How to Grow & Care for Othonna Capensis ‘String of Rubies’ (2023)

I had grown the String of Rubie at my house and found it one of the beautiful trailing succulents. You must be thinking, what is there about Othonna Capensis ‘String of Rubies’?

Be patient; I am going to tell you everything, starting from how to grow and care for String of Rubies, including light, watering, temperature, humidity, soil, fertilizer, potting, repotting, and ending with pruning the plant to grow more. If you have decided to grow it, read the guide that will help you grow them successfully.

Some facts

1. The plant Othonna capensis ‘Ruby Necklace’ belongs to the Asteraceae family. 2. The plant does have striking foliage but not its flowers. 3. Ruby Necklace does grow in a way of alternating patterns having thin purple stems, that form in teardrop-shaped foliage. 4. The feature of the plant makes them name a necklace because of the pattern circling each leaf.

Quick takeaways:

Scientific Name	Othonna capensis
Common Name	String of Rubies, Ruby necklace, String of Pickles
Light	Bright direct light and low indirect light
Watering	Dry out thoroughly between waterings
Temperature	Above 50°F (10°C)
Hardiness Zone	USDA hardiness zone 9a to 11b
Humidity	Typical household humidity levels
Soil Type	Well-draining, acidic soil
Soil pH	pH between 6.0 and 6.5
Fertilizing	Beginning of the growing season they become straggly to rejuvenate growth.
Repotting	Beginning of the growing season they become straggly to rejuvenate growth.
Pruning	Beginning of the growing season, they become straggly to rejuvenate growth.
Propagation	Stem cuttings
Toxicity	Non-toxic to both humans and pets
Mature Size	2 inches tall
Bloom Time	Spring, Summer, Fall

How to Grow Othonna Capensis ‘String of Rubies’?

Othonna Capensis ‘String of Rubies’ is one of the beautiful trailing succulents that are native to South Africa and to grow them you need to maintain the environment.

For growing the Othonna Capensis ‘String of Rubies’ plant in an easy you can do the stem cutting of the plant as seedlings will take a long term to grow. But for growing with stem cutting you need to make ensure of certain things such as:

• You need to make sure that the cutting has at least 2-3 nodes on the cutting stem.
• You have two options you pot cutting one pot of the root in the soil and the second potting in water.
• Potting the plant using stem cutting does have a higher success rate because there is less risk of getting rot.
• For propagating the plant using soil you need to fill a tray or shallow pot with a preferred succulent soil and in the end, put the stem cutting at the top of the soil.  You need to keep the soil moist until the new roots grow from the stem cutting.
• In case of propagating the plant using water, you need to remove the bottom of the leaves in order to keep them exposed, and at last place the stem in the water.
• You need to make sure to submerge at least 1-2 nodes in water with the help of glass containers for example small jars, vases, or thrifted glass containers so that you can check the root’s development in the plant. 
• You need to change the water of the plant weekly after noticing the roots are growing and then transfer the cutting to the soil and maintain the soil moisture.

How to Care for Othonna Capensis ‘String of Rubies’?

To grow String of Rubies here are some basic requirements you need to consider such as:

• Light 
• Temperature
• Soil 
• Watering 
• Pruning 
• Potting and repotting 
• Fertilizer

Light:

• For growing the Othonna Capensis ‘String of Rubies’ the light required should be bright and direct sunlight.
• You need to give the plant perfect light as they are sun-loving plants. 
• The plant will love the full sun exposure for upto 6 hours every day.
• In order to plant indoors you need to make sure that the location should be bright and sunny.
• I would prefer you to keep them in a south-facing window.
• If you can find the perfect spot you can provide the plant with supplementary sources to make sure that the plant grows with more colorful foliage.

Watering:

• The doctor comes under succulent which has a drought-tolerant characteristic.
• Watering of the plant needs to be done carefully to avoid the conditions of overwatering that can cause root and stem rot.
• You just need to wait unless the potting mix is dried out completely before watering. 
• If you forget to water the plant you dont need to panic as the plant does have the capacity to survive in less water.

Temperature:

• The ideal temperature to plant String of Rubies is above 50°F (10°C).
• The preferred environment to grow the plant is a warm environment.
• You need to protect the plant from low temperatures as the plant has a low tolerance for cold weather. The plant gets frozen in low temperature causing the plant to die. 
• The plant lies under USDA hardiness zones 9a to 11b but still, you need to avoid the plant to keep in the places with cold drafts and need to warm the plant in winter.

 Humidity:

• In the case of the humidity requirement, the home humidity level is enough to keep the plant healthy.
• The Othonna Capensis ‘String of Rubies’ plant loves dry environments.
• You need to maintain the humidity for growing the plant as the plant gets too moist which may cause rotting.
• Don’t place String of Rubies in kitchens or bathrooms as here the humidity is already high and the plant can die. 

Soil:

• Providing a String of Rubies with succulent soil mix works better as it has good properties that do favor the plant like well drawing and porous that drain excess moisture.
• You can also make your own soil mix by combining some amount of regular potting soil with plenty of perlite, sand, or pumice. 
• The pH level of the soil should be between 6.0 to 6.5. 

Fertilizer:

• For a growing String of Rubies, you won’t need regular fertilizer but you can apply it in the growing season like spring and summer.
• Adding fertilizer will help in boosting the growth of the succulent. You can easily add the fertilizer twice a season.
• You need to mix the fertilizer with perfect ratio and make sure to dilute the fertilizer according to the instructions that are mentioned on the label of the fertilizer.
• Avoiding overfertilization of the plant will cause immediate death to the plant by burning the roots of the plant.

Potting & Repotting:

• The need of repotting of String of Rubies will take around 2 to 3 years.
• The plant does love growing well in a container that is smaller in size.
• If you find that the roots are coming out of the pot then it is the right to repot the plant.
• You choose the container you need to select a bigger size than the old size of the container.
• In the new container, you need to layer the fresh potting mix at the bottom of the container and then place the plant without damaging the roots of the plant.
• In case of having space on the pot fill it with succulent soil mix.

Pruning:

• You need to trim the excess growth of the plant for that you need to prune it.
• The need of prune to remove the dead and diseased leave and stems of the plant.
• Pruning the plant will help keep them tidy and aesthetic.
• Pruning also helps in preventing the spreading of disease and helps or boost the new growth of the plant.
• During pruning, you need to cut not more than a third of the plant’s whole size but before that disinfect the tools that you using to cut the leaves.

Conclusion:

You should follow all the mentioned ways so that the Othonna Capensis can grow beautiful, and healthy without getting infected by pests, spider mites, or any diseases.