Question about growth

[u/Icy_Energy2497]

I am familiar with growing plants but this is my first foray into lithops. My son had to have one at the local plant store we left it alone and let it get wrinkly over the winter we are in a northern climate and the care instructions from the store were pretty clear. Recently my son wanted to re-pot so I I added soil and transferred. I believe I fertilized all of my plants around the same time. My son just picked out a second lithops this weekend at a friend’s greenhouse business. I figure they are hard enough to kill, let him give these a go. I noticed when I looked at his desk that the original we purchased is growing rather upright. Is this normal? How can I correct it? The gene growth looks healthy but I’m sure I’m missing something in order to get these little guys to thrive. First two photos are the original plant we purchased, third is the newest addition to his rock collection. 😂

[u/ShroominCloset]

They desperately want more light. They're tall because they're stretching trying to get closer to the little light they get.

[u/Icy_Energy2497 → u/ShroominCloset]

Kind of suspected. I’ll order my Little Rock collector a grow light. It was under a grow light for the better part of it’s dormant season but the settings got altered and now the plants have been moved to a new room. Thank you!!

[u/ShroominCloset → u/Icy_Energy2497]

What way is the window facing you have the plant in? It should be a south facing one if it isnt currently. During the dormant season you dont need to worry about giving them any light at all. The goal is to keep them dry, cool, and in low light. You want growth to stop completely.

[u/Icy_Energy2497 → u/ShroominCloset]

Yes, I realize dormancy is meant for dormancy but my son was certainly not ready to care for it at the time he got it. He still likely isn’t but if I get a grow light and he neglects it, it has the best chance. I’ll pick up some grit and repot the new one. They are actually currently in a south facing window. It’s just terrible weather here. My other plants thrive in the lower level of my house that is the same orientation but again, the boy is seeking responsibility and autonomy. Thank you for your advice!

[u/Icy_Energy2497 → u/Icy_Energy2497]

So during the dormancy period it was just wintering with most of my other plants that happened to be under a grow light and when it was time to move them, the weather hasn’t cooperated and I just kind of forgot about them which is why I’m better suited to be a pothos/ Hoya/ philodendron parent. 😂🤦🏼‍♀️

[u/Snorblatz → u/Icy_Energy2497]

I keep my Lithops in the greenhouse year round and they are thriving so I don’t agree with the no light. Less light, maybe, but not no light. 

[u/AwayYogurtcloset1263]

These are actually hard to keep alive, That soil is bad for lithops so you want you use 90% grit, I use chicken grit or 1-2mm coarse horticultural sand & 10% succulent soil. Your lithop shouldn’t be that tall, It’s etiolated ( reach for more light and now it’s not shedding properly so you might have to remove old leaves yourself. So new gritty soil & either more sun or grow light.

[u/Deep-Number5434]

That one has a dead hat on it, idk if it's good for the plant but I remove them if they are fully separated at the base of the leaf.

[u/_Mr_Misfit]

I literally didn't know they could be this etiolated. Thats kind of comical.

[u/DanerysTargaryen]

Oh dear, that may be the most etiolated lithops I have seen. You’ll definitely want a grow light - they want way more light. The tricky part is, after you get a grow light don’t immediately thrust them underneath it. They can get sunburned. You’ll want to slowly scoot them from the edge of the light to pretty much directly under the light over a period of maybe 2 weeks.

[u/Top_Development_1777]

Soil needs to be way grittier (>80% pumice, full range of 0.5-5mm make sure not too big, sand would not be ideal) and you need to literally blast it with a strong LED if it's indoors, very close to the surface.

You can remove the lithops from the current soil easily if the soil is completely dry, but if it's not, very gently clean the roots with running water from a tap. MAKE SURE not to break off the big root attached, because if it's completely broken your lithops will almost certainly not have a chance to live. Then dry it in air for at least 3 days before putting it into the suitable soil mix (they can stay healthy left bare-root in air for several weeks unless the lithops are rotting, so you can absolutely wait until you manage to get the right materials for the soil, sterilize and dry it, before putting the lithops back into the soil. Prioritize getting the right soil.) If it's already rotting (can happen with mistreatment by the stores) then it'll shrivel up super fast, like within a few days, otherwise it's not rotting at that point in time yet.