There’s many videos about how to repot succulents, and most of them involve just taking the plant out of their plastic pot, loosening up some of the soil around the surface of the rootball, then sticking whole thing in plain potting soil or succulent mix. I used to do it this way, and I’ve lost several plants because of it.
They always end up getting root or stem rot, and or the leaves all fall off. This is because the plants roots are still trapped in that compacted ball of peat moss, coco coir and perlite. This mix is fine for seedlings and easy to mass produce for hundreds of plants in the commercial market, but not great for the long term health of the plant.
This is how I repot all of my plants and succulents, by removing all of the old soil, and replacing it with the proper mix for each plant. I almost always use plain terracotta pots, as it helps with wicking away excess moisture. I always pick a pot that’s only slightly larger than the rootball. Succulents don’t like to swim in a sea of substrate in a giant pot, especially because it will take longer to dry out if you water the whole pot.
When potting succulents, or any houseplant for that matter, you may find some people saying to add gravel to the bottom of the pot “to help with drainage”. This is a big no-no. This creates a perched water table, where unless the soil above is completely saturated, it will not drain through the rocks, as they create a barrier.
Succulents like a deep watering after the soil has been completely dried, but sitting in soaking wet soil for too long will rot the roots and stem, and this is where gravel in your pot is problematic.
The solution is to use a gritty substrate as shown in the video, where mineral grit is mixed in to the cactus/succulent soil. This allows the roots to breathe and water to drain freely out of the bottom of the pot. Personally, I use Espoma Organic Bonsai Mix, and Espoma Organic Cactus & Succulent mix, because I love their products, and it’s easy to mix and use. Some alternatives for mineral grit are crushed granite, pumice, and turface (calcined clay like what’s in the bonsai mix).
I don’t recommend perlite like many people do, because when you water your plants, the perlite will rise to the top, and the soil will sink down and become compacted, retaining more moisture underneath.
Thank you for watching, please like and comment to let me know if you’d like more care tips about succulents! I currently own close to 150 different plants, and many of them are thriving, even in my basement apartment with no supplemental grow lights, just East and South facing windows. I’d be glad to make another video to tour my plant collection and show the setup!