How to Identify and Care for a Kalanchoe Plant

Hi Naomi,

Your plant looks like a Kalanchoe calandiva. Kalanchoe houseplants need bright indirect light and enjoy direct sun during the fall, winter, and spring. Direct sun in the summer is too intense and burns the Kalanchoe leaves. The blooms on Kalanchoe Plants are photo-periodically induced. As the days get shorter and Kalanchoes experience longer periods of darkness, they produce more flowers. Kalanchoes are succulent plants with plump leaves that store water for long periods of time. They are easily over-watered which causes root-rot. Allow the top 50% of the soil to dry-out before watering. If the soil of a Kalanchoe is exceptionally dry, sit the plant in a deep saucer filled with water for about ten minutes. This not only prevents over-watering but also prevents water from dripping on Kalanchoe  leaves and causing plant diseases such as leaf spot or powdery mildew. Remove the dead flowers at the base of their stem to encourage new flowers to develop. You can read all my care tips for kalanchoes in the Popular Houseplant section of the website. The picture is of a slightly different variety, but the care is the same.

https://www.houseplant411.com/houseplant/how-to-grow-kalanchoe-care-tips

All varieties of kalanchoes contain cardiac glycosides and are toxic to animals. Read more about common houseplants that are poisonous in Don’t Feed Me To Your Cat! A Guide to Poisonous Houseplants.