Tiger jaws is a dependable perennial succulent with low rosettes of fleshy triangular leaves edged with spiny “teeth,” from which its typical name derives. Strong though it looks, the spikes are versatile and soft to the touch. In the fall or winter season, the plant may produce attractive yellow flowers with long, narrow petals. Belonging To South Africa, tiger jaws is winter season durable in USDA zones 9 to 11 but is normally grown as an indoor houseplant.
The plant is slow-growing, living for numerous years with proper care. A recognized plant will produce many offsets, which you can plant during the tiger jaws’ regular growing season in spring or summer.
Common Name: Tiger jaws
Botanical Name: Faucaria tigrina
Family: Aizoaceae
Plant Type: Perennial, succulent
Mature Size: Up to 6 in. tall, 6 in. wide
Sun Exposure: Full, partial
Soil Type: Moist, well-drained
Soil pH: Acidic
Bloom Time: Fall, winter
Flower Color: White
Hardiness Zones: 9–11 (USDA)
Native Area: South Africa
How To Care For Tiger Jaws – Tips For Growing A Healthy Tiger Jaws Succulent
Belonging to the Eastern Cape province in South Africa, tiger jaws succulents can be discovered growing among rocks and clay soil in the subtropical deserts of the area. Their growing season starts in the spring and lasts throughout the summer, and they display fantastic yellow flowers throughout the fall– although it is uncommon for them to flower when grown inside your home.
Tiger jaws can be a garden plant in warmer zones, however it is frequently grown as a potted plant in a coarse, well-draining potting mix. Give your tiger jaws succulent an intense, bright area in your house and it will thrive. It can likewise grow happily on a patio or deck during the summer and will endure brief frosts, but it needs to be brought indoors when steady cold winter season weather condition techniques. Tiger jaws get about 6 inches high and broad.
Light – Tips For Growing A Healthy Tiger Jaws Succulent
Tiger jaws succulents are sun-loving plants that prefer at least 3 hours of bright, direct light a day, and preferably 6 hours or more. Moving the plant outside during the summer will assist it to get the light that it needs. While it’s unusual for tiger jaws succulents to flower when grown indoors, placing the plant outdoors during the summer will help to increase the possibilities of flowering. Tiger jaws succulents can tolerate less light during the winter season, but should still be positioned in a brilliant location.
Soil – Tips For Growing A Healthy Tiger Jaws Succulent
Like many succulents, tiger jaws succulents require permeable, well-draining soil to prosper. In their natural habitat, tiger jaws can often be discovered growing in open, rocky locations with clay soil. Inside, however, a basic cactus soil is normally sufficient. Some growers find even standard cactus mix to have excessive moisture-retaining peat moss, and they customize the potting mix by including additional chicken grit or sand
Or, you can make an ideal potting mix for tiger jaws by blending 2 parts of sanitized potting soil, 1 part fine pumice, and 1 part sand.
Water – Tips For Growing A Healthy Tiger Jaws Succulent
A tiger plant can be delicate when watering; it’s not unusual for a tiger jaws plant to pass away over night if given too much water that doesn’t drain pipes out of its container. Just water a tiger plant when its potting mix is totally dry.
Water tiger jaws succulents more often during their growing duration (April to August). During the fall and winter season, permit the soil to stay dry for prolonged periods, and when you water it, dampen the soil instead of drenching it.
Temperature And Humidity – Tips For Growing A Healthy Tiger Jaws Succulent
In their native South African environment, tiger jaws succulents grow in dry, hot conditions. Nevertheless, they are likewise able to endure lower temperatures than lots of other succulent types. The perfect temperature is considered to be about 68 degrees Fahrenheit, but they take pleasure in somewhat greater temperatures (up to 90 degrees) during the summer season, and will even endure brief frosts. Cold winter season months call for this plant to be brought in off the patio unless you live in zones 9 to 11.
When grown inside, the average home humidity is adequate for tiger jaws succulents, however they must not be exposed to excessive humidity (so the bathroom most likely isn’t an ideal area for these succulents). Extreme humidity can present fungal disease.
Fertilizer – Tips For Growing A Healthy Tiger Jaws Succulent
Tiger jaws succulents do not require routine fertilizing. Too much fertilizer can result in out of balance, mushy development that triggers the plant to look leggy or break apart. Throughout their active growing duration (April to August) tiger jaws succulents can be fertilized as soon as or twice with a watered down liquid fertilizer to help support brand-new development.
