How Do I Care For a Kalanchoe?

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How do I care for a Kalanchoe that was given to me as a gift?

Your Kalanchoe is a wonderful succulent (it can be put outside during warm weather but will not withstand cold temperatures). It makes a great houseplant, if given bright light such as from a southern window.

Keep it happy with a monthly feeding (from spring to fall) of a general-purpose liquid fertilizer. The spent blooms will fall off by themselves but you can encourage more flowers by removing them yourself. It will require a resting period after blooming. If you do not care when your Kalanchoe blooms, just leave it alone and it will bloom on its own. If you want it to bloom approximately the same time each year then you will need to regulate its environment. It will require about six weeks of shortened days (this means about fourteen hours of darkness). When the days are shorter, reduce watering and with the longer periods of darkness, you will soon have blooms again
Your Kalanchoe can be propagated by breaking off a small limb and placing it either in a small vase of water or in potting soil. If in soil, keep it relatively moist until roots appear. Pull on the limb and if you feel resistance that should be a sign that it is developing roots.

I have a Kalanchoe that was given to me in 1988 in a four-inch pot and it is large, beautiful and blooms at least two times a year. I have also given away many “starts” of this plant.