Some people believe the jade plant is a symbol of good luck, and it brings money to their home. That’s the reason they call it a lucky plant, money plant, and dollar plant. They keep jade plant just after the entrance door because they have faith in “Jade by the door, poor no more”. In China, many business places, particularly restaurants have a jade plant close by the door supposing it will bring more customers. Some people also consider the jade plant as the symbol of friendship, and they call it a friendship plant. The jade plant lends itself easily to the bonsai form and is popular as an indoor bonsai.

Plant Description

Jade plant is a large, much-branched, compact, hairless, rounded, evergreen floriferous bonsai like shrub that normally grows about 1-1.5 m tall but occasionally up to 5 m tall. The base is usually sparsely branched. Sometimes a single main trunk of up to 6 centimeters in diameter is formed. The succulent shoots are gray-green. Young bark is smooth and silvery, while in older plants the bark peels in horizontal brownish strips. Stems are erect, stout and gnarled, up to 20 cm. in diameter at the base, sub terete, succulent and greyish. Although becoming brown and appearing woody with age, stems never become true lignified tissue, remaining succulent and fleshy throughout the plant’s life. The plant grows among shrubs in open forests, on sandy-clayey grey soil on rocky slopes, hills, fields, often in sheltered ravines, together with a variety of aloes, euphorbias and other succulents. The plant prefers mildly acidic (pH 6-6.5), dry, well-drained soil. It tolerates various soil types, including loamy, sandy, acidic, neutral and slightly alkaline. It tolerates wind, salt and coastal conditions, but is humidity intolerant. Good drainage is very important as it is prone to root rot.

Leaves

Leaves are smooth, rounded, fleshy leaves that grow in opposing pairs along the branches in the petiole up to 4 mm long. Leaves are a rich jade green color, 3-9 cm long and 1.8-4 cm wide, obovate to elliptic, with an entire margin, often with a horny red edge. They have a rounded apex with a distinct pointed end. They are generally 4 opposite  pairs,  with one  pair  arranged  at  right angles  to  the  next,  and  they  are  clustered towards  the  ends  of  the  branches. Some varieties may develop a red tinge on the edges of leaves when exposed to high levels of sunlight. Leaves are green and shining when fresh, dark brown and covered with a peeling layer when dry. Old lower leaves are naturally deciduous.

Inflorescence

When it matures, it produces small white or pink, star-like shaped flowers in winter. The terminal inflorescence is a top round thyrsus with numerous dichasia. It has a length and a diameter of about 5 centimeters. The inflorescence stem has a length of 15 to 18 millimeters and a diameter of 2 millimeters. The flower stalks are 5 millimeters long.

Flowers

The sweet-scented, hermaphroditic flowers have radial symmetry and double perianths. The five sepals, each about 2 millimeters long, are fused to one another at the base. The pink or white flower crown is star-shaped and has a diameter of about 15 millimeters. Flower parts are generally in fives. Sepals are erect, 1-2 mm, wide-deltate and acute. It’s spreading, lanceolate to lance-oblong and acute petals are 7 millimeters long and 2.5 millimeters wide. The stamens have a length of 5 millimeters. The combination of shorter days, cold nights and lack of water for several weeks will produce flowering around the beginning of winter.

 Fruit

Fertile flowers are followed by fruits, which comprise of 3-5 separate follicles that are obliquely oblong-ovoid, up to 6 mm long, dehiscent and hold 30-50 tiny seeds

Varieties/Types of Jade Plants

Known for its thick branches, green color, smooth leaves, and the pink and white flowers that bloom atop those, the Jade Plant is found in many varieties around the world. Many of these varieties have been cultivated over the years, and many cultivars (cultivated varieties) have been awarded with accolades. Listed below are some of the popular types of jade plants

Crassula Arborescens

Commonly known as the Silver Dollar Jade, or the Blue Buddha Bush, it is known for its silvery-blue leaves and succulent shrub. It is a slow-growing plant with burgundy edges. The flowers that grow from its tips are long lasting and appear during the autumn-winter period. The plant’s height can be restricted through containerization, but its total height doesn’t rise above the 60-centimeter mark.

Crassula Arborescens Blue Bird Variegate

The Crassula Arborescens Blue Bird Variegate is commonly known as the Blue Bird money plant or Jade Plant. It’s a slow-growing shrub like most jade plants that are found in nature, but its leaf coloration sets it apart from other varieties. It has mixtures of aqua, cream, green, and red. Its maximum height covers around 50 centimeters, and its size can be reduced via containerization.

