Featured Plant No3

Crassula Ovata

The common Jade plant or Money tree is to be valued for several reasons: it is in flower at this time of year, it has an attractive appearance throughout the year, is very easy to propagate from cuttings and makes an ideal filler. I'm a fan!
It is however a touch tender, the bad cold snap of 5 years ago cut all mine down to the ground, and although most came back slowly some did not. Unfortunately, my prized specimen, a variegated variety grown from a cutting taken from a friends conservatory in England some 10 years previously fell into the later category.


Cuttings are a doddle, practically any piece of stem will root down quickly and have developed roots in 2 to 3 weeks. Even well established plants can be moved, they are shallow rooted at least when young. I have seen one in La Heradura which was nearly 3 metres high- I wouldn't have tried to move that one.


The jade plant benefits from pruning, which should be done in the spring, before the growing season. Pruning a jade can be done over a period of a few weeks, and involves cutting stems back to a lateral branch. The purpose of pruning is twofold: for a top-heavy succulent like the jade, it is important that its trunk be able to support the weight of its leaves and pruning encourages the trunk to grow in size; pruning also encourages root growth. Calluses should form on new cuts after a few days and new growth should emerge from the stump within a few weeks of the cut.