Fertilizer
Each time you water during the spring and summer, use a balanced liquid plant food diluted to a quarter strength.
A 10-10-10 N-P-K ratio is suitable. Reduce feeding to every other watering in the fall and discontinue feeding altogether during the winter when growth slows down.
Learn more about fertilizing houseplants here.
Where to Buy
You’ll find string of nickels plants available from specialty nurseries or those that carry a good selection of succulents and vining plants.
A specimen in a two-inch growers pot is available from The Plant Farm Store via Amazon.
Maintenance
Slow-growing string of nickels is an easy-care houseplant with few maintenance requirements. It prefers a snug-fitting pot with a diameter about an inch wider than the plant’s width.
Every two to three years, in the spring, change the substrate, regardless of whether you need to increase the container size or not.
Substrates break down over time, compacting and retaining water, which deprives the roots of oxygen as mentioned above.
Additional care includes removing damaged or dead stems to restore vigor and visual appeal.
Cut the affected stems just below a leaf, rather than mid-stem, for rapid and attractive regrowth.
Propagation
Because the tiny seeds are not dependable growers, the best ways to start a new plant are by taking a stem cutting from an existing one or buying a nursery start. Let’s discuss.
From Stem Cuttings
Take stem cuttings in the spring. Wear protective gloves to avoid contact with the irritating sap.
Sanitize your garden scissors with a 10 percent bleach solution (one part bleach to nine parts water) and rinse them well.
Select a healthy stem with plump leaves and visible aerial roots protruding near the leaf pairs.
Cut a three- to four-inch length of stem with at least two leaf pairs.
Place a small clump of sphagnum moss on a saucer and lightly moisten.
Snip off the lower pair of leaves, closest to the cut end of the stem.
Dip the cut end of the stem end into rooting hormone powder.
Gently insert the powdered stem end into the moss to anchor it, burying the nodes where the leaves were cut. These natural growing points will produce roots.
Place the saucer in bright, indirect sunlight.
Create a self-watering humidity dome by inflating a quart or sandwich-sized plastic bag over the saucer and tucking it loosely underneath.
Do not make it airtight, as excess moisture may develop and cause the cutting to rot.
New roots should be established in about two months.
Once it has established roots, remove the cutting from the moss and transplant it to a two-inch pot filled three-quarters full of orchid potting medium.
Use a chopstick or pencil to tease the moss away from the roots.
