Make Your Perfect Succulent Soil Using This Recipe | Succulent City (2024)

Succulents are pretty and vibrant, but they can be picky at times. Unlike your average indoor plant, succulents are somewhat choosy with their soil, making them unique. Whether you’re an old pro to succulents or the new kid on the succulent- block, getting the preliminaries right the first time will go a long way in your juicy adventures. And nothing has more impact on growing succulents than the type of soil used.

These cute, green little alien succulents don’t get along too well with the mundane, conventional gardening soil. They think it’s overrated and boring, at least in its pure form.

Though succulents thrive with neglect, why do they demand a more thought-out soil type? Let’s find out!

The Importance Of Succulent Soil Mix

The word ‘succulent’ means a plant possessing thick, fleshy stems and leaves primarily as an adaptation to store water. You see, it barely rains in the desert. And when it does, it pours— quite literally. Succulents store this water in their leaves and stems for use in the subsequent weeks before it rains. So succulents’ roots don’t always take up water as they already have enough tucked away in their leaves. The soil type in the desert is sandy, and the hot weather helps the water drain quickly. Therefore, damp soil for succulents is dangerous as it may lead to root rot and succulent-preferred pests, not to mention the fungal diseases accompanying wet soil.

Creating the same condition for your succulent at home or the office is critical. Making the right succulent potting mix is essential. Good soil accomplishes 3 things for a succulent:

1. Provides nutrients: Mainly Nitrogen (N) and Phosphorous (P).
2. Provides anchorage: The roots need soil with substance to dig in and get a grip for stability.
3. Absorbs adequate moisture available to the plant: Different soil types hold water for different lengths. Succulent soil prefers to drain water fast but retains just enough for the plant to drink.

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What Is The Best Soil For Succulents Like?

Planting your succulents in suitable soil can’t be stressed enough. A good succulent potting mix should have the following components:

1. Well-Draining

It had to be top of the list. (If you’ve been reading my recent articles, I mention this a lot because of how important it is). Succulents and damp soil are just a disastrous combination. What is soil drainage? Simply put, it’s how fast water leaves the soil. After you water a plant, some of that water should come out of the bottom of the pot, but most of it will stay in the soil. That water has to be taken up by the plant or evaporated into the air. Therefore, loose and grainy soil is the perfect substrate for growing succulents.

How do you know if the drainage is adequate? As a rule of thumb, your succulent soil should be dry within 1 to 1.5 days of watering. And I mean dry. Bone dry.

Richard Miller – Succulent City

It should feel not only dry but also warm. If it feels “cool”, it’s probably slightly damp, and you’re misinterpreting the sensation. If your succulent has filled the pot and the mass of roots uses up all the room, it can be hard to check soil dampness. You may need another pot and, therefore, consider repotting your succulent.

2. The Right Composition

Essentially, soil comprises two things – organic matter and inorganic matter. (You could argue that everything in the universe comprises those two things).

Organic matter, in this context, means stuff that was once alive but is now dead. It can be in various stages of decomposition or just regular death. On the other hand, inorganic matter is everything that was never alive. Some examples are:

Organic matter:- Compost- Peat or sphagnum moss- Manure- Decomposing plants or animals- Coconut coir- Leaf or bark shreds

Inorganic matter:- Sand- Silt- Clay

The more organic matter in the soil, the more water it holds. See what I’m getting at here? More organic matter means minor drainage (and wetter soil). Succulent soil will prefer this equation: inorganic matter > organic matter.

3. Good Aeration

Sticky and compact soil is terrible for succulents. The roots hate it because it retains moisture for long periods, making it difficult for the plant to breathe. The roots need to have some space. This will make soil and nutrient absorption easier and create a sustainable environment for beneficial microorganisms in the soil.

4. Poor Nutrients

This sounds pretty weird, but it’s true. Soil containing too many nutrients, especially nitrogen, may lead to brittle and unpleasant plants. Nobody wants such kind of goofy-looking plants, do they? Getting the soil mix right will naturally satisfy the succulent soil texture triangle, which I will show you below.

