How To Stop Killing Your String of Pearls Houseplant - Senecio Rowleyanus Care Guide

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If you have ever owned a String Of Pearl's houseplant you will know they are very tricky to keep alive!
In this video, I’m going to explain why they are so difficult to care for, and most importantly what you can do to drastically increase your chances of keeping these awkward little suckers alive!
So why do String of Pearls seem to keel over more often than any other of your houseplants?
It’s not that there is one main thing that you might be doing wrong but possibly several! That’s why they are so tricky to look after because they need a very specific set of requirements to be happy and thrive. I wouldn’t say any of these requirements are difficult at all so don’t worry about that but you do have to get most of them right to be able to be successful with these guys.
The first and one of the more important things is incorrect SOIL TYPE and this can sometimes come from the nursery or houseplant store like this so you’re often off to a bad start before you even get home. If the soil is soaking wet at the store be careful, this is not a good sign! String of Pearls are succulents and as such, they don’t like to be too wet, and certainly not in the winter if the temperature drops where you live. They are often planted into soil that is too heavy and so retains too much water, we need a FREE Draining mix for these guys because they have quite small roots that are prone to rotting if they stay wet for too long so the first thing is to make sure he water drains through well and doesn’t get boggy or stay saturated for too long, this isn’t too bad in the summer as the warm weather will probably dry the soil out quick enough but in the winter if it stays wet when the plant isn’t growing much at all then the roots and also the main plant if in contact with the wet oil will soon start to rot and it’s all over! The best soil to use is a cactus soil mix, you can buy them in most houseplant stores and garden centers. If you make soil up yourself use plenty of drainage media, small particulate gravel, perlite etc. Ensure a rally open free draining mix.
Next is watering, for the same reason your String of Pearls will rot in heavy soil it will easily rot if you water too much, so be sure to water well and then leave it to nearly dry out before you water again. In the winter this is much more important as there will be less light and less heat which means the plant will not be growing much at all and therefore not taking up anywhere near as much water compared to the summer so once again keep an eye on it and only water once the soil is good and dry. A great way to tell when you need to water again is to pay attention to the individual pearls, once they get dry they start to split open like a bean, when you see that happening check your soil and re-water. If you have your pot on a dish and you can water from the bottom so it draws it up from the base this will also help not to get too much of the plant too wet when watering.
Next, let’s talk about Light your string of Pearls will need plenty of bright indirect light, but the harsh direct sun will scorch it so it won’t like being sat on a hot south-facing window sill in the full summer sun, just back a bit from the window so it gets the bright light is ideal.
Lastly is fertilizing - succulents don’t need nearly as much food as broad-leaved houseplants so this is another area that can cause an issue, don’t feed as often or as much as your other houseplants, I would recommend half the usual strength if using general houseplant fertilizer and at least half as often. If you feed once per month every two months will be fine for these guys and even less will be ok. If you have a specific cactus feed then you can use it at normal strength because it will be formulated for them anyway.
So..
If you can get all of these slight tweaks lined up then you should have a happy healthy String of Pearls!
Give it a go and let me know how you get on!

[@tarantellalarouge7632]

Hello, thanks for those tips, they are very instructive. I have struggled a lot with this plant, and I have another tip, this plant prefer to sit on the top of the pot, don't hesitate to fill the pot with soil almost to the top, the string of pearls will receive more light and it will help to grow thick and nicely !

[@HouseplantHacks]

Great tip! That makes a lot of sense. Next time I repot I'm going to do this for sure! Thanks for your comment! :-)

[@dwagner1433]

Regarding watering, I have found that if I use regular tap water (northeastern United States municipal water which I think contains chloride), my string of pearls plants die. I now use filtered water, from a Brita or what have you, and they have stopped dying on me. Rainwater is probably a good alternative as well. Great video.

[@AussieGirl3789]

I love string of pearls. Great video. I actually have a bird bath full of it. Its trailing over the edges of the bird bath like a water fall . I also have it in sphagnum moss it seem to love this medium. I wish i could share a photo.