Crassula Arborescens Undulatifolia

The Undulatifolia variety of Crassula Arborescens was first observed in 1974 and was introduced into the market place soon after. It’s commonly known as the Ripple Jade Plant and is preferred for its decorative purposes, so much so that designers specifically prefer it over other types of shrubbery. It has a bonsai-like feel to it, and the waxy leaves make it stand out from other plants. It also has foliage all year round.

Crassula Argentina Gollum

The Crassula Agentea Gollum is commonly known as Lady Fingers because of its curiously protruding, finger-like glossy green leaves. They are cylindrical in shape and red at the tips. The tips bloom during the autumn-winter months with pinkish white flowers.

Crassula Argentina Gollum Variegate

The Variegate variety of the Crassula Argentina Gollum is a standout in combination paintings because of its foliage. It can stand out in an entire painting because of the curious combination of green, white, and pink that it offers. It is considered as an ideal addition to the seaside gardens and flourishes during the winter and autumn months. Its foliage changes color if subjected to low temperatures, dryness, and low nutrition.

Crassula Ovata

The Crassula Ovata is the most common type of Jade Plant and is known as the money tree, the friendship plant or the Lucky Jade. It was the original variety of the Jade Plant that was first discovered and is one of the most popular varieties in circulation today. It is very hardy and the fastest growing of all the Ovata cultivars. Pinkish white flowers appear on its tips like for every Jade Plant during winter, and its height can extend to over 2 meters in some cases. People consider it ideal for planting near coastal areas. It is also used as a divider or display in gardens when trimmed and shaped properly.

Crassula Ovata Botany Bay

The Botany Bay variety of the Crassula Ovata was recently introduced into the market in 2011. It is a compact and bushy plant which can be shaped and held in shape if confined to a pot. Its foliage experiences reduced stretching in low light conditions. The foliage also develops a red blush during dry conditions, usually prevalent during winter months. It can grow to a height of 1 meter over five years under ideal conditions.

Crassula Ovata Harbor Lights

This variety is instantly recognizable due to its characteristic red color. Its distinct color has made it a popular houseplant. It has distinctly smaller leaves than that of the Crassula Ovata and becomes extremely red during the winter months. Pinkish white flowers, of course, appear during the autumn and early winter months, giving it an overall radiant appearance. It is considered ideal for seaside residential decoration.

Crassula Ovata Hobbit

Commonly known as the Bonsai Jade Tree, this variation is named after the fictional race of people in the Lord of the Rings novels by J.R.R. Tolkien. This variety is known for its small height, no larger than 30 centimeters. The species emerged from the Paradisia Nursery in Victoria. It is known to exhibit similar features to its related species such as the red tips and the pinkish white flowers in early winter.

Crassula Ovata Hummel’s Sunset

This variety was appreciated by the Royal Horticultural Society in 1993 for its spectacular foliage color, and its thick bonsai styled trunk. It was awarded the prestigious Garden Merit award by the society that year. For this reason, it has become an increasingly popular houseplant.

Crassula Ovata Little Jade Tree

Known as the Little Jade Tree, its breed is as young and small as its name suggests. It was introduced into the marketplace in 2015. Found by chance by Jan Morgan from the Glen field Wholesale Nursery Picton site, this plant is small and compact and can grow to a maximum height of 40 centimeters. Its popularity as a wedding gift or a party favor is considerable, and it can be found in small dish gardens or the indoors of houses.

Crassula Ovata Minima

Known as the Baby Jade or the Miniature Jade, this is quite different from the Little Jade Tree variety of the Crassula Ovata species. Its growing tips tend to huddle together and branch out as well, creating a bushy, full appearance in small containers. Flowers appear colored pink and white during the winter months. The plant can grow to a height of 60 centimeters and it looks great when placed on house balconies as well as in their courtyards. It is a popular tabletop decoration and a great wedding gift or party favor.

Crassula Ovata Pink

The Pink variety of the Crassula Ovata is named so because of its bushy exterior and the exceptional number of flowers that blooms every year. The foliage develops a red blush during the year under very dry conditions. The early winter and late autumn months show small pink flowers appearing on its tips that fill the exterior of the plant. It can grow to a height of 1 meter over a period of five years.

