Plant Care: String of Hearts

My heart holds a special place for our String of Hearts plant. It may be because it was one of our first plants we brought into our home or it may be because it is simply so beautiful! There is something so stunning about the color and shape of its leaves. Also, the way it trails so delicately from its home upon a shelf above our bed is to die for. Not only is it beautiful, but overall it is low maintenance. I have heard through the grapevine that this plant can be a little picky but I simply do not agree. I have never had any issues with our String of Hearts. Once you make yourself aware of the proper plant care the String of Hearts needs, I promise you will love it just as much as I do.

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String of Hearts, also know as Ceropegia woodii

To begin, let’s get real basic.

The String of Hearts is technically considered a succulent. If you follow these few simple rules, it will set you up for success on keeping succulents, such as the String of Hearts, alive.

A succulent prefers:

• low humidity
• indirect light
• minimal water

There are so many different types of succulents that it would be almost impossible to keep track of each of its requirements. If you simply just stick to the aforementioned rules, you will be just fine.

Similar to the String of Hearts, these rule also apply to String of Bananas, String of Peas, String of Dolphins and other “string” or “trailing” succulents.

Where To Buy

When I received our String of Hearts in the mail from Etsy Shop, HealthySuccs, I was in awe.

Not only was it so pretty, but the way HealthySuccs shipped and packed it was incredible. This was my first plant I received in the mail so I of course was a bit concerned if the plant would make the trip alright.

It sure did.

It survived and looked amazing. There were a few “hearts” that fell off while untangling the strings but that was expected.

On a side note, if you own or plan to own a String of Hearts, I hope you have patience because these strings get tangled very easily and it can take quite some time to gently unravel the strings.

I constantly lose hearts when I untangle, but that is okay. They grow back!

If you are looking to buy a String of Hearts, I highly recommend HealthySuccs. Unfortunately for my situation, I do not live where these are “common” meaning you don’t find String of Hearts at any local nurseries or home improvement stores such as Home Depot of Lowes. There is a very small possibility that one or two may arrive in, but they go like hot cakes. Obviously.

On the very rare occurrence, I have spotted String of Bananas and String of Dolphins at local shops. For instance, I got my String of Dolphins right down the street at my local Woodmans.

That was a good day.

String of Hearts PLant Care

After I unpacked and untangled the strings, it was now time to find it a home within my home. Being only my second plant at the time, there was so many places to pick from. However, because these are trailing plants, it had to be placed somewhere it could hang down.

I couldn’t put it on a console table because I have 2 dogs and String of Hearts are considered toxic to animals.

Related: Toxic Houseplants To Pets

Instead, I figured I would hang it on our curtain rod above our back sliding door leading out to our patio. This door faces West for reference. Mind you, when I received this plant, it was maybe a foot long. Not that big. I had it in this spot for a good two to three months.

It did not grow.

It was pathetic.

I was unhappy.

For the life of me, I could not figure out what was wrong. Thinking back, I did not consider it goes dormant during the winter months, which is when I got it. For the most part, this was the only problem until we decided to 1. repot it and 2. find a new home for it.

This is when everything changed.

Soil Requirements

Because String of Hearts are a succulent, they prefer dry, well draining soil. The best soil you can get for this plant would be a cactus/succulent mix.

I recommend Miracle Gro Cactus & Palm Mix. This can easily be purchased from Amazon or any local nursery/home improvement store.

In addition to this fast drying soil, I would also suggest that when repotting, mix in some sand and rocks. This will only increase the drainage to avoid root rot.

Root rot is the number one cause of death of succulents.

The best time to repot is during the spring. This will minimize any risks of killing the plant while it’s dormant.

I’ll be honest and tell you we didn’t wait to repot. It was a risk we took and fortunately, it survived. We repotted early because we were so anxious to finish redecorating our bedroom. Like I had mentioned, our String of Hearts trails down from a floating shelf above our bed. Repotting and putting the plant there was the final touch we needed for our newly painted and furnished bedroom. We just could not wait.

Light Requirements

Now that our plant is freshly potted in better soil, we put it upon our shelf above our bed. Instead of hanging directly next to a West facing window, the plant is now about 5 feet away from a West facing window.

This made all the difference.

Not that I was seeing any burning of the leaves when it was directly next to the back door, but it wasn’t growing. And yes, that could have been because it was dormant.

There were several factors.

But I swear, after repotting and finding a new home, our String of Hearts grew incredibly fast.

After only 2 months, it almost doubled its length.

With that being said, the String of Hearts does best in Bright Indirect Light. Place it a few feet away from West or South facing window. It should receive light for about 5-6 hours of the day. If you have your plant near an East facing window, then the morning light is perfect as it is not too strong. If it is facing a West or South, like me, then please remember to keep it a few feet away. Too much light might “stun” it and too little light well, will kill it.