[@HouseplantHacks]

That sounds amazing! What a great idea! I would love to see a photo, you can DM me on Insta - @houseplantHacks

[@AussieGirl3789]

@HouseplantHacks ok awesome I will send you a picture tomorrow 😁👍🏻. Night time atm here in Australia.

[@conniedavies1057]

​@@HouseplantHacks9:56

[@jennifermcclure-tr4oh]

I LOVE the smell of their blooms ❤

[@trainwreckgillespie4107]

They bloom…?

[@SarcasticPixie]

Yes, they bloom. Mine is in bloom right now.

[@irene5450]

@@trainwreckgillespie4107The blooms smell like cinnamon

[@navymom486291]

Thank you, will check back in a few months with the results!! Keeping my fingers crossed, it is a beautiful plant

[@HouseplantHacks]

Good luck!

[@abbytonyardor3701]

Great video! I just purchased one of these after giving up a few years ago. This helps me know what to do to make it work. It's been two weeks. It was wet when I brought it home. I use a moisture meter so hopefully we will be good.

[@HouseplantHacks]

Good luck!

[@teresaedmonds1499]

So glad I stumbled across this...many thanks!

[@HouseplantHacks]

You're welcome! Thanks for watching! :-)

[@growclipbonsaiforseniors1951]

Excellent advice. This is a crazy one for me to keep alive. 20th one to try again after watching your video. Winter months are my down fall in the midwest of the U.S.. Going to give it another shot. Thanks.

[@HouseplantHacks]

Yes the cold months are really tough, it just can't get cold and wet, it will die in a blink of an eye! It needs to more or less stay totally dryover the cold months with just a little very infrequently, if it's not growing it's not using the water so it just sits in the soil and rots the plant. Good luck!

[@growclipbonsaiforseniors1951]

@@HouseplantHacks Great advice. Thank you. I will give it a go once I go to Ted's again and get another one.

[@hannahroy9124]

Yes great advice. I waited for mine to get bone dry in the winter than watered it and the plant didn't drink it and it rotted . It probably needs so little water that just a few misty sprays from a bottle will be plenty.

[@gracejohnson2186]

Very informative as I have purchased my first string of pearl plant, which arrived by mail and left in my mailbox very dry. It took 3 days after watering for the beads to look plump and is now in better shape.

[@HouseplantHacks]

Great to hear! I have a sting of pearls update coming soon so keep an eye out. Best of luck.

[@Zielona_Migotka]

I've killed 6 string of pearls over the last 1.5 years🙈 i did pot it into heavy cacti sand soil, without thinking i should mix it with perlite or fine bark🤦 second thing was misting... I didn't know misting is for small cuttings or young stems to root... The mature plant needs actually WATER 🙈🤦 I didn't give them full light as in my one bed apartment and i only had 1 window with full light, so in a other corner of the room, with me misting every day I've made pearls root to rot 🤦 omg.. If onky those YT care tips were a bit of more specific bac then🤣🤣🤔 for me to understand. Now I've learned my mistakes, mixed soil, well drained, water when dry and only out of the pot so the water can drain properly ... And nice sun and skylight view (mine is still on the window but behind cacti and bright light need plants), but they get full sun some times of the day... And they look happy so far 😊❤

[@HouseplantHacks]

Good Luck with the new ones!

[@Copolia]

Short and to the point! Luv it!

[@HouseplantHacks]

Love you more! :-)

[@MagenRaquel]

I wish I had watched this before repotting my new variegated string of pearls =(

[@lisacimarik7315]

I have grown a beautiful String of Tears, in my home state of Florida. So, I saw a variegated String of Pearl's that I could not resist. At a plant show, I was looking for the green String of Pearl's when I ran across the Tears and in speaking with the grower, I asked him if he had the Pearl's and told him I have seen so many people walking around with them after buying... he said, "Yes, and they all will more than likely die." I wonder if it's our high humidity here? Anybody know?

[@HouseplantHacks]

Often it's incorrect soil, if it retails too much moisutre the tiny stems will rot and the plant will die, it needs fast draining soil like cactus mix to be in with a chance.