Portulacaria Afra

This is called the Chinese Jade Plant or the Pork Bush. Its decorative and structural succulent features make it a very popular houseplant, albeit one that is kept outside. It can grow up to 2 meters in height and can be controlled with proper trimming and shaping. It can withstand long drought and heat waves but doesn’t flower during cultivations. It is not a flowering plant at all; hence it doesn’t exhibit the white and pink flowers during winter unlike its relative species.

Portulacaria Afra Aurea

The Afra Aurea is beautifully nicknamed the Yellow Rainbow Bush or the Yellow Elephant’s food. The Afra Aurea changes colors throughout its growth. Its shades are influenced by the time of year and the amount of water it gets as well as the fertilizer that is used to grow it. It thrives in both full sunlight and light shade, and rarely displays the whitish pink flowers that are characteristic of Jade Plants. It can grow to a height of 1 meter.

Portulacaria Afra Cascade

The Cascade is known as the Prostrate, the Low Elephant Bush, or the Trailing Elephant Bush. It is covered with rounded, fleshy leaves that grow from maroon/mahogany stems. It’s not grown as a flowering plant and can grow to 1 meter in size. It can be used for cascading over dry retaining walls.

Portulacaria Afra Large Leaf

The Large Leaf variety is known as the Green Penny Jade. Its rounded, fleshy leaves grow on dark red stems but don’t sprout any flowers. Although the plant is known to grow to about 2 meters in length, it can be controlled by trimming. It is a popular houseplant used to decorate balconies and patios. It can also be shaped into hedges and fences as well as screens.

Portulacaria Variegate

The Variegate is known as the rainbow bush. It’s a succulent shrub that has creamy leaves with a light green center stripe. It has a tinge of magenta on the edge of the leaf which persists all year round. It doesn’t flower in cultivation and can grow to a height of 1 meter.

Health benefits of Jade Plant

Listed below are some of the popular health benefits of using Jade plants

1. Treat nausea

Jade plant is often used as a treatment of nausea, and in China, several jade plants with pointed leaves, named as Stone Lotus, are also used to relieve diabetic symptoms.

2. Treat epilepsy, diarrhea, corns, and to purge the intestines 

Jade plant is also used as a cure for vomiting and is used in Africa for the diagnosis of epilepsy, maize, diarrhea and intestinal purification.

3. Treat warts

Leaf of the jade plant was used to treat warts which are actually small circumscribed tumors of the outer layer of the skin. They are caused by forms of the infectious human papillomavirus (HPV). However, leaves were sliced in half and attached the moist inside to the wart for a few hours, or overnight. After 3 applications, it can reduce the growth of the infection.

4. Anti-diabetic and Antioxidant properties

Jade plant leaves consists of phytochemicals such as saponin, phenol, phyto-sterol, steroid, terpenoid, flavonoid, carbohydrates, and proteins. These compounds help to prevent alpha-amylase activity that helps to decreases the absorption of glucose and thus reduce blood glucose level.

Jade plant tea and juice is beneficial to treat symptoms of diabetes. Also, search harmful radicals from the body and protect from various diseases.

5. Treat high blood pressure

Leaves of jade plant consist of good amount of Gallic acid which helps to reduce the tension of the blood vessel walls. Thus this plant shows a wonderful effect on the widening of blood vessels, which in turn increases blood flow and helps to, lowers blood pressure.

6. Antimicrobial properties

Jade plant leaves are rich in alkaloids like Berberine and Sanguinarine, and saponins. These bioactive compounds fight against numerous bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas, and Klebsilla sp. thus protect from various infections

Different benefits of Jade plant on Home Environment

Here are so many jade plant benefits which make your home indoor air neat and clean. These small and tiny hanging succulents give several benefits to your home environment as follows:

Improves Indoor Air Quality

In several previous researches, scientists have discovered that indoor air can be just as contaminated and dangerous as outdoor air. It may also intensify to “Sick Building Syndrome,” some of the signs involve asthma, dizziness, fatigue, nausea, and loss of focus. Natural ventilation is the only approach to avoid this; the addition of air-filtering houseplants such as snake plants, golden pothos, spider plants, dracaena, aloe vera, and jade plants often functions here.

Increases indoor Humidity

Relatively low moisture indoor air can impact your safety and appearance. Soft eyes, flaky hair, itchy neck, static energy, cold and fever; asthma is some of the indications. Infectious microbes and viruses may even live in dry soil for an extended period. Humidifiers are the primary tool to improve indoor moisture; even houseplants also have a contribution. Plants like Pothos, Peace Lily, Spider Plant, Jade Plant helps to increases humidity and Philodendron are better suited for this function.