Tiger Jaws Species Types – Tips For Growing A Healthy Tiger Jaws Succulent
Another types of Faucaria sometimes grown as a houseplant is F. felina. It might be likewise referred to as “tiger jaws,” however this plant has shorter, less ferocious teeth than F. tigrina. Otherwise, the plants equal. Some business growers think about F. tigrina to be just a cultivar of F. felina, offering it the designation Faucaria felina ‘Tiger Jaws’.
How To Prune Tiger Jaws – Tips For Growing A Healthy Tiger Jaws Succulent
No regular maintenance pruning is essential with tiger jaws, however do pluck out any leaves that turn brown or turn mushy.
How To Propagate Tiger Jaws – Tips For Growing A Healthy Tiger Jaws Succulent
Comparable to aloe plants and haworthia succulents, tiger jaws succulents are normally propagated by separating offsets from the main plant. It is best to propagate tiger jaws throughout their active growing duration, in the late spring or early summer. Here’s how to do it:
Utilizing a little trowel or kitchen spoon, carefully pry away several of the small offsets that are sprouting up around the base of the mother plant.
Set the balanced out aside and let them dry for one to two days up until the damaged surfaces harden over.
Plant each balanced out in its own pot, filled with a business cactus/succulent potting mix.
Location the planted offsets in an area with moderate light. Water infrequently up until their root systems establish.
As soon as the offset has rooted itself (two weeks or so) slowly introduce it to intense light and treat it as an established tiger jaws plant. Do not expose the plant to direct sunshine till new foliage is actively growing.
Growing Tiger Jaws From Seed – Tips For Growing A Healthy Tiger Jaws Succulent
Faucaria plants are likewise relatively simple to propagate from seeds (supplied your indoor plant flowers and produces them), But given the ease with which offsets can be separated and the sluggish growth rate of the seeds, seed propagation is not typical.
Plant the seeds so they are simply hardly covered with a sprinkling of potting mix. As soon as seedlings have a number of sets of leaves, they can be transplanted to private pots and grown in a spot with a brilliant light.
How To Pot And Repot Tiger Jaws – Tips For Growing A Healthy Tiger Jaws Succulent
Tiger jaws must be potted in shallow containers using an extra-coarse cactus/succulent potting mix. These succulents are slow growers and therefore do not require regular reporting. When they have outgrown their previous container– roughly every 2 years or so, they must be repotted only. You must likewise guarantee that the pot you are using has great drain holes, as tiger jaws succulents will rot if left sitting in water.
How To Take Care Of Tiger Jaws During Winter – Tips For Growing A Healthy Tiger Jaws Succulent
Minimize watering tiger jaws throughout the winter season; a light watering once a month is plenty. Excessive water during the winter typically triggers root rot.
Don’t Let Pests And Diseases Ruin Your Tiger Jaws! – Tips For Growing A Healthy Tiger Jaws Succulent
Tiger jaws are usually quite hassle-free, but you may have occasional problems with mealybugs or scale, which provide as waxy fibers or sticky honeydew on the leaves. An insecticide created for indoor use will deal with these.
Fungal infection (phytophthora) can be triggered by overwatering which cause the leaves to lose color and wilt. Remove affected leaves and stop watering till the plant regains health.
Tips For Getting Tiger Jaws To Bloom – Tips For Growing A Healthy Tiger Jaws Succulent
Failure to bloom is not unusual for plants grown inside year-round, as they are normally grown for the unique foliage. Plants grown indoors year-round will often bloom if positioned in the sunniest window available.
A single dosage of fertilizer in late summer season can in some cases prompt the plant to produce fall or winter flowers, offered it’s likewise getting adequate sunlight.
How To Take Care Of Tiger Jaws – Tips For Growing A Healthy Tiger Jaws Succulent
Tiger jaws is generally a trouble-free houseplant; in fact, it grows on relative disregard. However there are a number of cultural issues to watch for:
Pale Leaves – Tips For Growing A Healthy Tiger Jaws Succulent
This usually shows that the plant is rebelling versus too much water. There’s still time to save the plant if you minimize your watering regular instantly. The potting mix needs to dry entirely before watering once again.
When the plant does not get enough light, Pale leaves can likewise be caused. Lengthier exposure to direct sunshine will trigger the leaves to turn an appealing shade of pink to reddish-purple.
Mushy Leaves – Tips For Growing A Healthy Tiger Jaws Succulent
At this point, fungal root rot is beginning to embed in. Removing the impacted leaves and lowering watering might still save the plant, but if the rot continues to spread, the plant will need to be gotten rid of. You can save some baby leaves for replanting.
