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gabro14

S. Moonshine...Love it!

gabro14
17 years ago

So I took a trip over to my local HD, and I was hoping they would have a Sans Moonshine..I've been craving one lately. I found some in 6" pots, and snatched one up. It was $5.99. I took off 2 damaged leaves, and I attached a pic of what I now have (after repotting). I just love it!

Now I know Sans are notorious pot busters, but will this species likely outgrow the 6" pot it's in (6" diameter and 6" height). I really like the size and I'm not looking to keep upgrading pot sizes. Thanks :-)

{{gwi:1247400}}

Comments (14)

  • pirate_girl
    17 years ago

    Hi Gabi (we meet again),

    Sans. can often be slowish growing. I've had this one (Moonshine) grow in big growth spurts alternating w/ long periods of inactivity. I would have suggested leaving it in the same pot (do I understand you went from one 6" pot to another 6" pot, presumably for aesthetics?).

    One of the ways to contain Sans. from getting too big is NOT to pot them up until they're bursting out of the pot.

    Outgrow is a relative term, eventually it will, but I doubt it will be particularly fast!

  • gabro14
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    PG,

    Thanks for the info. That helps. I didn't repot for asthetic reasons. The 6" pot it came in actually fit snuggly inside the pot it is now in, so I could've just used the beige pot as a cache if I was doing it just for asthetic reasons. I repotted for the same reason I repot most plants I get from big box stores...because of the horrible, wet, muddy soil it was in. Also, some leaves were damaged...not sure if that's a result of poor lighting or overwatering while in the store, but I didn't want to take my chances if the reason may have been the soil. Would you have repotted or let it stay in the same soil from HD?

    How big is your moonshine now? In other words, what size pot is it in? Just curios....
    Again, thanks for your reply.
    Gabi

  • gabro14
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    Can anyone who owns an adult Sans Moonshine tell me what size pot theirs is in?
    Much appreciated,
    Gabi

  • brandon7 TN_zone7
    17 years ago

    You can plant a single adult S.t.'Moonshine' in a 6" or 8" pot, but if it's healthy, it will produce pups and outgrow the pot quickly. Sans need to be potted up to larger containers OR divided as they outgrow their pots. Given enough time, the plant would eventually fill up even a large container if not divided.

  • gabro14
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    Thank you Brandon. That was very helpful and you answered my question precisely. I think my best bet would be to divide the plant when it produces pups...that way I can keep it in the size container I want, and also give the pups away to friends. Of course I'll wait till it's busting the pot because who doesn't like the full look of a mama with her pups :-)

    Thanks a lot,
    Gabi

  • pirate_girl
    17 years ago

    Hi Again Gabi,

    Wasn't able to get back here til now, also wanted to measure my plant. Mine is not adult, rather a nice size division from a propagation workshop I helped lead last Spring.

    Measured it last night, it's 11" high, pretty sprawling in width & in a square 4" inch. To my eye it looks bit overpotted, but the potting was done by a friend/mentor who is a masterful grower of many things (including chock full pots of gorgeous Sans(es)), w/ decades more experience than I. So even tho' the pot looks a bit big to me I'm deferring to Roger's judgment on this.

    Couple of yrs. ago my BF gave me a Moonshine pup off his. Parent was maybe 6" tall & the pup was smallish when I got it. But over that one summer, the pup shot up to double, than almost triple the size of the parent. I called it the "Jet-fueled Sans", the speed of its growth was just amazing! Unfortunately, the following year I lost it (never knew why).

    As to yr. Q abt whether or not I would have repotted, tho' I rarely buy from box stores, if I had found it to have muddy or very dense mix, yeah, I probably would have to ensure quicker drainage. Or at least added 40-50% pumice to the existing mix for fear of rot.

    So if that was yr. reasoning, I agree it WAS a good thing to do. Enjoy!

  • tootswisc
    17 years ago

    I bought my moonshine at HD last summer. It really has not grown much-it is quite boring to look at right now.

