Crassula ovata aka Money Tree or Jade Tree. One of the easiest pot plants to grow.

Crassula ovata

Without a doubt Crassula ovata is one of the hardiest and neglect tolerant plants I have grown to date. It has a few different common names 'Money Tree' being the most common. The problem with common names is the confusion that arises when different plants are given the same common name and Crassula ovata is one such plant. I have found that people often give all Crassula's the moniker 'Money Tree' especially the smaller leafed Crassula (I'm unsure of the botanical name). The great thing about this plant is that it is almost a 'pot and forget' plant. Being a succulent it requires very little water in the summer and even less in the winter. It is also almost fail proof in terms of its strike rate when propagating it from cuttings which can be either stem or leaf cuttings. It flowers in winter and can be planted outside in the ground or potted up and placed either inside or outside. The only trouble I have had with my potted Crassula is frost damage which occurred when I moved the plant from its original position where it was protected by my verandah. Crassula ovata is originally native to South Africa but is now found many countries. It is often used as a Bonsai plant. Crassula ovata is a great plant to gift somebody who desires a low maintenance plant. 

This Crassula was located in a car park in Brunswick Victoria. This attests to its hardiness as it would have to endure all sorts of damage in that location.

A close up of a tiny white / pink flower cluster.

As with many other succulents the appeal is mostly in the foliage. 

This is what heavy frost will do to a Crassula. This poor fellow is from my home and it had to endure not only heavy frost but also snow this winter. If I had kept it under the cover of the verandah it would have been fine. I'm predicting it will bounce back once the weather warms up.

How to propagate Aeoniums from cuttings

I liked Aeoniums the first time a saw them and still do. They seem to have universal appeal as even people who don't like succulent plants tend to have a soft spot for the Aeonium. I suppose they don't have the classic succulent look about them. What they do have are magnificent leaves and peculiar shaped inflorescences of flowers. There are about 35 different species of Aeoniums and most are from the Canary Islands. From the experience I've had with the Aeoniums at my place I would definitely describe them as a low maintenance plant. I only water them once in a blue moon and they seem to tolerate a mild amount of frost. 

The magnificent rosette of leaves of an Aeonium plant.

Another angle of the same type of Aeonium.

The wonderful inflorescence of flowers they produce. You will need to wait a couple of years before they are mature enough to flower.

PROPAGATION TECHNIQUE

Aeoniums are a really easy plant to propagate from cuttings as is the case with many succulent plants. As such they are suited to beginners. They require little skill, no greenhouse and as yet I've never had one that didn't strike roots (100% success rate).

SUPPLIES NEEDED

• A pair of secateurs
• A mature and healthy Aeonium plant to take cuttings from
• A cactus / succulent mix to plant the cuttings in
• Pots

TIMING

The most important thing to know when trying to propagate Aeoniums from cuttings is the timing. Aeoniums will only produce roots during their active growth period which is the cooler months of the year if you live in a place with really hot Summers. In somewhere like Melbourne Australia I would avoid trying to propagate them in the peak of Summer.

METHOD

Assuming you have the timing down you need to then cut off a rosette of leaves from the mother plant leaving enough stem to plant the cutting (say 5cm at the least). You then dry the cutting a little by leaving it on newspaper overnight or maybe 2 nights if you want. You then plant the cutting into a pre watered pot of cactus / succulent potting mix and that's all! I never use rooting hormone or any of that jazz as I you don't need it with Aeoniums. I keep the potting mix damp for about a month or until the plants grow a little. After that they don't need much attention.

Have fun propagating :)

Below are a couple of cuttings I have taken from the mother plant.

Some more cuttings in place in their pots

This is one I did about 1 year ago. Its a tought little plant I've let it go dry for weeks and it looks really healthy.