The Ghost Plant

The ghost plant or the graptoveria paraguayense is one of the easiest plants to grow in your garden. Besides being an easy succulent to grow it is also a beautiful one. The pale pink leaves which turn purple in slightly cooler weather could also turn grey or yellow depending on exposure to the sun making it a uniquely attractive plant.

This succulent’s ability to grow fast and fill the container in which is potted makes it a great plant to have in our garden. It's most attractive quality for me as a gardener is it ability to trail, and make any succulent arrangement look attractive.. The star shaped growth at the tips hanging down a container makes for a pretty sight.

This is the kind of plant that you would want to pot in tall container and let it trail down or in a beautiful earthen pot to make it look it is flowing out of the the pot into ground below making a dramatic statement in the middle of some greenery.

The ghost plant is one that reproduces easily from leaves and cuttings. It is easy to grow a huge number of plants in a short while and they look beautiful in clusters. In the image above you see how a few stems that I had potted in a old pot have now grown out of bounds. These needs to be thinned out and re-potted to give the plants some space to grow further.

One major problem I have had with this succulents is that the leaves drop off easily even with a little movement. This makes it easy to give them a trailing look. However when I have to send bare rooted plants to customers or friends far away all they receive are detached leaves and stems despite taking precautions to pack them carefully in soft cushioning material and bubble wrap.

With overexposure to the sun the leaves get bleached out and tend to lose color quickly sometimes turning a sickly yellow all over. The powdery white substance coating the leaves give the plant a pale ghost like appearance from where it gets its name. I have also read that this coating gives the leaves a waterproof quality preventing them from rotting due to water drops are retained in the middle of the rosettes.

This succulent has the ability to grow and spread on the ground very quickly. Unlike other succulents it’s hard to lose this plant due to its easy spreading and reproducing nature.

Like all succulents water only when the soil feels dry else it rots easily. Another important point to keep in mind when growing this succulents in a tropical or subtropical climate is to keep in in a place where it gets partial sunlight. Mid day sun tends to burn the leaves and leave ugly marks on the leaves.

As long as peachy pinks trends as far as plants are concerned this graptoveria would have a special place in any garden. Being an easy plant to grow it is the best plant for those who are new to growing succulents to start with.

All these images show the ghost plant in different colors. The exposure to the sun is different for each of these plants shown here as they are placed in different spots on my terrace. Thanks for your support and time.
Have a great day!