[@dteezle]

it's funny how different youtubers share different information. Another one said south facing window is fine!

[@HouseplantHacks]

It's down to personal viewpoint and experience, south facing is fine, I didn't say don't put it by a south-facing window but more often than not these plants are in small pots and so when in the full sun on a south-facing window they will dry out within hours and you will struggle to keep the watering right, I said in the video and in the comments just back a bit from the south facing window so it doesn't get the full harsh direct sun but they do require good bright sunlight. It's a tricky balance but more important is to not over-water these plants and ensure they are in an open, free-draining soil mix that allows water to pass through rather than keeping them wet. Over-watering will kill these plants far more often than drying out.

[@dteezle]

@@HouseplantHacks Thanks for responding! I bought it for a SE facing skylight, hoping it would be okay. I wanted a plant that draped down the wall. I have got some cactus soil to pot it in. Will try it there and see how it does. But like you say may struggle to keep the balance of water right for it by the sounds of it

[@AnaLuizaHella]

No! I didn't kill the two I've tried. They committed suicide, poor things. I believe it was trauma from where they were Thank you! You made me think to Try it again.

[@user-xw2qf5yd9e]

Thank you for the growing information on care

[@HouseplantHacks]

Thank you for watching.

[@gendoll5006]

I just bought the tiniest string of pearls plant in like a 1” “pot” and it looks pretty sad. It has like 2-3 “strands” but not even really hanging down the side of the tiny pot and one strand looks wonky like it’s upside down and the roots shriveled up. I spent $7 on it so I’m determined to save it!

[@HouseplantHacks]

Good luck! They are quite tricky to kep alive so it will be a change! You can do it!

[@VerifiedMillie]

what’s the best pot for them? I’ve been thinking about a terracotta pot and have watched a few videos on pots but just don’t know what to choose.

[@catgoober]

Can you do a video on what too much sun looks like? And over and underwatering? I don't know how to tell what the diagnosis is

[@KittinPyro]

My mother has killed one but mine are still alive. My string of bananas though has a few dead areas while the rest is healthy. I always repot plants a few days after bring them home as a rule of thumb because I find that most plants are given the incorrect soil, take something as simple to care for an orchid for example which are often given a ton of or only sphagnum moss which will kill them quickly. I looks like I already choose a good soil mix so I’m doing that right. I think my problem is that I water the two when I water all my other succulents so they may not be getting enough water. I’ll try to be alittle more mindful of checking in on them and watering more frequently than the others.

[@HouseplantHacks]

I think you are 100% right when it comes to string of pearls if the soil is too heavy it doesn't matter how careful you are with watering you are going to struggle, with a good free draining mix you have a much better chance. You just have to look at the SOP's that are still in the store after a few weeks, most of them have started to rot away!

[@msher479]

Good tips, esp winter care ones

[@HouseplantHacks]

So nice of you thanks!

[@beautifulday8377]

Haahaaa...that is what I say "I always kill my string of pearls." Hopefully I won't kill my current one following your advice!!!

[@HouseplantHacks]

Fingers crossed for you!

[@vizveebee]

String of hearts too!! I keep replacing my 'rosary vines'.

[@HouseplantHacks]

Sooo fussy!

[@marciking8052]

Maybe you wont see this question I recently started growing indoor plants. I got a string of pearls last fall. I live in santa fe NM. Very dry here and cold in the winter. My plant was doing pretty good during the winter and now its looking terrible. Dried up and brown strings. Maybe my lighting is the problem. It never did grow much tho. Do you have some advise?

[@gretap3917]

I had one and was triving growing beatifull ,It rained for 2 days straight and even though I move it out of the place it was ,it was so humid that it got mushy ,Im.trying to root the pices I saved , I maked my own mix with lava rock sand and catus soil and a bit of perlite ,because the cactus soil I bougth from miracle grow it does not dry fast enough wen humid outside withow adding ammendments to it .

