Crassula ovata serial repots?

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I picked up an old (15 years+) jade houseplant off of Facebook about a week ago. I plan to create a kinda bonsai out of it. Talking with the previous owner, it seems she repotted it about two weeks ago. Problem is, she used a fine, moisture-retentive mix. Problematic because (1) it will hold water for days, leading possibly to rot, and (2) it makes it impossible for me to feed as frequently as I'd like.

I am looking for advice. Would it be better to repot now into an open, mostly-inorganic soil, or to just bear it until next summer and repot then? If I do it now, will it probably tolerate hard pruning at the same time?

Thanks!
 

Potawatomi13

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Just hold off water for a couple(?)weeks so roots do not rot;).
 

leatherback

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Pull it out of the pot. Take a bushwacker to it. Let the neighbour run over it by accident. Chase after the dog, getting the plant back from it. THen let it dry for 3 days and put it in a pot. It will live.

Worst thing you can do to these is overwater when it is cold. The rest.. They do not seem to care.
 
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Pull it out of the pot. Take a bushwacker to it. Let the neighbour run over it by accident. Chase after the dog, getting the plant back from it. THen let it dry for 3 days and put it in a pot. It will live.

Actually, this may come as a surprise but I had not even thought of this plan yet. But I like it! ;)
 

fredman

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Yeah they are tough. You can take it out and repot again...nice open soil.
They don't like being inside or to much shade. You need to find the perfect sun exposure spot for it. To little and the leaves stays green. To much and the (roots overheats easy in the small pot) leaves turns yellow. Just right (morning to lunch) they'll go green, with red tips. That's when they will flower too.
They don't make for the best of bonsai...but fantastic potted plants.
 

Carol 83

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Yeah they are tough. You can take it out and repot again...nice open soil.
They don't like being inside or to much shade. You need to find the perfect sun exposure spot for it. To little and the leaves stays green. To much and the (roots overheats easy in the small pot) leaves turns yellow. Just right (morning to lunch) they'll go green, with red tips. That's when they will flower too.
They don't make for the best of bonsai...but fantastic potted plants.
I keep a couple, including a goofy little forest in my window sill at work. Southern exposure, they've never been outside but are green with red tips. But they haven't bloomed.
 

gallina1594

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The only way I've ever killed a crassula Ovata is overwatering 😂 literally... Things are tanks. I'm a little late to the party, but go ahead and repot it! And take it easy on the water since winter is coming up. One good watering in the new inorganic substrate should get you through a month
 

Forsoothe!

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If the media doesn't need water more than once a week, what's the problem?
Js1 2020_0902 SQ.jpg
Defoliated in late June. Guess what's under all that moss? Watered every day outdoors, will be once a week indoors.
 

fredman

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I keep a couple, including a goofy little forest in my window sill at work. Southern exposure, they've never been outside but are green with red tips. But they haven't bloomed.
They will suddenly surprise you one year Carol. Conditions must be right for them....I think. I had this one in a window sill to. Also didn't flower and then one year it suddenly did. It's been 7 years since and it hasn't flowered since. I since moved and have it in a bad spot though.
 

fredman

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These two are standing next to each other with the same amount of sun, yet the leave colour differs. The one on the right just finished flowering, but the left one didn't flower this year.
They are finnicky to get the leaf colour right in pots.
IMG_20200911_152333.jpg
 
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