Absorbs CO2 in Night

Jade plant as well as several other arid area species of plants, such as Mother-in-Law Tongue, adopts the unusual carbon fixation Metabolism. It allows them the power to consume CO2 at night. It’s one of a very few plants you can plant inside to increase the quality of the air during night times.

Used as Beautiful Indoor Small Hanging Garden

Jade plant adds a touch of beauty, looks beautiful with shiny, oblong or circular leaves, sparkling in a dark shade of black. It suits every sort of home interior due because of its flappy appearance, resembles a small tree. The sleek design recommends it a great for dining table and office seat. If that wasn’t enough, here you’ll also notice a pretty pink and white flowering during late winter and early spring.

Brings Luck for home

Jade plant is supposed to promote growth and prestige in Asian countries. It’s a sign of good luck and stability in Astrology since it’s an evergreen herb. It’s the ideal plant for one’s homes and offices. Even, a jade plant may be a perfect wedding gift and a lovely home decoration.

Low Maintenance and Perfect Growing

Jade plants have one such benefit that they don’t need regular fertilizing, pruning and other stuff that a normal plant needs. These plants are slow growers and it takes years to reach a specific height. Only requirement you should fulfill is to protect them from colder climates, excessive water and ideal temperature.  This plant has low maintenance requirements and they grow many days without water and still able to maintain themselves for days.

More Attractive Look

Indoor plants are best to known for providing clean air but also they enhance the look of your room or hall that you spend most of your time. Many people like to grow these plants as they fit in the background and we feel part of the nature with them. They perfectly combine with the interior of our house and we don’t even get bored with them, even our creativity increases while watching them grow and we constantly think about them and how to care for them so they keep on thriving.

Traditional uses and benefits of Jade plant

• Leaves are used medicinally: boiled in milk, they are a remedy for diarrhea; used to treat epilepsy and corns; and used as a purgative.
• Leaves and roots are used by local populations as a remedy against nausea, epilepsy and diarrhea.
• Extract from its leaves is used to treat wounds, stomach upset, warts, and diabetes.
• For skin warts, Jade plant’s juice is applied on it overnight for three days.
• Traditional Chinese medicine has a mention of the Jade plant as a diabetes remedy.
• Drinking tea made from Jade leaves helps to mellow out diabetes symptoms.
• Jade plant helps to open the energy flow in the body.
• It is used to treat wounds, boils, cuts and scratches.
• Juice of the jade is used to treat sores on the lips.
• Jade juice solution is used as a rinse in sore throats.
• Jade juice solution is used to cure inflammation in arthritis and itching and swelling of mosquito bites.
• Leaves help in healing of gastric and duodenal ulcer.
• It is also used to get rid of corns.
• Infusion of the leaves help to treat varicose veins.
• Jade juice and liquid Vaseline are used to treat hemorrhoids.
• In folk medicine, jade leaves are used to treat high blood pressure and can alleviate headache, dizziness, stomachache, and liver injury.
• The Kamba community used its juice to heal a burn, wounds on the skin.
• Other communities like the Maasai use it as a relief for stomach upsets.

Other Facts

• The leaves are a favorite food for tortoises.
• Jade plant is believed to attract prosperity and fortune in Asian countries.
• Jade plant can be a fantastic wedding favor and housewarming gift.
• Jade plant may reduce Carbon dioxide in the night, but it performs photosynthesis in the day through the Calvin cycle.

References:

https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=507748#null

http://www.hear.org/pier/species/crassula_ovata.htm

https://www.cabi.org/isc/datasheet/113574

https://gd.eppo.int/taxon/CSBOV

https://www.nparks.gov.sg/florafaunaweb/flora/2/1/2169

http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl1.1/record/kew-2741970

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crassula_ovata

http://www.flowersofindia.net/catalog/slides/Jade%20Plant.html

http://www.llifle.com/Encyclopedia/SUCCULENTS/Family/Crassulaceae/18609/Crassula_ovata

https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/FP153

https://plants.usda.gov/home/plantProfile?symbol=CROV3

http://germoplasma.iniaf.gob.bo/gringlobal/taxonomydetail.aspx?id=404524

https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?taxonid=279445

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