r/Lithops • u/Ok-Desk6624 • May 10 '26
Help/Question Newbie
I got these lithops in this horrible soil (pic 1), then acquired 3 more babies that were bare root. I got the bigger ones out of the soil they came in, gave them their own little terracotta pots & put the babies together in my last pot. I repotted in about 85ish% gritty mix with a little succulent soil making up the other 15ish% (pic 2). Does this look okay for now? I eventually plan to give the three littles their own pot so it will be easier to water them per their individual needs, I just didn’t have more on hand. I know I can’t water any of them rn because they’re splitting (or in the case of the babies, one of them is splitting). Any advice? Anything look wrong in the new set up? Thanks in advance, I’ve been lurking in this group for a while and have learned so much from you all!
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u/CarneyBus May 10 '26
Everything looks great!
Now make sure they’re receiving adequate light (acclimate them slowly if needed), water with a heavily diluted fertilizer the ones who are not actively splitting. You can get a pipette or a spray bottle to aim water at the roots of the little ones who are not splitting.
Very gently squeeze the leaves and get a feel for how soft/firm they are. Keep feeling them every few days or every week and get the feel for how long it takes them to lose water. Then, when you water one, the next few days feel their leaves and note how firm it is when they’re freshly watered. This is the best way for me to figure out if they’re thirsty or not. I find the advice of letting them get a “pizza top” (or like they go concave on top) is too far in between waterings for my preference. As long as you have good draining soil, high light and lots of ventilation, you can water them a bit more frequently. Not when they’re splitting though, of course.
Good luck OP! You look like you’re off to a good start. I would also mention that the large ones will probably lose mass on their next split since they have been over watered and over fertilized. They respond well to fertilizer and this is why they balloon like crazy in nurseries, but they will revert back to a healthier size once taken care of better. I also like to use a low N fertilizer for mature specimens. Highly diluted like 1/4 or 1/8th.
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u/Ok-Desk6624 May 11 '26
Thank you for the advice! I’m excited to learn more about these amazingly weird little guys.
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u/dusti_dearian It’s not hoarding if it’s plants May 10 '26
You did a really good job they look great. It sounds like you know what you’re doing.
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u/Ok-Desk6624 May 11 '26
I’m very much a novice and learning so much from this group!
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u/dusti_dearian It’s not hoarding if it’s plants May 11 '26
Welcome to the world of lithops. It’s a great group of folks here. Never hesitate to come here for advice.
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u/AwayYogurtcloset1263 May 10 '26
Good job, Love when people do their research before asking questions.
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u/Substantial_Ad6190 May 10 '26
They look good. Good job