The Spruce / Anastasiia Tretiak
Living stones (Lithopsspp.
These plants hug the ground and grow extremely slowly.
Living Stones Care
Here are the main care requirements for growing alow-maintenanceliving stone plant.
The Spruce / Anastasiia Tretiak
Light
Living stones preferfull sunyear-round, meaning at least six hours of sunlight on most days.
When growing these succulents indoors, place them by your brightest window (south-facing exposure is best).
Insufficient light can cause elongated leaves, stretching, and poor leaf coloring.
The Spruce / Anastasiia Tretiak
Soil
These plants like sandy soil with plenty of drainage.
Avoid using organic matter in any mix for a living stone because the soil needs to dry out quickly.
Dont water in summer or over the winter when the plant is dormant.
The Spruce / Anastasiia Tretiak
Then drench the soil, allowing it to dry out completely before watering againabout 1-2 weeks.
Pause watering again in the summer during the plant’s second dormant period.
Resume watering in early fall, just before the plant is ready to flower.
The Spruce / Anastasiia Tretiak
They do fine in typical room temperatures between 65 and 80 degrees.
This process should be completed in the spring when the plants are actively growing.
The division will create more clone-like offspring.
The Spruce / Anastasiia Tretiak
The seeds will not produce clones but often unusual hybrids.
This is because they have long taproots that stretch far down into the soil.
The pot should also have ampledrainage holes.
An unglazed clay pot is ideal, as it allows excess water to evaporate through its walls.
You likely wont have to repot your living stones for many years since they grow so slowly.
Other pests on living stones can be treated withinsecticidal soap.
Living stones are prone toroot rotand fungal growth if the plants are improperly watered.
They are highly tolerant of drought and too much water can kill them.
How Long Does a Living Stone Bloom?
A living stone flower will only last a few days, not weeks.
What Do Living Stone’s Flowers Look and Smell Like?
You’ll see them peek through the fissure between the leaves.
Some living stone blooms have a subtle sweet fragrance, while others do not.
The flowers tend to open on sunny days and close up when the sun goes down.
Living stones are self-sterile, so they need pollination to produce seeds.
After flowering, living stones go dormantmeaning it’s time to stop watering the plant until spring.
A new set of leaves appears in the spring, and the old leaves dry up and fall off.
Misting the soilnot the leavescan also help ensure the plant isn’t soaked.
Fortunately, living stones arent prone to many diseases.
Lithopsmultiply on their own by dropping seeds from the pods that are left behind when their flowers wilt.
Gardeners can divide the new plants and transplant them to other containers if the original pot becomes crowded.
Wisconsin Horticulture Division of Extension.
