you don’t water the rosettes. This may cause some standing water at the base, which is a perfect invitation for fungus and pests. Moreover, it is preferable to use lukewarm warmth, especially in winter. This will save the roots from abrupt temperature changes.
For proper watering of the echeveria nodulosa plant, it is better to make a watering schedule. This is done by observing the environmental factors like temperature, sunlight, and humidity of your region. All this will help you predict the drying pattern of the soil helping you to plan the watering schedule. A popular estimate for an average temperature zone is about once to thrice for spring and summer.
On the other hand, dormant winter plants minimize their nutritional needs. Thus, watering the plant once every three to four weeks is enough for the fall and winter.
Important instructions:
Over-watering is notoriously harmful to all the succulents. The roots standing in wet and mucky soil can cause root rot, fungus, and pests. Hence, don’t water unless the plant needs it i.e. the soil gets dry.
Light Requirements
Echeverias sun requirements are a bit tricky. You must understand them well, to keep them alive and healthy. Generally, echeveria nodulosa likes to stay in direct medium to full bright sun. This means they need around 3 to 6 hours in the direct sunlight in 24 hours. However, this duration should not exceed more than a few hours. Keep in mind that long hours of direct sun can harm and even kill the foliage.
A warm uninterrupted sun exposure sounds great for winter. However, summers get a bit tricky. In the case of outdoor plantations, it sometimes gets hard to find a suitable place.
Putting the plant in bright shades is the only option. Alternatively, you can protect the plants by using UV sheets and shade fabrics. This will reduce the temperature and save the plant from the direct effect of the fierce summer sun.
Soil Requirement
The key is to use quick draining and chunky soil. A common cactus or succulent mix works perfectly. Alternatively, many gardeners simply make their mixture of potting soil. For this, mixtures of soil with materials like perlite and peat are good options.
Echeveria Nodulosa Temperature Requirement
Succulents prefer to grow in mild or warm climates. An ideal temperature level is somewhere between 55 to 80 °F. Furthermore, they show poor tolerance for lower temperatures.
It is observed that a temperature drop beyond 25 F can not only freeze but even kill a succulent plant. So, people of colder regions must not forget to transfer the outdoor plants to some warm indoor spot.
Humidity Requirement
The thick succulent leaves have a good capacity for holding water. This makes them dwell without fussing about the humidity. The normal moisture level of your growing zone is good enough for your plant. However, the heating systems can eat up the moisture for the environment of the indoor plantation. So, if you feel that the moisture is insufficient, consider using a room-humidifier.
Fertilization Requirement
Everyone loves some extra food, and so does our Echeverias. However, over-fertilization can scorch out the foliage or even kill the plant completely. So, the key here is to use a good quality fertilizer in a moderate dose.
You can use a lower dose, preferably half of the stated one. Moreover, it is crucial to stop fertilization after the end of the summer. This is to respect the low nutritional requirements of the sleeping plant.
Maintenance Requirement
Echeveria nodulosa is generally known to be a hardy succulent. However, the unending love of insects and mites can not be ignored for succulents. So, it is better to keep a regular check on the plants. This will help you to see and combat any health issue in the beginning. Moreover, remove the outer and damaged leaves to give a fresh look to the plant.
Echeveria Nodulosa Propagation
Echeverias, no doubt, are among the simplest succulents ever to propagate. The most popular strategies used for enhancing the Nodulosa collection are discussed below. Let us get to know about How to propagate the Echeveria nodulosa?
- Propagation through stem cuttings
- Through leaf cuttings
Propagation through stem-cuttings:
Unlike the majority of rosette-forming succulents, this plant has stemmed. So, you can simply propagate it by planting stem-cuttings.
- Take a sterilized knife and cut about 5 to 7 inches of stem. Choose some healthy stem-cuttings that have a minimum of two nodes.
- Remove the leaves or rosettes from the lower side and allow them to callous for a few days.
- Now, plant it in dry well-draining soil. Place the pot in some well-ventilated place with plenty of indirect light. Once you see the soil looks gets dry, water right after.
- Three to four weeks and you will see tiny shoots protruding out. Follow the care as mentioned in the previous section to see your succulent flourish slowly.
Propagation through leave cuttings:
This is another easy yet time-taking method of Echeveria propagation. It does not take anymore than simply planting the leaf-cuttings and letting them root out.
- Take a few leaves from rosettes and place them on slightly moist soil or growing mix.
- You can even cover the pot with a lid or sheet to conserve moisture. This will not need you to water every other day.
- Wait for a month and your leaves will root out by now. You can check it by very slightly pulling one of the leaves. A soft resistance to come out will be a sign of root growth.
- You can finally take all of them and plant them in your desired pots. Just make sure you are being very gentle and not damaging the baby roots.
- Time to sit and see the development of a complete plant from a mere leaf. Howbeit, you have to be patient and take care of the plantlet to witness this miracle of nature.
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Summary
Echeveria nodulosa, commonly known as the Painted Echeveria is a Mexican native rosette-forming succulent with branched stems. The olive-green fleshy petals have streaks of red in the center and throughout the edges. Moreover, beautiful yellowish flowers grow on long stalks in the warm season.
These are easy-to-care plants, happy enough with the typical Echeveria care. Provide them with scheduled infrequent watering and bright sun. These easy peeps can be propagated by the common method of planting the cuttings of stems and leaves.
