Echeveria Hortencia is a truly extraordinary perennial succulent and it is not common as most Echeveria succulents.
They are renowned for their dark colored leaves which carry purple hues. Many freshers in gardening like to grow them.
These plants go by the common name called Conchita. Echeveria Hortencia is a hardy and versatile plant. So, if you are interested to learn about these plants, it would be worth reading this article.
How do I identify Echeveria Hortencia?
You could spot Echeveria Hortencia, in large deep burgundy color leaves. They would be about 12′ long once they grow to their fullest.
Further they have wavy leaves. Moreover, they would consist of a waxy pedal. Besides, Echeveria Hortencia would produce showy blooms as well.
The Echeveria Hortencia blooms are quite attractive towards the pollinators such as hummingbirds.
They bloom during spring and summer. Once they produce the bloom spikes they look like pups . However, they would produce flowers within one month once they develop the flower spikes.
Further, when there are cloudy days, they carry green centers. Echeveria Hortencia leaves contain a farina layer also on the leaves. That feature makes them look very attractive.
Growth rate
Echeveria Hortencia grows at a moderately faster rate.
One look care guide
| Botanical Name | Echeveria Hortencia |
| Common Name | Conchita |
| Plant Type | Succulent |
| Mature Size | 12 inch |
| Sun Exposure | Full sunlight to partial shade |
| Soil Type | Sandy, well draining |
| Soil pH | ph. level of 5.6- 7.8 |
| Bloom Time | spring and in summer. |
| Hardiness Zones | USDA hardiness zone 9 |
| Toxicity | Non toxic |
| Average price | 12 USD |
How do you take care of Echeveria Hortencia?
Light Requirement
Echeveria Hortencia needs to have adequate sunlight to maintain the deep purple black color of the leaves.
So, in simple words, when you plant them as indoor plants, choose a bright sunny spot for them. You need to select a spot where they can gain full sunlight in the morning and in early afternoon so that they will not gain intense sunlight.
They can survive in the shade during the intense hours of the day, particularly during summer.
If you do not supply sufficient sunlight, they would tend to become etiolated and develop leggy growths of the plants.
The reason for that is because they would try to reach the best possible lighting source they can reach. If you find it difficult to provide enough sunlight, you can consider bringing the plants outdoors for some time when there are appropriate sunlight levels.
Having said that, when you move the plants outdoors from indoors, you need to ensure that you slowly acclimate them to the full sunlight. The abrupt exposure to sunlight will traumatize the plants . further it will result in sun scorches as well.
Temperature and humidity
Echeveria Hortencia opts to look good in cooler winter temperatures. Echeveria Hortencia is tolerant of some light frost.
In fact , they are not the type of plants which will tolerate hard frost though. Furthermore, they do not like to get exposed to high humidity levels as it would unless it leads to root rot.
These plants can perform well in room temperature and at room humidity levels. However, refrain from placing them closer to bathrooms and kitchens as there will be high humidity levels.
Echeveria Hortenciia are tolerant of a maximum temperature of 100 degrees Fahrenheit during the peak of summer.
On the other hand, they can withstand a colder temperature of 20 Fahrenheit – 30 degrees Fahrenheit during winter.
Is it cold hardy?
To do that, you need to bring them in. They would look good during colder months as explained in the above.
However, do not leave them to be in soggy soil during winter. You can leave them to be overwintered in a place where they can gain a light frost.
Zone
Many of the Echeveria plants grow in USDA hardiness zones 9. As such, Echeveria Hortencia would also perform well in USDA hardiness zone 9.
Watering Requirement
Make sure that you water the Echeveria Hortencia appropriately since watering is the most critical and the important factor when looking after these plants.
Since these are succulent types, they do not want water in excess. However, they do not prefer to be dry also.
If by any chance you come across any wrinkled leaves, that literally means, plants are lacking sufficient water.
Literally over watering could lead to diseases such as root rot and hence why you need to avoid over watering them. It would create worse repercussions than under watering.
You simply have to wait until the soil layer dries first from the previous watering session and then water them again.
If you stick to this, it is very unlikely that your Echeveria Hortencia may go through any over-watering situation given that you have grown them in an appropriate pot which has ample drainage.
