My Paddle Plant Patch
This is my glorious Paddle Plant patch 12 months ago at this very time. Oh what a difference a year makes! My beautiful Kalanchoe thrysifolias, also known as Flapjack Plant or Desert Cabbage, suffered from a 4 day rainy spell in early December followed by an uncharacteristic cold spell. They turned into a brown leafed, shriveled mess and I had to cut off half of almost all the stems. For a live visual of what I mean check out our video filmed right in my front yard also entitled “My Paddle Plant Patch” and you’ll see it first hand. Many succulents tend to naturally get leggy over time and need to be cut back and replanted. Fortunately, this is easy as can be to do. Here are more photos of the plants, which grow happily under my 16′ Giant Bird of Paradise along with a variety of other succulents, so you can see more of it in it’s hey day.
Here’s how they look now. It’s pretty sad but there was no time for mourning so I got busy cleaning off the damaged foliage so I could see the babies spreading out from the mother plants.
Here’s a close up so you can see what I mean about the new growth emerging underneath all the unsightly foliage. I go with the common name Paddle Plant by the way because those large leaves remind me of Ping Pong Paddles.
I’ve cleaned out the blemished and rangy stems so now you can see all the planting space that has created. Fortunately I have many cuttings so covering the dirt will be no problem at all.
The cuttings need to heel off for a few weeks or so and then I’ll plant them back right back in. I have quite a few more cuttings which are heeling off on my front porch. I’ll work some worm compost into the exposed spots first and then plant the cuttings in so that the lowest leaves are touching the soil. I keep the soil dry for about a week so they can settle in. And that’s all there is to propagating this fun succulent. You can just as easily propagate these by the leaf cutting method too.
Action speaks louder that words so be sure to watch the video below. Stay tuned because I’ll let you all know how the Paddle Plant patch is looking come July!
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Nell, the founder of Joy Us garden, was born into a gardening family and grew up in Connecticut’s countryside. After living in Boston, New York, San Francisco, & Santa Barbara, she now calls the Arizona desert home. She studied horticulture & garden design, working in the field all her life. Nell is a gardener, designer, blogger, Youtube creator, & author. She’s been gardening for a very long time & wants to share what she’s learned with you.
Hi Nell! I have a paddle plant that I absolutely love. It’s potted and it’s HUGE! Approximately 3 feet tall & a foot or so wide. The leaves are 4 – 5 inches wide and the plant has started to grow a big stalk up the middle, and the tip is starting to flower. I’ve read that if it flowers, the plant will reach the end of its life cycle, so in order to preserve it, I can cut off the stalk & replant it. So, I’m going to try that, but would love to know if you have any suggestions about that process. I also wondered if, after I take off that top bit of stalk, with the flower, I could propagate my paddle plant by cutting the stalk right in the middle & then replanting that top portion after it heels. I watched your videos & it seems you cut it from the bottom & then take that whole thing, take off the bottom leaves & re-plant after heeling. But I’ve only got one plant, so I don’t want to do that. Can I cut it right in the middle & take the top half & plant? I’ve never had one of these plants, but it’s been so beautiful I can’t bear to think it will reach the end of its life-cycle! Help? Thank you! – Marisol
Hi Marisol –
Kalanchoes in general grow leggy over time & need to be cut back. I did a total rejuvenation of that patch about 3 or 4 years in. If you cut off the flower stalk, the plant will stay more compact. Pups (new plants) appear off the stalk so you can always let it partially bloom & propagate those pups. From my experience, you can’t propagate the stalk; only the pups. I cut mine from the bottom but you can propagate the leaves from the middle too. Nell