Kalanchoe (Kalanchoe blossfeldiana): care and reblooming

To care for a Kalanchoe, place it in the brightest spot in your home, plant it in well-draining succulent potting mix, and water thoroughly only once the growing medium has dried out. The flowering Kalanchoe sold in pots is almost always Kalanchoe blossfeldiana, a succulent with fleshy leaves that store water: it forgives neglect, but not overwatering.

This guide draws on Kew, the RHS (Royal Horticultural Society), NC State Extension (North Carolina State University), Clemson University, UF IFAS (University of Florida) and the Missouri Botanical Garden. You’ll find a step-by-step, numbers-based method for getting it to bloom again, the answer to “indoors or outdoors?”, a guide to diagnosing limp leaves, propagation advice and details on other popular species, including the mother of thousands.

🌿 Why choose a Kalanchoe?

Kalanchoe brings color where most succulents offer only green. Its small, four-petaled flowers grow in dense clusters and come in red, pink, yellow, orange, white or salmon, with single or double blooms, according to UF IFAS Extension. The Missouri Botanical Garden highlights its exceptionally long flowering period for a houseplant, lasting several weeks.

Another advantage: it is a succulent that needs little water and tolerates the dry air of heated apartments.

🔎 Kalanchoe at a glance

According to Kew (Plants of the World Online, Kalanchoe blossfeldiana), the accepted name is Kalanchoe blossfeldiana Poelln., published in 1934, in the Crassulaceae family. It is a succulent subshrub native to northeastern Madagascar, where it grows in tropical areas with a dry season.

The genus Kalanchoe Adans. includes 178 accepted species native to the tropical and subtropical regions of the Old World; POWO lists Bryophyllum as a synonym. UF IFAS notes that the species is named after Robert Blossfeld, a German hybridizer who introduced it in 1932.

The RHS profile gives its height and spread as 10 to 50 cm, reached in 2 to 5 years.

📋 Quick care facts

Essential growing guidelines, at a glance.

📍 Where to place a Kalanchoe: indoors or outdoors?

In our climate, Kalanchoe is primarily an indoor plant. Place it near a bright window: NC State Extension recommends 6 to 8 hours of bright light a day, and Clemson University notes that it grows best in full sun but tolerates bright indoor light well.

In a dark corner, it becomes leggy and produces few flowers. The RHS recommends a south-, west- or east-facing exposure.

📍 Ideal spot: An east-, west- or south-facing windowsill, with a sheer curtain if the summer sun is strong through the glass; a cool room at night encourages flowering.

🕰️ Summer outdoors: From late spring to early fall, it can spend the summer on a sheltered balcony; bring it indoors before nighttime temperatures drop toward 10 °C, as the RHS rates it H1b (minimum 10 to 15 °C).

🌳 Planting outdoors? Not in the ground in mainland France: NC State lists it as hardy in USDA zones 10 to 12, which are frost-free climates; UF IFAS describes it as cold-sensitive.

🪴 How to repot a Kalanchoe, step by step

The RHS recommends a loam-based, peat-free potting mix enriched with grit; NC State recommends a well-draining cactus and succulent mix. Repot in spring, once flowering has finished, and only when the roots fill the pot.

A terracotta pot with drainage holes helps the growing medium dry out between waterings.

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✂️ Everyday Kalanchoe care

Kalanchoe care comes down to measured watering. Clemson University advises letting the growing medium dry slightly between waterings and warns that excess water damages the plant; NC State recommends watering deeply once the soil is dry.

💧 Watering: Check with your finger: if the growing medium is dry a few centimeters down, water thoroughly and empty the saucer after a few minutes.

🌱 Fertilizer: Apply a balanced liquid fertilizer 2 to 3 times during the growing season according to the RHS, or once a month according to Clemson; none during dormancy.

🔹 Spent flowers: Cut spent flower stems back to the base to keep the plant neat and prevent dry flowers from rotting.