Ideally there should not be any excess water retained in the pot after a watering session. Further if you have used a saucer under the pot, you need to empty it. Unless it will increase the humidity levels around the plants.
Soil Requirement Type / pH.
Echeveria Hortencia prefers to grow in a soil mix which is high in porosity. Further you may consider using a mulch layer as it will nourish the soil mix and make it looser.
Additionally, it is crucial to enhance the draining factor as well. Hence, I recommend amending the soil using mulch as it would be quite effective in improving the overall growth of the plants. Once you follow these guidelines, it will keep the excess moisture away.
You may also proceed with a standard potting mix which you can easily acquire from garden stores.
Not only that but also, you can make a soil mix on your own by blending two parts of coarse sand, three parts of regular soil mix along with one part of perlite.
In terms of the right ph. levels, a ph. levels of 5.6- 7.8 would suit them the best. In other words, they can thrive well in a moderately acidic to slightly alkaline soil mix.
Pot size Potting and Repotting
You need to choose a pot which has ample drainage. If you end up using a pot which does not contain at least one draining hole, it is very unlikely that you can reap the good result even if you water the plants well.
In other words, watering the plants well and providing pots which have ample draining go hand in hand.
When it comes to repotting, you can conduct it less often like you do with the rest of other succulents and cactus.
Hence you need to report the Echeveria Hortencia only if they outgrow from the pots only. Besides, if you freshly bought them from garden stores, you need to consider repotting them there too.
You need to repot them only if their soil is dry only. Next take the plant out from the pot without damaging the plant’s roots.
In the meantime, remove the old soil around the roots and then plant them in a fresh pot which is slightly larger than the previous plants. I encourage reporting the Echeveria Hortencia in spring.
Where to Plant
Echeveria Hortencia has strong requirements for sunlight. Hence, choose a bright sunny spot to plant them, but away from intense sunlight during the midday.
Fertilizer and time of year.
Echeveria Hortencia thrives well whether you feed them or not. They are usually adapted to grow in soil mixes which are less nourished.
Hence , you can feed them less. If you accidentally feed them in excess, it will create unnecessary problems for the wellbeing of the plants.
Feed them with caution. Moreover, I recommend using a cactus or a succulent fertilizer for this purpose. Besides, you may use liquid fertilizer also.
Make sure you are using the diluted liquid fertilizers so that it would not create any feed burns.
Flower
Echeveria Hortencia blooms in spring and in summer.
Dormancy
It seems like they never go dormant. There are no records of their dormancy period
Other plants Pairs Well With
Echeveria Hortencia would grow well with Echeveria cante plants.
Toxicity
Echeveria plants are nontoxic plants in general.
Common bugs and illnesses
Chances are that you may suffer from diseases such as root rot due to over watering.
Additionally, Echeveria Hortencia would be subjected to pests’ attacks from mealybugs, aphids as well. If you wish to treat these pests, you can use a Bayer spray and they would be fatal to these pests.
What is good about this remedy is that it would not harm the pollinators which usually come and feed on the flowers.
However, when you use these sprays, it may sometimes remove the farina layer of these plants. The Farina layer cannot even regrow if it has already grown.
Apart from that, you may also use rubbing alcohol as well. In addition to these pests’ attacks, Echeveria Hortencia is prone for slugs and for snail attacks as well.
However, if you ensure that you practice the right care tips along with proper watering, it is very unlikely that you will go through these issues.
How to propagate Echeveria Hortencia?
You can conduct Echeveria Hortencia propagation via offsets, seeds, leaves.
If your Echeveria Hortencia is doing well, you could spot them forming offsets around the base of these plants. You can simply separate them and plant them as individual plants.
If you wish to conduct the leaf propagation, you need to remove a leaf from the main stem carefully and let it wither afterwards.
Next, simply place it in a well-draining soil mix and leave the specimen in a filtered sunlight area. Keep in mind that you should use multiple leaves for this purpose as not all leaves will grow into new plants.
You could spot them forming tiny rosettes after one months’ time. At the end the older leaves shrivel and perish. Until that point, do not remove it.
Conclusion
To wind up, Echeveria Hortencia are such a great versatile set of plants that anybody would desire to have. So, if you already have a Echeveria Hortencia plant, trust you found all this information useful and if you don’t have one,I hope now that you’re excited to have one.
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