Is your Jade plant getting too tall?
The Jade plant is one of the fastest-growing plants in the indoor gardening world.
When you provide enough sunlight and look after the plant really well, it helps in growing it faster.
But there are other reasons as well.
And that’s what you’re going to find out in this detailed guide below.
So, let’s dive right in!
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Jade Plant Too Tall? – Here’s Why
These are some of the reasons for the tall growth in your Jade plant –
1. You Haven’t Pruned It In A Long Time
This is the most important reason why you’d see such vigorous growth in your plant.
When you don’t prune your Jade plant, it allows the plant to grow at its own pace.
And that’s what makes it grow tall.
It’s pretty common to see such growth in the Jade plant, especially when it’s left unattended for too long.
If you are new to the gardening world, you should learn a few things about pruning methods.
It’s an effective method to keep your plant strong and fresh for a long time.
2. You Take Good Care Of Your Jade Plant
Yes!
When the Jade plant grows too tall, it means you’re doing great as a gardener.
It simply suggests you’re taking excellent care of the plant by providing decent sunlight, water, and a rich potting mixture.
All these elements play a significant role in the growth of such indoor plants.
And if you have been providing them to your plant consistently, you will see such results in the end.
Yes, it may be an issue when it grows tall, but it also validates the efforts you put in towards the well-being of your houseplants.
So, keep doing what you are!
Because these problems can be fixed with some of the suggestions I’ve shared in the next section of this guide.
3. The Growing Conditions Are Perfect
Apart from watering and soil mixture, it’s the growing condition that makes a great impact on a plant’s growth.
When the Jade plant receives the perfect temperature and atmosphere, it grows well.
After all, it’s a type of succulent, and it can be sensitive to certain climatic conditions.
But if it’s growing tall at your home, it clearly means the conditions are just apt for the plant.
4. The Pot Size Is Big Enough For The Plant
Again, the pot size plays a huge role in making the plant bigger and stronger.
If there isn’t enough space in the pot, the other things won’t matter much.
That’s right!
No matter how much sunlight or water you give to such plants, you won’t see a standard growth rate.
The Jade plant will always have stunted growth with smaller pots.
On the other hand, you will have much better growth in your plant if the pot size is perfect.
So, if you feel your Jade plant is too tall, it’s likely because it has room to grow in the pot.
5. The Plant Gets Decent Sunlight
In general, the plants get taller when they get access to the light source.
And as you know, there is no better light source than sunlight.
If you have kept your plant near a window or even in direct sunlight, it’s going to get tall.
The plant will automatically grow towards the biggest source of light in the room or outside.
Hence, the sunlight could also be the reason for this type of growth in your Jade plant.
Overall, these are some of the factors that decide whether your plant can grow tall or not.
And it applies to nearly all varieties of plants in the world, which is irrespective of growing indoors or outdoors.
In the next section, I have shared a few tips and suggestions that might help in managing the tall Jade plant.
So, do check them out.
How To Manage Your Tall Jade Plant
Here are the tips for you –
1. Prune Your Plant
First thing first, you need to prune your Jade plant if it’s growing tall.
And more importantly, you should only do it when you have an issue with having a tall houseplant in your plant.
If you are living in a small apartment or similar place, it’d be difficult to manage the ever-growing Jade plant.
Therefore, it makes sense to go for the pruning method.
Otherwise, you can keep the plant in your outdoor garden or an open space where it gets partial sunlight throughout the day.
As for pruning, you should try to remove the branches that are growing flat and upwards.
Both these type of branches makes the plant bushy and tall respectively.
But do keep an eye on the aesthetics as well.
You don’t want your plant to look weird and ugly once you’re done with pruning.
So, try to prune it from all sides and follow the symmetry as much as possible.
2. Support Your Plant
Don’t want to prune the Jade plant?
No worries!
If it’s growing in all sorts of directions, you should support the plant with stakes.
Place the stakes near the main stem and attach them firmly to the plant.
This way, the overgrown top-heavy Jade plant will not fall on one side and will look good in your living room.
But if you feel the plant still looks tall, you will have to prune some of the upward-growing branches from it.
And there is no other way around it.
Although the stakes support helps in giving shape to the plant, it won’t help a lot in fixing the height of the plant.
