I have one like this too! I also bought it as a gollum and thought some of the leaves were just weird.

Why don't you post photos...

It's not easy to get photos from such a narrow balcony hanger... I've posted about this plant before. It still has those white dots, but the tips are getting nice and red since the sun has been slowly hitting it more and more. I found a mealy on it today and wanted to give up gardening entirely. This has been a very rough summer for these plants. The jade has rather malleable/squishy leaves and I'm not sure why. Everything else about it seems healthy, and I recently checked the roots and they looked fine too. There's plenty of new growth but I'm concerned it's going to suddenly die soon or something.

I remember you posting photos of your planter. Gollum (?) looks good; white dots have been mentioned before and some suggested that they are fertilizer/salts crystallizing on the leaves. I am not sure of other possibilities, but many jades have them at times. Have you been fertilizing? I hardly ever fertilize and have some dots at times too; they don't seem to be a problem. If concerned, flushing thoroughly with pure water will help to dilute salts build-up.

If there are squishy leaves on your plants, typically it is sign of over-watering. Sometimes sunburn starts same way, but you say that sun is increasing gradually so it shouldn't be sunburn.

You probably have quite good drainage in the 'basket', but if the soil contains too much peat, it could be difficult to keep it moist just right.

Is it raining a lot where you are located? Do you water often?

Nice, but not my plants. Jades etc are realy a hit over there. Here they are not so beloved anymore and if you find one in a flowershop they hardly cost anything.

Harry

Harry, you are right - jades seems to be least expensive and most common plants...except some 'special' ones like Legolas, Denethor and so on.

They grow so easy from leaves and cuttings, one can have hundreds in no time...unless capable of throwing them in compost heap :)

I've been covering them with an umbrella during any rain. I'm in Baltimore (the site won't let me change my username for some reason so I can't add my zone...) and it's been near 90's recently with a lot of humidity. I've been watering a little less than once a week. Maybe once every 9 - 11 days depending on how dry the soil looks. And no I haven't used fertilizer yet since the soil is only a couple months old at this point. If I hold off on watering for a couple weeks should I notice the leaves firming up a bit?

If it is actually sign of rotting caused by over-watering, it would be best to check the plant and get rid of rotting parts. But don't just rip them out since I really am not sure if it is over-watered. Is it just 1-2 leaves?-naturally aging, or is it many leaves? If just water-logged, it may dry up, as long as it didn't start rotting. Maybe you could post a photo close-up of the plant.

Lots of humidity doesn't help - is it humid for a prolonged period of time?

Is your mix containing lots of peat?

Succulents need to be watered, but they need good drainage so they don't end up sitting in the mucky/muddy mess.

Rina, I have this plant, and that is what I love about it as well, the diversity of leaf types...Here are some of mine.

Christopher

I don't think it's rotting - I checked the roots not too long ago and they looked/smelled fine. The stems feel and look fine as well. But many of the leaves, mostly the older ones but some of the younger ones as well, are... flexible... I'll hold off on watering and see if they harden up. I have another plant in the basket doing the same thing, but I recently transferred it to the basket when I realized the pot I had it in was collecting water. Thanks for the advice - I'll get back to you if I notice any changes.

Rina

the monstrosa are very unstable cultivars. Especially 'Gollum' or 'Coral' aka 'Skinny fingers'. 'Gollum' leaves are grown in bright light and 'Coral' ones are grown in shading.

I remove the leaves not relevant to the cultivar always http://forum.sibmama.ru/viewtopic.php?p=63888195#63888195

And I don't like the name 'Skinny fingers' or 'Lady's fingers'. Only men could call this cultivar thus :) LOL

Oksana

Thank you. So Gollum is correct; and the one many call Skinny fingers is Coral?

Here is the plant I have, and it is growing in full sunlight & outdoors during warmer weather here in Canada (approx. end of May - October?):

It is one from the very first post in this thread, with many leaves of different shapes. Tips of the leaves have little red color from the sun. Here is top view of the same plant:

So is it Gollum?