✂️ Pruning: After flowering, cut back leggy stems: the plant will branch out, and the cuttings can be used for propagation.

👀 Check for pests: Inspect the leaf axils: mealybugs, aphids and spider mites are pests listed by NC State.

🍂 How do you get a Kalanchoe to bloom again?

Yes, a Kalanchoe can bloom again if you give it long nights: like poinsettia, it is a short-day plant, according to UF IFAS.

NC State Extension recommends 14 hours of complete darkness per day for at least 6 weeks in fall and winter; the Missouri Botanical Garden gives the same guideline and says flowering occurs within the following 4 months.

A growing guide from NC State for the 'Tetra Vulcan' cultivar specifies that at least about 13 hours of darkness are needed to initiate flowering, and that there is little difference after more than 42 short days.

In practice, after flowering, let the plant rest, then cover it with a cardboard box or put it in a cupboard each evening—for example, from 5 p.m. to 7 a.m., giving it 14 hours of darkness. Clemson adds that natural day lengths from October 1 to March 1 are enough if the room is never lit in the evening, and that nighttime temperatures above about 27 °C (80 °F) delay bud formation.

📅 Seasonal care calendar

🌱 How to propagate a Kalanchoe from a cutting

Stem cuttings are the easiest method. Clemson University recommends 5 to 7.5 cm (2 to 3 inch) tip cuttings with two pairs of leaves, without rooting hormone; they develop enough roots to be repotted in 14 to 21 days, a timeline confirmed by UF IFAS.

Let the cut end dry for a few hours, then insert the cutting into a light, well-draining mix, keep it barely moist and place it in bright light. NC State also mentions leaf cuttings, and the RHS recommends sowing seeds or dividing offsets in spring. Compare the methods in our guide to propagating in water or potting mix.

🐛 Common problems: causes and solutions

A Kalanchoe with limp leaves is almost always suffering from overwatering, and less often from underwatering. Here are the most common symptoms, their causes as documented by NC State Extension, Clemson University and the Missouri Botanical Garden, and what to do about them.

🌸 Kalanchoe varieties

The genus includes 178 species according to Kew; here are the ones most sought after in France, described by NC State Extension and the RHS.

🎨 What plants pair well with a Kalanchoe?

Kalanchoe shares the needs of other succulents: plenty of light and infrequent watering.

Our cactus and succulent care guide helps you create a bright, dry corner, where it can sit alongside the jade plant, a member of the same family, the Aloe vera, which shares its light and infrequent watering needs, or the Euphorbia trigona for a touch of height.

For a flower-filled windowsill in winter, the poinsettia also responds to short days. Browse our cacti and succulents and our colorful plants.

⚠️ Is Kalanchoe toxic to cats and dogs?

Yes. The ASPCA (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) lists the Kalanchoe genus as toxic to dogs and cats; its profile covers all species, including mother of thousands.

The toxic compounds are bufadienolides, and the symptoms described include vomiting, diarrhea and, rarely, an abnormal heart rhythm. A veterinary article published by the ASPCA explains that bufadienolides are cardiac glycosides related to digitalis, and that the flowers contain much higher concentrations than the stems, leaves or roots.

NC State classifies its toxicity as moderate, notes that ingestion can cause nausea, vomiting and diarrhea in humans, and warns that the sap of K. daigremontiana can cause contact dermatitis. Keep the plant out of reach and contact your veterinarian if it is ingested.

Take the same precautions with Aloe vera, another windowsill succulent that the ASPCA lists as toxic to dogs and cats. If you live with a cat, choose instead from our list of plants that are non-toxic to cats, checked species by species.

✅ Our expert tips for success

Growing a Kalanchoe successfully comes down to three things: a bright window, well-draining soil and watering only when the soil is dry. At the first sign of trouble, feel the leaves and the base of the stems: soft means too much water; wrinkled means thirsty. To get it to flower again, give it six weeks of 14-hour nights in autumn, in a cool room with no lights switched on.