Easy Care Tips for Your Succulent Zebra Plant

The Zebra plant, an evergreen succulent, is a legit sturdy plant with an easy care routine making it an ideal plant to start a gardening journey with.

Interestingly, despite the slow growth habits, they may flower atop the prized rosette of leaves under excellent care.

Thus, ensure to read till the end to learn how to keep your Zebra plant healthy, so they can flower as a message of being happy.

About the Zebra Plant

The Zebra plant (Haworthiopsis fasciata) is a small perennial succulent native to Africa.

They are adored for their rosulate of fleshy leaves, which come in different colors like brown, pink, green, and white.

And as they are easy to grow with little care needs, many opt to grow them indoors as an aesthetic decor element.

How to Grow and Care for a Zebra Plant?

Growing Zebra plant is easy as, in their natural habitat, they conquered and adapted to the arid, harsh conditions.

Nonetheless, they have a few crucial care demands to keep growing all year round.

• Place the plant in bright indirect sunlight with protection from direct sun.
• Fetch water until it starts to drain out from the drainage holes. Also, allow the top inches of soil to dry before watering.
• Use sandy loam and cacti soil mix with optimal drainage.
• Plant Haworthia Zebra in a deeper pot to support plants’ long root system.
• Add dilute liquid fertilizer every month from Spring to Fall.

Now, let us dive deeper into the more detailed care requirements of the Zebra plant.

Where to Place?

Haworthiopsis fasciata ‘Zebra plant’ grows well in almost any indoor setting aided with bright indirect sunlight.

But they do not tolerate direct sunlight as it results in brown, dry leaf tips. That said, a few hours of the morning sunlight bears no harm.

As for outdoor ones, plant them in a place with afternoon shade. Also, ensure they get 4 to 6 hours of indirect sunlight daily.

Likewise, Zebra plants prefer temperatures from 60-85°F and do not tolerate cold temperatures below 30°F.

So, in USDA zones other than 9 to 11, aim to plant outdoor ones in pots so you can move them indoors whenever the temperature dips.

Note: More natural lighting means reddish or orange leaves in the Zebra plant. But too much means plant stress resulting in white leaves with dry leaf tips.

How to Water a Succulent Zebra Plant?

Being a succulent, the Zebra plant can live days, even weeks, without water as they can store water in their leaves.

Furthermore, you should allow the top inches of soil to dry out before watering them again.

Remember, yellowing mushy wet leaves of Zebra plants often means you are overwatering them. In such cases, cut back on watering them.

Also, use a moisture meter or stick your finger or chopstick to check the soil moisture before watering.

Besides that, avoid wetting the plant leaves as they are prone to rotting. So, water your Zebra plant via a bottom-watering approach.

However, if you mistakenly wet the leaves, carefully wipe them dry using a clean towel.

Nevertheless, aim for infrequent deep watering directly on top of the soil to keep everyone happy.

What Soil & Pot to Use?

Aim for a well-draining, sandy loam cacti mix to keep Zebra plants safe from overwatering issues.

You can rely on commercial soil mixes from Hoffman, Espoma, Valley Garden, etc.

Then, use terracotta or ceramic pots with multiple drain holes to keep your Zebra plant.

Also, ensure the pots for Zebra plants are deeper to encourage better root growth.

How Often to Fertilize?

Unlike Tomatoes and Peppers, Zebra plants are not heavy feeders, so they do not require regular feeding.

Fertilizing once a month from Spring to Fall is enough to encourage better plant growth.

Meanwhile, an indoor Zebra plant does not go dormant in winter. That said, you do not need to add fertilizer in winter.

How to Repot?

Once the Zebra plant outgrows the current pot, repot them in at least two-inch bigger pots.

While repotting, ensure to use identical soil and aim for early spring to lower transplant stress.

Likewise, thoroughly water plants the night before the repot day to loosen the soil.

Also, aim to prune off unhealthy or damaged plant parts while repotting the Zebra plant into a new pot.

You can add pebbles or gravel on the bottom of the new plant pot to ensure better drainage.

How to Propagate a Succulent Zebra Plant?

You can propagate a succulent Zebra plant via baby offsets from the mother plants.

Generally, Zebra plants take 3 to 5 years to mature before producing baby plant offsets.

But they can produce much earlier once they have a properly established root system.

Before getting started, select a healthy offset and prepare a fresh succulent mix in a small pot.

• Carefully snip the offset off the mother plant, ensuring maximum roots are attached.
• Some offsets might come away with a gentle tug but aim to use scissors for zero risks.
• Let the offset dry slightly for about one or two days before planting them to avoid infection from the cut edge.
• Carefully plant offsets in a new pot filled with fresh well-draining cacti mix.
• Thoroughly water them and keep them in a bright, warm room.

Zebra Plant: All About Growth

Unlike other succulents, the Zebra plant is a relatively slow grower. But their slow growth does not falter their Zebra-like exotic foliage.

They actively unfurl new leaves in Spring and Summer like any other plants.

And interestingly, the plant does not go completely dormant and remains semi-dormant in winter.

They are mainly grown for their unique rosette of leaves with a pattern that resembles Zebra.

However, under excellent growing conditions, the Zebra plant can flower on a long stem from the center of the rosette.

Albeit infrequent, Zebra plants put out small, white, or light pink blooms during late Winter or early Spring.

So, do not worry! Flowering in a Zebra plant is normal and not bad for them.

Common Zebra Plant Problems

Despite being a sturdy plant with high drought tolerance, Zebra plants suffer several problems under poor growing conditions.

Amongst all, the overwatering issue is the most prevalent, which results in root rot.

Thus, to keep the Zebra plant healthy, aim for a flexible watering routine, use well-draining soil, and keep them in partial shade.

Also, regularly apply neem oil to keep pests and fungal diseases at bay.