All plants need light to survive.

Related: Low Light Houseplants

Temperature and Humidity

Again, String of Hearts are a succulent. They like dry conditions. This means that they do not require a lot of humidity. So put down that mister and put away the humidifier, you won’t need it. Save that for your other houseplants.

String of Hearts prefer to be cozy between 70-85 degrees Fahrenheit. It can survive a bit cooler in the winter, but don’t freeze it to death.

Watering

Probably the most important advice I can give you on keeping your lovely String of Hearts alive, is how to properly water it.

Say it with me, succulents like dry conditions.

If you forget to water it, it’s not going to hate you. It can survive that kind of neglect.

However, if you keep forgetting to water it, you’re going to start to notice it look droopy and sad. The color might look dull and the leaves won’t feel squishy. Once you give it a good drink of water, it’ll perk right back up.

Before you decide to water, stick your finger into the soil. If it’s hard and dry, it is time to water. If soil sticks to your finger or if it feels moist, you can put it on snooze.

Another tip I like to suggest is feeling its leaves. Give the “heart” a little squeeze. If it feels, what I like to say, squishy, then you can absolutely wait on watering. When the leaves are squishy, this means they are full of water and well hydrated. However, if the leaves don’t feel as squishy but rather feel deflated, then this means it is time for a drink.

Be sure to use water that has sat out for at least 24 hours. This causes any minerals to demineralize. If you don’t have the patience for that, then filtered water will do. If you are able to collect rain water, that is the ultimate treat for our dear houseplants.

Make sure you water early in the morning to allow plenty of time for the plant to dry up before bedtime. Houseplants do not like to go to bed wet.

Fertilizer

Only fertilize during the growing season which is the Spring and Summer months. Giving your plant fertilizer is very important. It’s food for your plant.

It will make it grow big and strong.

I recommend getting any sort of succulent plant food such as Miracle Gro Succulent Plant Food. Follow the directions on the label of the fertilizer on how often you should be fertilzing.

It is as simple as that.

Pruning

Overtime, the strings can get quite long. This could become a problem if you do not have it high enough from the ground. An easy fix to this problem is pruning it.

It is very easy to prune String of Hearts.

Get a clean pair of scissors and simply cut right below the node at your desired length. You can find the node behind the leaves. The node is where the leaves are growing from.

If you cut right below that mark, not only is this a great hair cut for your plant, but it will allow some time for new hearts to grow again AND a chance for you to propagate.

Which leads me into the next section…

Propagation

If you want to create mini String of Hearts or add more strings to your plant to make it more full, then you must propagate.

There are two common methods: Water propagation and soil propagation.

Which is better? I can’t say. I have tried both and they both worked just fine! No problems. Did one way grow faster than the other? No. It was about the same amount of time to either see roots forming or see new strings coming out from the soil.

If you chose to water propagate, follow these simple steps.

1. Give your plant a hair cut. With clean sheers, cut below the node. Make sure the string is about 6 inches long. This gives your new plant a little length right off the bat. Feel free to cut as many strings as you’d like.
2. Pull leaves away from the node. This is important because if you don’t then the leaves will just rot away at the node once placed in water.
3. Stick the end of the string that you pulled leaves away from into a glass with filtered water.
4. Let it sit in a bright spot.
5. Remember to change the water every 2 weeks.
6. Roots will start to form from the node. Keep the string in the water until roots are about 1.5 to 2 inches long.
7. Once roots have reached desired length, pot directly into cactus/succulent soil mix.
8. ALL DONE!

If you chose to soil propagate, follow these simple steps.

1. Follow step one of water propagation. Giving the plant a hair cut.
2. Instead of pulling the leaves away from the node, cut directly in between each node. You want a bunch of small sections from the original string you cut.
3. Stick the node into cactus/succulent mix.
4. Be sure to cover the node with enough soil.
5. Mist the plant every other day or as desired.
6. Place in a bright spot.
7. After a few weeks, you will start to see new strings pop out from the soil where the node was buried.
8. ALL DONE!

I’ve become a bit of a propagation fanatic. Can you blame me though? Who doesn’t want more plants? Plus, making new little baby String of Hearts can be a great gift idea for friends and family!

String of Hearts Plant Care

Now that you are an expert on String of Hearts, I have complete faith that you are capable of keeping this pretty little thing alive. Remember to follow my 3 simple rules.

• low humidity
• indirect light
• minimal water

These rules I have stuck by and I have no come across any more problems with my plant. My String of Hearts is getting out of control and will need another hair cut any day now. Compared to the last photo above which was taken 1.5 months ago, our strings are just touching down to my pillow! It seems that I must be doing something right.

If you have any questions or any other suggestions on plant care for String of Hearts, do not hesitate to reach out or comment below so other followers can get in on the action!

Happy Planting!