    PG-do you think over potting could have been it's demise.

  • pirate_girl
    17 years ago

    Hiya Toots,

    Good to "see" ya. Welcome back, so glad to know you're OK (relatively speaking).

    No, the one I lost was definitely NOT overpotted. Was potted on the smallish side, esp. in that it housed both the parent & the pup. My only guess is somehow I overwatered it (even tho' it was in a clay pot).

  • melissa_thefarm
    17 years ago

    I totally agree about automatically repotting any Sansevieria not bought from someone who really knows what (s)he's doing. I got a Hahnii, repotted it, but after a year it hadn't grown much and was also showing signs of rot. I took it out, and this time cleaned away the old compost, which I hadn't done before. The compost was matted and impoverished, and the plant had never had a chance to grow into its new and more favorable medium. I broke the clump into cuttings, slicing away all the rot, and repotted them. The plants are all alive if not showing signs of growth, and there's no rot. I'm hoping they'll get moving this spring.

    Moral of the story: repot your new Sansevieria, and remove all the old compost!

    Melissa

  • gabro14
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    Yes Melissa...I agree. I think ALL plants should be repotted if they are in questionable soil. And I also find nothing wrong with repotting a plant for other reasons (aesthetic reasons, or to up the pot size, etc.), regardless of the season. I've been doing this for years and never had a problem. I posted a recent thread on the hoya forum about this to see what others thought, and it seems that others do this as well without any consequences to their plants.
    Gabi

  • tootswisc
    17 years ago

    I looked at my moonshine after posting on the 12th and found a limp looking shoot. I popped it out of the pot and found the soil to be dry. I waited until today to water it and placed it on top of a radiator for bottom warmth. I am hoping it might look better tomorrow. drat!

  • plantomaniac
    17 years ago

    Gabi,
    I realize I'm a bit late on my post, but I just wanted to comment on your plant... it's another beaut! I got a moonshine a couple months ago from a local Krogers for about $5.50. Mine is about half the size of yours though. I found some that were rather large at a local HD and Lowes, HD having the largest ones, but I ended up going with this one from Krogers because it looked so much better. I only have a couple leaves that have shallow cuts on them, but otherwise, no harm done. The ones here at HD and Lowes looked like someone took a weedwacker to them! (This moonshine I have was one I was referring to in my post about loss of leaves. I only lost a baby leaf from this one however, my hahnii lost a couple more leaves and that was the main reason for my post). You have a great find! Moonshines are sooooo beautiful!

    Elizabeth

  • gabro14
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    Thanks Elizabeth. This plant has been doing very well. It looks like it put on some new growth, and it looks healthier than when I first bought it. I've had no problems with this plant at all. I barely water it, but it doesn't seem to mind. And it does get some direct sun in the morning....doesn't seem to mind that either. It's in an East facing window.

    I also would've bought the smaller plant rather than getting a large plant that looks horrible. I never heard of Krogers. Where do you live?

    I agree...Moonshines are very beautiful. I just love the coloring and the leaf shape!

  • plantomaniac
    17 years ago

    gabro14,
    You're welcome. I am glad to hear that it has been doing well. I have noticed the one thing with sans is that they defintely don't grow fast at all, hehe. I live in Georgia. Funny thing is, Krogers is a grocery store. I have bought a couple plants from them in the past, this being the only one left I have (My schfelerra didn't exactly last forever, died after over a year... started getting leggy and well, I don't like leggy plants... mean I know). I got my ponytails from them last year... this second batch, I got from Lowes. I think if I try them again, I'll go back to Krogers and buy some. My Mom said that you can never tell if a plant has underlying problems when you buy them.... to think, I had these for a month and I had my last ones for almost a year? I think there might have been something wrong with them besides coldness.

    I have wanted a moonshine since I saw them online. I agree, the coloring and the leaf shape is soo beautiful.

    Elizabeth