Growing Succulents and Cacti Indoors

Indoor gardening season is here, and we’re going to focus a bit on a broad group of plants much beloved by container gardeners and indoor gardeners around the world: succulents and cacti! These unique species offer a nearly endless variety of colors, shapes, heights, and sizes—enough to make your indoor garden as varied and interesting as any landscaping space. They can also find a home in an outdoor garden or landscaping scheme, although they may need a bit of additional consideration depending on your climate. There’s a lot to learn about growing succulents and cacti indoors, so let’s dig in!

What Are Succulents, Exactly?

Succulents aren’t really a family or genus, but rather a broadly understood category of plants which share similar characteristics. The word “succulent” means “juicy”, which is a pretty good description of some of their unique features—succulents have thick skins and very often equally thick stems and foliage that they use to store water. These stems and leaves are often described as “fleshy”, and they fulfill an important role for these plants. Succulents generally grow in dry environments—they’re found all around the world—and their water storage helps them survive and thrive when the rain isn’t falling or water is otherwise scarce. This affects how we grow them in our gardens—but more on that in a minute!

So What Are Cacti?

Cacti are a kind of succulent, but all cactus species are native to the Americas. They’re found from the Arctic Circle (yes, there are native cacti in Canada and Alaska!) all the way down to the Andes Mountains of South America. With over 2000 species of cactus on record, this diverse group of plants, cacti do share some general characteristics. They don’t have leaves, but instead both retain water and perform photosynthesis via their stems. Even without leaves, cacti come in variety of shapes and sizes. Some are tall and lanky, some are short and wide, some have branches, some send up inflorescences. There’s a cactus for every space, in other words.

While not all cacti have spines—sharp, needle-like protrusions on their stems that help keep animals from eating them—many do and that is a consideration for gardeners. In our experience small spiny cacti generally don’t cause problems indoors, but larger ones can catch on clothing or upholster, provide a sharp poke at an inopportune moment, and they always seem to attract the attention of kids and pets. When selecting your cactus, keep in mind your living space and your living patters.

Caring for Succulents and Cacti

The good news is that succulents and cacti are easy to grow indoors. While there are so many species that we can’t provide specific directions for each of them, here are the general rules for successfully growing succulents and cacti indoors:

• First and foremost: do not over-water succulents or cactus plants. This is the number one issue we see from home gardeners and we get it—it’s easy to forget and include these plants in your daily watering routine. However, they’ve evolved to store their own water and subsist in dry environments. Different species need different things, but a good general rule is that if the soil doesn’t feel dry they don’t need watering. Check them regularly and water as needed but listen to the plant and the soil rather than a watering schedule.
• Cacti and Succulents need light! Many of these are desert plants and thrive in bright, direct sun. If you have a window indoors that gets good soon, they’ll be happy there. If your space doesn’t quite get enough natural light, a grow light will help supplement their light needs and keep them happy.

• Drainage is a key consideration. Again, these are dry-condition plants and are designed to conserve water. They like a loose, rich, well drained soil. Many garden supply places sell potting mixes designed for cacti or succulents, and we find these tend to work very well. Your container should provide good drainage as well. We get our best results with either hard sided containers on a drainage tray or with breathable fabric grow bags.

There are many different kinds of succulents and cacti—we keep bringing this up because it affects how we care for them. Most species prefer warmer temperatures but many are flexible and can handle a wide temperature range especially at night. Likewise, they generally don’t need much fertilizing but some fruiting varietals can be heavier feeders than the rest. You’ll need to do a little research on the exact species  you want to grow. You can ask the garden center or nursery where you got the plants, check with your local garden club, do some online research, or drop us an email and we’ll do our best to help.

Succulents and cacti are fun plants—they’re beautiful, unique, and they have a personality all their own. They can be grow in small spaces while still adding color and live to a room, and this makes them great choices for indoor gardeners. We’d love to see photos and hear stories about your succulent gardens, so please drop us a line. Gardzen is all about community and we love to hear from you!