Skyscraper Senecio is a South African succulent grown for its tall, blue, finger-like leaves, and it needs little more than sun, gritty soil, and infrequent water.1Wikipedia. Curio ficoides What kills it is usually too much care, not too little: wet soil and cold are its real enemies.
What Skyscraper Senecio Looks Like and How Big It Gets
The leaves are blue-green to blue-gray, thick, and upright, flattened from side to side, with a powdery coating and translucent lines running along them.2Wikipedia. Curio ficoides You may see it sold as Senecio ficoides, Curio ficoides, Kleinia ficoides, ‘Mount Everest,’ or flat-leaved senecio.3Wikipedia. Curio ficoides4Flora Grubb Gardens. Senecio ficoides ‘Skyscraper’ plant guide The stems grow straight up in clusters.5Flora Grubb Gardens. Senecio ficoides ‘Skyscraper’ plant guide The branches are brittle, and they drop their lower leaves as they age.6Wikipedia. Curio ficoides
Those bare lower stems are simply how the plant ages, not a sign of disease. In a garden bed, lower plantings in front can hide them.
The powdery bloom is what gives the leaves their blue tint. Rubbing or handling the leaves wipes it off and leaves green marks, and the coating does not grow back on a damaged leaf. Handle the plant by its pot or stems instead.
Growth is quick. It can reach 2 to 3 feet in a single growing season,7Southern Living Plants. Skyscraperâ„¢ Senecio – Southern Living Plants and a mature plant usually stands 3 to 4 feet tall and about 1.5 feet wide.8Southern Living Plants. Skyscraperâ„¢ Senecio – Southern Living Plants Its stems hold themselves up without staking,9Southern Living Plants. Skyscraperâ„¢ Senecio – Southern Living Plants so it works as a vertical accent in borders, rock gardens, slopes, poolside beds, and containers.10Southern Living Plants. Skyscraperâ„¢ Senecio – Southern Living Plants
Light and Watering
It grows well in full sun to part shade.11Southern Living Plants. Skyscraperâ„¢ Senecio – Southern Living Plants It is a heat-loving succulent,12Southern Living. How to Grow and Care for Skyscraper Senecio so a bright, sunny spot keeps it compact and upright.
A plant that isn’t getting enough light tells you. The stems stretch thin and lean toward the window, and new leaves come in greener and farther apart. Indoors, a south- or west-facing window is usually the brightest choice. If you’re moving a plant from shade into full sun, do it gradually over a week or two so the leaves don’t scorch.
Water only when the soil is completely dry,13Plantify – Urban Nursery. Skyscraper Senecio – Senecio Ficoides and water even less often in cooler months.14Plantify – Urban Nursery. Skyscraper Senecio – Senecio Ficoides The plant tolerates drought well,15Western Star Nurseries. Senecio Skyscraper so underwatering is a much smaller risk than overwatering.
To check the soil, push a finger a couple of inches into the mix and water only if it feels dry all the way down. A pot that feels light when you lift it is another clue that it has dried out. When you do water, soak the soil until water runs out the bottom, then let it dry fully. Never leave the pot sitting in a saucer of water.
Soft, mushy, or blackened stems at the base usually mean too much water. Wrinkled, thinner leaves usually mean the plant is thirsty, though a plant whose roots have rotted can also wrinkle because it can no longer take up water. A thirsty plant firms up within days of watering; a rotting one does not.
Press gently on the base of the main stems: firm is healthy, while a squishy or darkening base means the roots have been sitting wet. When you honestly can’t tell, wait a few more days.
Soil and Containers
Adding extra pumice or perlite to the mix makes water drain faster.16Gardenia. Succulent Soil: The Key to Healthy Growth The roots then dry out between waterings and are less likely to rot.
A simple mix starts with a bagged cactus and succulent mix, with pumice or perlite stirred in to make it grittier. Regular potting soil alone stays wet too long for this plant. In garden beds with heavy clay, plant on a mound or slope so water drains away.
Choose a container with drainage holes.17Southern Living. How to Grow and Care for Skyscraper Senecio Avoid a pot that is much too big, because the extra soil holds moisture the plant doesn’t need.18Southern Living. How to Grow and Care for Skyscraper Senecio When repotting, go up only a little in size, and do it in spring when the roots fill the current pot. Unglazed terracotta dries faster than plastic, which helps prevent rot, and a heavier pot keeps a 3-foot plant from tipping in wind.
A drainage hole only helps if the soil lets water pass through it. Dense mix can stay soggy at the bottom of the pot even with a hole, so the mix and the pot need to be right together. If you love a decorative pot with no hole, keep the plant in a plastic nursery pot with holes and slip it inside, then lift it out to water and let it drain fully before returning it. Skip the old advice of adding a layer of gravel at the bottom of the pot. It doesn’t improve drainage and can leave the roots sitting closer to wet soil.
Cold Tolerance and Winter Care
It can stay outdoors year-round where winter lows stay above 25°F.19Southern Living. How to Grow and Care for Skyscraper Senecio That matches USDA zone 9b, roughly 25 to 30°F.20Southern Living. How to Grow and Care for Skyscraper Senecio One grower gives a more cautious low of 30 to 40°F,21Western Star Nurseries. Senecio Skyscraper so plan on 30°F as a safe limit if you want a margin. The plant does not survive hard freezes.22Southern Living. How to Grow and Care for Skyscraper Senecio
If you are in zone 9b or warmer, the plant can probably stay out; in colder zones, plan to protect or move it. Frozen, mushy, translucent leaves are the usual sign of cold damage. Don’t prune frost-damaged growth right away. The damaged tissue can shield the healthy stems below during later cold, so wait until spring when new growth shows what is alive.