[@carineds]

Very informative video, thanks a lot. Though i have one question 😇. Can i keep them under grow lights as i don't have many south facing windows. I expect watering stays the same then? Soil almost dry then water. I read that they prefer bottom watering is this the case. Grtz from Belgium

[@HouseplantHacks]

You can certainly try and see, bottom watering is better as it has less chance of rot which is the main killer.

[@glorianayeagley9258]

Very informative 👏...I have lost a couple .I tried propagating ,yes they root but don't survive the repotting any suggestions??

[@HouseplantHacks]

Thank you, the roots seem to be very delicate and not very deep. I wouldn't repot too often, I can't see this one getting root bound too easily so just try to avoid it unless 100% nessessary and then just be really delicate and try not to disturb too much of the roots. Good luck. Andy

[@juliwatkins]

Does this advice hold true for other senecio varieties like string of dolphins/bananas/etc?

[@HouseplantHacks]

Yes, they are all similar in care.

[@candle1207]

Do you think an east facing window would be enough light with just morning sun? Or would west for afternoon/evening be better? I don't have a south facing anyway

[@Danidoloo]

Hi- Mine so often get sticky. Any thoughts on why and what to do?

[@user-sf9pz5wv2u]

Thanks

[@NadineB2010]

Excellent tips! Concerning your advice about the soil, can vermiculite replace perlte? I'm not sure about it. From what i understand is that the vermiculite keeps the water, and perlite doesn't. I run out of perlite and would like to use my vermiculite instead. Is it ok?

[@HouseplantHacks]

As much drainage as possible really, a cactus mix is good. Vermiculite doesn't really aid drainage.

[@LABORI276]

I was told not to water from the top. Is this correct?

[@drakeweddner]

It doesn't matter if your gentile

[@deborahbrown8004]

hello great tips question was given string of pearls and found ants in it. can this be saved for indoors?

[@HouseplantHacks]

I would carefully remve the pot and any soil, repotinto free draining cactus soil mix with planty of grit and sand, the roots are very delicate and thin so you must be gentle. Good luck.

[@Danidoloo]

Do you know why they get sticky?

[@HouseplantHacks]

I have never had mine get sticky so I don't know about that one.

[@HarpreetKaur-mj3xs]

Thanks lot grat information 😊 A++++

[@HouseplantHacks]

Thank you for taking the time to write such a nice comment! :-)

[@barbaracole4314]

Mine has died back to many 3 or 4 pearls still left alive... how to tell if it's in a light or heavy soil ? I use bagged soil for all my plants and most.are thriving.

[@ailuron8100]

I believe any commercial potting soil would be a bit too heavy (retain too much water as there's too much organic matter), you could mix potting soil with perlite/vermiculite and maybe a bit of sand to break up the soil, these things inorganic matter don't absorb water as much as organic matter, making it dry out faster and stay dry.

[@HouseplantHacks]

Yes, most times it is the soil that it comes with that is the issue, they have such thin roots that they damp off and rot very easily if the water doesn't drain away fast enough so a cactus mix at least should be used with plenty of sand to ensure that soil doesn't stay wet for too long.

[@JesusismyGOD]

No more beautiful a plant than this one and it begs to be killed! I adore this plant and yes, I killed it. So sad.

[@HouseplantHacks]

You and me both! Many times! But I still love them!

[@KSmith-nq4bj]

Thank you. I think I drowned my poor baby 😢😂

[@MiscellaneousMichelle]

💚

[@bigbotno1]

Just general info here about string of pearls, waste of time.

[@teetotalerh5346]

Why do you say it's a waste of time??

[@bigbotno1]

@@teetotalerh5346 Cause it won't let you keep the plant successfully.

[@chet6969]

TBH I hadn't heard about the cactus mix before.

[@bigbotno1]

​@@chet6969 Cacti and other succulents often prefer well draining soil as they can store water. Cactus mix is a good base, but some of these plants prefer even more drainage/aeration depending on the soil mix and the 'enviroment' where a plant is placed. So always keep a good eye on your plants, they will tell you if something is off. Better to under water than over water.

[@bjuliene]

This comment is a waste of time.