So, you need to remember it while addressing this issue in your plant.
3. Keep It In A Shady Place
This is another way to manage the overgrown Jade plant.
The Jade plant can thrive in a low-light area.
But as with most plants, it won’t grow tall as it does when you keep it near a bright light source.
So, move your plant inside somewhere in a bedroom or any other room where there isn’t much natural light coming from the window.
This will help in stopping the fast growth of your Jade plant, and you can surely manage its height issue for a few weeks and months.
In the end, though, you will have to resort to the pruning methods.
Over the period, the plant will grow tall despite keeping it in a low-light space.
4. Do Not Add Too Many Fertilizers
Fertilizer is one element that literally boosts the plant’s growth.
It multiplies the growing phase in plants, which results in several new branches, leaves, and an increase in size and height.
If you feel the Jade plant has already grown too much, you should stop feeding fertilizers.
This will instantly stunt the excess growth, and you should be able to manage the plant at its current height for a few months.
If you continue with the fertilizers sessions every now and then, it will grow tall.
So, do not stay the course with this type of plant care.
5. Transplant It Into A Smaller Pot
Generally, we transplant the plants into a bigger pot, as it helps in providing more space for them.
But here, you will have to follow the exact reverse process.
You should get a plant container that is 1-2 sizes smaller than the existing pot.
This is another technique to stop the plant’s growth immediately.
Since there won’t be a lot of space in the pot, the plant will find it difficult to grow at the same pace.
Note: This is not a permanent solution to fix this problem.
The plant will continue to grow, anyway.
And at some point, you will have to resort to pruning as well as repotting.
Now, let’s have a look at the FAQs below.
FAQs
As mentioned earlier, the Jade plant grows tall when it gets all the resources in ample quantities.
But more importantly, it’s the sunlight.
When the plant gets direct sunlight from the top, it grows taller in height.
You can remove some of the overgrown branches from the plant.
This will help curtail the unnecessary growth of the plant.
If you want to make your Jade plant bushy, you should trim some of the lateral branches in half.
When you perform this step, the trimmed branches will have new shoots in a few weeks.
And the plant will automatically get bushier in the process.
You can perform this method in batches, which should help in getting the desired shape for your Jade plant.
You can thicken the Jade plant trunk by removing the competing branches.
If there are two or more branches that are growing right beside the main stem, you can simply remove them from the plant.
This will help in directing all necessary resources to the main stem, which will eventually make it strong and thick in size.
The only way to keep your Jade plant from getting leggy is by following some of the pruning practices.
There is no alternate way to fix this issue.
You should perform this task in the summer or spring season, though, as it will allow the plant to recover from trimming shock.
Hi, I was given a jade plant. It is around 60 years old. There were no green leaves on it when it was given, due to removing it, as it was too big. I had previously seen it flower before with the previous owner. It has abundant growth again and would love to see it flower again. It has roots on the stems with the leaves. Do I spray it with water or should they not be on the plant. It is near a window in my shop hair salon premises and loves the spot.
Hi Carol,
Well, congratulations on your new Jade plant! It’s great that it’s already so old – 60 years is a long time for a plant to live.
As for spraying, it’s best to just mist the leaves lightly with water every now and then.
You don’t want to saturate the soil or get the leaves too wet, which could lead to fungal problems.
If the roots are exposed, you can cover them with a layer of soil or mulch to help protect them.
Other than that, just give your Jade plant some bright indirect light and let it grow!
With proper care, it should flower again soon. Thanks for writing in!
My jade plant is going super tall with no branches coming off of it. I wanted a more Danza but she look versus a straight up plant. I read all the info above but really didn’t find what I was looking for. Can you help assist me in what I need to do.
Thank you for your time
Hey Julie,
It seems your Jade plant is suffering from etiolation, a common issue when plants are grown indoors.
Lack of direct sunlight is usually the cause, as these plants need at least 4-6 hours of sunlight per day to stay compact and full.
To encourage your Jade plant to branch out, simply prune the main stem back by about one-third its length.
This will force the plant to produce new growth, which will, in turn, create new branches.
Make sure to prune just above a set of leaves, as this is where new growth will emerge from.
After pruning, move your plant to a location that receives more sunlight and provide it with regular watering and fertilization.