And you would remove all the leaves that are shaped differently? (wide and flat, or folded-up ?)

Thank you in advance...Rina

Edited to add couple of photos - remove the leaves I marked?

Thanks, Oksana, for posting that link. I had a lovely time roaming through the pages. What would you call 'Skinny Fingers'? What is the name in Russian? Is 'Coral' the same plant, and if so why the different light?

Rina,

Marguerite

yes, 'Coral' is the same cultivar as 'Skinny Fingers'. Because I don't like the last name and it was sold with name 'Coral' at first.

Yes, I remove all 'Gollum' etc. leaves at the 'Coral' and Vice versa. And I contain them at different conditions to preserve the appearance of the cultivars. Mainly cultivar leaves are growing now. But I picked many ones at the beginning.

Thanks again, Oksana. I kept reading about Coral but had no idea it was ssh

Skinny Fingers.

Hi everyone, I haven't been on much lately because I have been working on some research. I briefly read through these posts so I apologize if I duplicate any information or am a bit off-topic.

These crazy leaf shapes are the reason I love these plants so much. Personally, I believe there are 3 different forms of this type, and each plant may have a leaf from another type of plant. I always go with the majority when trying to identifying which it is. I believe there are 'Gollum', 'Hobbit', and whatever 'Finger' jade you prefer to call it. 'Hobbit' jades are easily distinguishable and not as hard to confuse with another type. 'Gollum' and 'Finger' jades are similar but the leaves do have some differences. 'Gollum' have a trumpet-like tip, while 'Finger' jades have a smaller closure that looks like a suction cup. 'Gollum' leaves also tend to be a bit shorter and stubbier (but not always, this can depend a lot on culture). I have also seen more monstrose leaves and leaves resembling other forms on this one. When I get some time I will try to post a picture of these 3 lined up next to each other for comparison.

Rina, I would not remove the leaves that are shaped different. Personally, I get very excited when I see this happen on my own plants. It is what makes your plant unique and I feel as though it is an attractive quality. For me I think yours is a 'Finger' jade because most of the leaves have the suction cup-like closure at the tip of the leaf. Some people do only consider the 'Gollum' and 'Finger' jade to be the same variety, though.

-Erica

Picture is worth a thousand words...I find Oksana's info most reliable, I believe she really 'study' jades.

Rina, eventually I would like my jade to look more like a tree (like yours) rather than the bush it currently is. Should I remove the bottom leaves? Would that potentially help the newer leaves firm up? Is there a certain way I should remove the leaves? Thanks!

I never removed any leaves from this plant since I bough it, over time very few fell of because they were old - here is the photo of original plant and comparison in 2 years:

It is much bigger now, here is the comparison of it in April 2014 (same photo as above) and July 31, 2015I think that leaving lower leaves will help trunk to get fatter (you want that - trees with fat trunks look older), so I would not remove them. But I am not expert by all means...

I keep it outdoors as soon as it is warm enough. They are in very gritty mix, so they don't get over-watered (I actually badly under-watered it this late winter/early spring and leaves were very 'crinkled' - I was afraid I killed it. But with increased watering it recovered really nice.

Here is the photo of very under-watered plant just 3 months earlier:

Rina

Huh! It looks SO good right now! I'll do my best.

Well draining mix, right (ha! easy to say!) amount of water and good light - and some patience; they don't grow super fast - this is 3 years of grwing. And I don't think I ever fertilized it - I almost never fertilize succulents - usually they get watered by rain, and in winter they are indoors, relatively cool and relatively dark conditions, so pushing plants to grow would only make them more spindly...JMO.

Rina

Oksana, I respect your knowledge, but I cannot agree with what you are saying about Coral or Skinny Fingers or whatever you may choose to call it...By the way, there is nothing wrong with the name Lady Fingers either, honestly.