For a potted plant, move it inside before the first forecast frost. Check for pests before bringing it in so they don’t spread to your houseplants, then set it at your brightest window, away from heater vents. Move it back outside after frost danger passes, easing it into full sun.
In-ground plants can be covered with frost cloth overnight, removed in the morning. Dry soil before a freeze helps the plant more than wet soil, and coastal spots or sheltered spots near walls stay a few degrees warmer.
Expect some slowing and leaf drop indoors in winter, since indoor light is weaker than outdoor sun. The plant resumes growth in spring.
Fertilizing and Pruning
Feed with a slow-release fertilizer about every 6 weeks in spring and summer.23Plantify – Urban Nursery. Skyscraper Senecio – Senecio Ficoides Feed it only in spring and summer, so skip fertilizer through winter.24Plantify – Urban Nursery. Skyscraper Senecio – Senecio Ficoides Succulents evolved in lean, dry soils, so rich feeding can make them weaker, and leftover salts can build up in the pot and stress the roots.
Trimming is only for a leggy or bare stem. Cut it back in spring or summer with clean shears. The branches are brittle, so cut cleanly rather than snapping them. The trimmed tops can be rooted as new plants.
It normally needs no stake. Flopping usually points to too little light or too much water, not a need for support. Turning potted plants every few weeks helps them grow straight.
How to Propagate From Cuttings
Start with a firm, healthy stem with several leaves rather than a soft or shriveled one. A cutting a few inches to a foot long works, though shorter pieces need less support while they root. Use clean, sharp shears or a knife so the cut is neat and doesn’t crush the stem.
Remove the leaves from the bottom 3 inches of the cutting.25Plant Addicts. Propagating Senecio Then keep it out of direct sun for up to 48 hours so the cut end calluses, meaning it dries and seals over.26Plant Addicts. Propagating Senecio Plant the sealed end in the soil.27Plant Addicts. Propagating Senecio
Push the end into barely damp or dry mix deep enough that the cutting stands on its own, with the bare bottom 3 inches buried or mostly buried. If it leans, prop it with a few small stones around the base rather than pressing the soil down hard. For a fuller clump quickly, plant several cuttings together in one wide pot.
Use the same gritty mix. Wait about a week before the first light watering, and keep the cutting in bright light but out of harsh afternoon sun until it roots. A gentle tug that meets resistance after a few weeks means roots have formed. Spring and summer, when the plant grows fastest, are the best time to propagate.
Mealybugs and Rot
Mealybugs are often treated with soap, oil, or alcohol sprays, but sprays can scar the waxy leaves of senecios.28National Gardening Association. Conflicting advice treating Echeveria for Mealybug Dab each bug with a cotton swab dipped in rubbing alcohol instead.29National Gardening Association. Conflicting advice treating Echeveria for Mealybug
Mealybugs look like small white cottony tufts in the leaf joints and near the soil. Sticky leaves or ants on the plant can point to them. Isolate an infested plant from your other succulents, and check weekly.
Look between leaves and at the base of the stem, since mealybugs hide where leaves meet the stem. Dispose of used swabs so surviving bugs don’t crawl back to the plant.
One round often isn’t enough. Eggs and tiny young bugs hide in the white fluff and can be missed, so new tufts may show up days later. Repeat the swabbing each week until you see no new tufts for several weeks. Heavily infested stems that can’t be cleaned may be better cut off than fought for.
A rotting plant can often be rescued. Cut off any firm, healthy stem above the soft or black section, let it callus, and root it as described in the propagation section. Throw out the soggy soil before reusing the pot.
Is Skyscraper Senecio Toxic to Pets and People
Senecio and Curio houseplants contain chemicals that can cause skin irritation, rashes, and upset stomach.30Plant Addicts. Is Senecio Poisonous? They also contain chemicals the liver turns into compounds that damage its cells.31PubMed Central. Toxicity of House Plants to Pet Animals The liver is the main organ harmed, and sometimes the lungs.32PubMed Central. Toxicity of House Plants to Pet Animals
Poisoning usually appears only after an animal eats the plant repeatedly over time, so a single nibble rarely causes serious poisoning.33PubMed Central. Toxicity of House Plants to Pet Animals Houseplant senecio poisonings are also less common and less serious than poisonings from outdoor ragwort.34PubMed Central. Toxicity of House Plants to Pet Animals Still, an animal that shows signs should be treated quickly, since liver damage can be severe.35Plant Addicts. Is Senecio Poisonous?
Place the plant out of reach of cats, dogs, and young children. Call your vet if a pet chews it, especially if it keeps coming back to it.
If sap causes redness, itching, or a rash, wash the area with soap and water. Wear gloves when taking cuttings if your skin is sensitive. If a rash spreads or doesn’t clear up, seek medical advice.
In a pet that ate the plant, early signs are usually stomach upset such as drooling, vomiting, or diarrhea. Signs of liver trouble can include lethargy, loss of appetite, or yellowing of the gums or eyes. Because damage can build over time, a pet that has been nibbling for weeks may show signs well after the first bites.