Tips for growing String of Hearts
At the very beginning of the millennial plant craze, I saw a plant I love on Instagram like everyone else. I looked for it and paid good money for a small pot with a few dangling struggling strings in it. That plant was String of Hearts, also called Ceropegia Woodii, one of the first generation popular rare plants that everyone was looking for.
It came in a 3-inch nursery pot, and I didn't even check the soil. I naively thought everything was going to be fine. I carefully watered it when I "thought" it needed water. Back then, I didn't even use a moisture meter to check the soil. It grew a little and then died a little. It kept growing through that cycle, and I thought, "Wow! This is such an impossible plant to grow!" Of course, I eventually killed my first String of Hearts, RIP.
Fast forward to a year later, and it became more readily available at the local nurseries. I bought a green one and then bought another Silver Glory variety a little later. By then, I had already added a ton of plants at home. I became too busy to overwater my plants, which is essential, as String of Hearts really doesn't like to stay wet for long.
Once you get it right, String of Hearts grows like crazy! My regular green one can grow up to 6 to 8 feet in one year! I chopped it all off once, and within a year, the strings are touching the floor again. So if you asked me, what did I do to help the prolific growth? It is actually rather simple. They don't have thick roots, and they don't like to sit in wet soil for long. You can slightly underwater it, and it will still be fine due to the succulent leaves. You would also notice the older leaves would be a little wrinkly when underwatered if you looked closer. As long as you don't let it get too far, the leaves will bounce back once you give it some water.
To keep the String of Hearts healthy, I planted mine in a terracotta pot with a lot of Perlites mixed in the soil. You could also mix in some horticultural charcoal, Most of my plants seem to love a little charcoal in the soil. With this setup, things are quite effortless. I water my String of Hearts about once a week or when I remember. I use tap water, mixed with a little liquid fertilizer, and pour the water in until I see water coming out from the bottom. That's it, and the water doesn't stay in the soil for long; terracotta pot dries the soil within a day or two.
In terms of light, I put it at the corner of my plant shelf. It is getting medium indirect light, and it is as happy as it can be. It keeps flowering and growing, literally one of the easiest houseplants you can have!