Indeed, one reason I love mine is for the very fact there are so many different leaf shapes on one plant. If I started picking off every leaf that does not fit your idea of what is exactly relevant to the cultivar, there would be precious few leaves left. I don't know about you, Oksana, but I grow my Jades for the pleasure they give me, not because they fit into a certain category.

Erica, I agree with what you said. I have posted the same before as well.

Christopher

I really enjoy these monstrose forms, as well, although I am guilty of plucking off leaves occasionally. My 'Skinny Fingers' is a little more variable than my strict 'Gollum' Jades. My 'Gollum' are very regular in form - shorter, trumpet-shape leaves, with a strong tendency to send up growth from the base of the trunk.

'Skinny Fingers' (sorry for the lack of focus)

Some of the fun leaf-shapes present.

And my squat 'Gollum' Jades.

Detail of my preferred bonsai 'Gollum'

And the three for comparison.

My plants have resembled the mongrels to me. So I decided to remove the excess in order to they were like on clear cultivars.

I don't want to offend somebody. My plants, as I want so I shape them.

Rina,

thanks for the support! But and I could be wrong and I'm wrong often.

PS: I don't like to write many letters. And "Coral" is very short and clear name. It can be embarrassed with another name 'Skinny Fingers', e.g. can to write 'Sticky (or stinky) Fingers'.

Sincerely,

Oksana.

Oksana, you would never offend anyone here! We all respect you and the knowledge you have. Everyone grows their plants their own way and we are all entitled to that. It's all personal preference, really. I really enjoy seeing your plants and reading what you have to say, often a perspective I have not thought of myself.

-Erica

I actually like the name Coral myself, because the plant does look like some forms of that. And if it was the first name given, as Oksana says, I think that is the correct one. But in the long run, once we all know the plant we're talking about, I suppose it doesn't matter much. I used to think Hobbit/Gollum/Coral aka Skinny/Lady Fingers quite ugly, now I just love them. They seem to be growing on me.

Oksana

Thank you again.

Do not feel that you offend (or offended) anyone. Most respect your knowledge, and your 'scientific' approach. I am sure that if you realize/find out that you were wrong about something you would write about.

Many ppl grow plants just for beauty and fun of it - and that is great. Some want to understand much more about 'why'. It takes time and dedication and I think it is great if that person shares their knowledge even if, occasionally, there may be disagreement. There is no end to learning.

I totally understand about your feelings not to make mistakes, or miss-spelling. When I first came to Canada and didn't know word of English, I often used kitchen instead of chicken, garbage instead of garage, went shopping and couldn't find potato juice while I was really looking for tomato juice and tried to convince the shopkeeper there is such a thing...I was very embarrassed when learned about my mistakes...today I just smile about it.

Rina

HI ladies

plants are like women each unique in it own way, having said that you are making me

realize just how little I know about either. if they were all same life would be very boring.

Oksana just for record I thought I was wrong once but I was mistaken.

Richard

So Richard, must we consider all those plants you have a compensation for a harem?

Richard, Margauerite - LOL!

Thank you all!
I also want to grow beautiful plants just like you. Especially like Josh and Ben. I tried to study on your pics. Because there were a few Jade-fans in Russia. But my siberian conditions do not help me. Therefore, I need to know how to get the beauty of my Jades. And, if possible, I should be able to create such conditions.

Oksana.

Oksana

I would like to know what kind of substrate are you growing your jades in? - or, if you already posted about it, could you please post a link?

Rina

Your jades are beautiful, Oksana. I don't know of anyone else who has been able to achieve what you have in your conditions.

-Erica

Rina,

I prefer to grow now in sandy loam with the addition of mineral baking powder: perlite, expanded clay, gravel. And I watered the jades acidified water without chlorine, pH=5,5 - 6.0.

Oksana, I am not sure I understand 'mineral baking powder' (you could give me chemical formula if you like). I use perlite, grit (granite chips) and Turface (pure calcined clay), sometimes I add very little soil or coir. Thank you. Rina

Rina, oh, it's Google translation.
It's not 'mineral baking powder', it's wrong. This is supplement of the perlite, expanded clay (as Turface), grit.