Have you ever heard of the succulent soil texture triangle? It will look exactly like the next image. Here is a simple soil texture for growing succulents:The sandy loam texture (the slightly pink part, with 50-80% fine gravel or coarse sand). Potted plants will also need coarse grit materials (the average diameter should be 1/8 to ¼). This guarantees rapid drainage and prevents rot.

Here you go! Everything you need to know about a perfect succulent soil mix. Do you know that succulent soil mix can be easily made at home?

My Amazing Succulent Soil Mix Recipe – A Really Simple DIY Guide

Let’s get our hands dirty by mixing a good soil combination for our beloved succulents.

1. What To Prepare:

• 1 pair of gardening gloves to protect yourself from anything sharp (just in case)
• 1 measuring cup to make things easier
• 1 trowel – just a fancy name for a small shovel 🙂
• 1 pot/ container: See how to choose a suitable one here.
• 1 bucket/pail/plastic bin to contain potting soil – Must be larger than the pot to contain enough potting soil for the execution no matter what.
• 1 large mixing tray
• Gardening soil: Regular gardening soil contains the right balance of organic and inorganic matter. You can see a few suggestions here. If you want to make it from scratch, the ratio is 1:1:1 for organic matter, inorganic matter, and nutrients. For example: 1 part Coir + 1 part Perlite + 1 part Compost. Nearly fill your bucket with it, then never worry about getting short of potting soil.
• Perlite or Pumice – The purpose of pumice or perlite is to aid in aeration and drainage. Pumice is particularly useful in holding together nutrients and moisture.
• Coarse sand: As my chosen grit material, it makes the potting mix less compact and increases drainage. Choose the type with a diameter ranging from 0.5 mm – 1 mm. You can also choose other grit materials you want.

2. Steps On Making DIY Succulent Potting Soil

Making your succulent mix at home or the office is fun. You can decide just how grainy you want it to be (if you care about the aesthetics). It’s much cheaper than the regular commercial cacti mix sold in stores (which I will also give some recommendations later). And did I mention that the procedure is so accessible?

A plethora of recipes for making succulent soil abound. However, we’ll stick with the basic procedure that is super effective and works wonders every time for this guide!

Tip: A neat trick before potting the succulents is to avoid moisturizing the soil. You can begin watering as usual once the soil dries out completely.

If you ever find yourself where you don’t feel like mixing your own, there are lovely premixed soils you can always get.

Follow Succulent City on Facebook, Pinterest & Instagram for more informative & interesting content about succulents & cacti 🙂 Join the discussions at our Facebook Group, “Succulent City Plant Lounge.” Happy planting, and live the moment!

My Choices For Commercial Succulent Soils

Don’t want to dive into the mud pit? A couple of great succulent and cacti mixes are commercially available. Here are the two products I think are great to give a shot. The common thing between these 2 products is many 5-star reviews and thousands of monthly sales on Amazon. Also, I check the ingredients, they’re all good:

1. “Harris Premium Succulent and Cactus Potting Soil Mix” is incredible. Harris is an experienced man alone, never mentioning his family business. You can easily see how well-balanced the mixture is. They have excellent drainage. You can’t go wrong using this mix.

Last update on 2024-03-13 / Amazon

2. “3 Dry Quart Organic Potting Soil, Succulent & Cactus Soil Mix by The Succulent Cult“, on the other hand, is an established, solid-standing product. I was first attracted to this one by its numerous good reviews. I think it’s a good deal that they sell what they already stated.

Last update on 2024-03-13 / Amazon

Other Things About Succulent Soil

Well, I don’t want the comment section of this post to scroll infinitely (haha) or my email filled with several similar questions. Succulent soil is an evergreen topic that has been asked a lot. Here is my collection of commonly asked questions on this topic (I will frequently update this section to bring my readers everything necessary):

Related guides for further reads:

• How To Plant Succulents In Rocks
• Can You Use Peat Moss For Succulents?

Final Words

Was making succulent soil as complicated as you thought it was? Let us know in the comments below. We want to hear your thoughts. For some more tips on succulent care, check out this article here!

Suppose there are some tips and tricks you want to share with our succulent friends. In that case, you should let us know in the Succulent Plant Lounge — our exclusive Facebook group filled with a community of succulent lovers that chime in on each other’s posts, answering popular questions about succulents and giving their insights about tips and tricks for succulent care!

Have fun and happy planting!

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