Elephant Bush
Portulacaria afra
Through the year 🗓️
☀️ Summer now
Its thirstiest stretch. Soak whenever the pot is fully dry, and it happily summers outdoors in sun.
🍂 Fall
Bring it in before frost, taper watering, and stop feeding.
❄️ Winter
Bright, cool, and mostly dry. Water roughly monthly, just enough to keep the leaves from shriveling.
🌱 Spring
Prune for shape as growth resumes (pot up the cuttings) and restart feeding.
The details
Light & placement
- Light
- Bright light with several hours of direct sun; variegated forms take a bit less
- Ideal PPFD
- 300–600 µmol·m⁻²·s⁻¹
- Grow-light distance
- 12–18 in below LED
Water & feed
- Watering method
- Soak-and-dry: water deeply, drain, and let the soil dry fully. It drinks a little more than most succulents in summer, far less in winter.
- Fertilizer
- Cactus/succulent feed at ½ strength, every 4–6 wks in spring–summer; none in winter.
Home & habit
- Soil
- Fast-draining cactus/succulent mix; pH 5.5–6.5
- Humidity
- Low (30–50%)
- Temperature
- 60–85 °F; keep above 40 °F
- Mature size
- 2–4 ft indoors; prunes into bonsai or trails from a hanging pot
- Repotting
- Every 2–3 yrs; sturdy and unfussy about it
- Propagation
- Stem cuttings: callus 2–3 days, then pot in dry mix; roots readily. Single leaves work too, slowly.
When something looks wrong
- Overwatering signs
- Yellowing, dropping leaves on wet soil; soft blackening stems
- Underwatering signs
- Flat, wrinkled leaves and leaf drop from the base up
- Common pests
- Mealybugs, spider mites, scale
Common problems 🩺
The usual suspects when Elephant Bush looks unhappy. Most houseplant trouble is watering or light, not disease — see all plant problems if you are not sure which plant is the culprit.
Shedding leaves suddenly
Likely cause
Overwatering, or shock after a move or a cold spell.
What to do
Let the soil dry fully, keep it warm, and give it a stable bright spot.
Long, thin, sparse branches
Likely cause
Not enough light.
What to do
Several hours of direct sun. Prune to shape — cuttings root very easily.
Mushy stems
Likely cause
Too much water in too dense a mix.
What to do
Gritty cactus mix, water only when the leaves start to soften.
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