Oksana - I thought so, but wanted to make sure. Maybe "mineral ingredients" would have been better translation :)

Rina

Rina,

I found the correct translation - mineral riper.

We have several people on here who are very knowledgeable and I appreciate how tactful they have been when disagreeing.

I have been offended when I was told my variegated compact jade was a regular variegated and it was compact based on how I was growing it even though I have stated how. So, yes, one can be offended on here.

Do you mean you stated how you grew it, Camellia? It was probably not intended at all ,some people don't express themselves very well at times, if ever. Glad you came back, anyway. Have you any new jades? (I hope it wasn't me, by the way :) )

I agree that Oksana grows beautiful Jades under less than ideal conditions, and with her scientific background can determine what is necessary to maximize their beauty. We all here have a shared love of Jades, but we all may not agree on the best methods of growing them. I for one do not follow anyone else's method, yet I am happy with my results. As long as our own plants give us joy, well I for one am satisfied with that.

Christopher

I agree that Oksana grows beautiful Jades under less than ideal conditions, and with her scientific background can determine what is necessary to maximize their beauty. We all here have a shared love of Jades, but we all may not agree on the best methods of growing them. I for one do not follow anyone else's method, yet I am happy with my results. As long as our own plants give us joy, well I for one am satisfied with that.

Christopher

I agree that Oksana grows beautiful Jades under less than ideal conditions, and with her scientific background can determine what is necessary to maximize their beauty. We all here have a shared love of Jades, but we all may not agree on the best methods of growing them. I for one do not follow anyone else's method, yet I am happy with my results. As long as our own plants give us joy, well I for one am satisfied with that.

Christopher

I'm sorry, Camellia. I offended you.

I meant that not all green jades are natural or pure green cultivars now. There are a lot of reversal (returned?) variegated plants. These plants can retain variegation genes. But I don't deny the possibility of violations of the chlorophyll formation gene in your conditions. And I don't deny converse.

Have I translated understandable? :(

Christopher,

I try not to give advice how to grow. I try to explain why. Different as may be our conditions, the chemistry of growth is the same everywhere. Excuse me, please, again.

I have a beautiful jade, gollum, or as my tag says a "hobbit". See pixs. I believe it's time to transfer to a larger pot . It's falling over yet still is growing. I'm in love with this one. It's my first succulent and I had a few other die from over watering before I did my research. Can anyone please advise with what soil mixture I should have. I had 2 "fingers" turn yellow and mush out resent and that was not from over watering. I have 2 other succulents I desperately need help with. Where do I make a new post with these others? Thanks in advance l.

At the top of the Cactus and Suculents page, click on the box Ask a Question. You can then title it specifically to your need. Nice looking plant!

ez

By the way, people, these jade names confuse me. Shouldn't Hobbit refer to short and pudgy fingers, Gollum to long skinny fingers? Ladies' Fingers should have rings on them and be totally kissable, shouldn't they? :-)

As of now it is a bit muddled for my liking.

ez

You can start new thread as you did with your other plant.

Your Hobbit/Gollum is very nice with lots of leaves. It could be toppling over since it is quite heavy on the top and not much support around the roots - the soil looks like peat, and that is very light if dry. You could (and should) use better draining medium, made of some inorganic ingredients (I mentioned in your other post). It will be much better draining, aerated and also keep the pot stable. Using few larger rocks (as you did already) will help too. Or you could use a terracotta pots, that are bit more heavy - but regardless the pot, better potting mix will help your plants grow better.

All succulents would benefit from excellent drainage, so it would be good if you read about these mixes and prepare batch to repot all your succulents. Make sure you use only containers with drainage holes, and give them as much light as possible.

Oldest leaves will shrink-yellow-dry up and fall off, that is natural. But it is usually just one-two here and there. Nothing to worry about that unless many leaves start yellowing and turning mushy - that may be sign of rotting.

You have 'Gollum' Jades.

Josh