The jade plant – also called Crassula ovata – are beautiful houseplants with green fleshy oval-like foliage that offer a host of beneficial properties and symbolic value. They’re generally super-easy to care for as long as you provide your plant with the appropriate environmental conditions to thrive. This article will detail the ins and outs of a Jade plant’s temperature and humidity tolerances indoors.
- Jade Plant Temperature & Humidity Tolerances – The Essentials
- Typical Temperature & Humidity Ranges Jade Plants Receive in Their Native Habitats
- Signs Your Jade Plant is Exposed to the Wrong Temperatures & Humidity
- Ideal Temperature & Humidity Considerations for Jade Plants
- How to Boost Humidity in Your Home
- Caring for Jade Plants in Spring & Summer
- Caring for Jade Plants Over Winter
- Jade Plant Temperature & Humidity Tolerances FAQs:
- Wrapping Up
Jade Plant Temperature & Humidity Tolerances – The Essentials
Jade plants love warm, dry conditions, making them excellent indoor plants. They prefer temperatures ranging between 55ºF and 75ºF (between 12 and 23ºC). These succulents don’t mind the winter cold as long as they stay above 50ºF (10ºC). Jade plants thrive when humidity is between 30% and 50%.
Typical Temperature & Humidity Ranges Jade Plants Receive in Their Native Habitats
Most Jade plant varieties are indigenous to the rocky slopes and dry regions of South Africa and Mozambique. They typically grow on rocky hillsides where conditions are hot and dry. In their native range, these succulents frequently experience hot conditions as high as 104ºF (40ºC).
Crassula ovata can happily endure frequent droughts, as their native climate only receives about 2.5 to 5.5 cm of rain every year. When the rain does come, their fleshy oval-shaped foliage stores enough water to see them through the dry season.
Thankfully, jade plants are just as happy in our homes as they are on arid, rocky slopes. Like us, these slow-growing plants like warm surroundings and a low to medium amount of humidity. Basically, if you’re comfortable in your home, your jade plant will be too.
However, humidity may be tricky to maintain correctly in wetter regions. Use a hygrometer to check if the conditions in your home meet the needs of a jade plant.
Signs Your Jade Plant is Exposed to the Wrong Temperatures & Humidity
Although jade plants aren’t super fussy about humidity or temperature, some issues can still occur. Some conditions can actually get too dry for these plants. Colder temperatures can also cause problems.
Keep an eye out for the following symptoms:
Curling foliage
If a jade plant has curling foliage, it can indicate that the temperature is too low for the plant. This is more of a problem in the winter. Temperatures that drop below 50ºF (10ºC) are beyond the comfort zone of jade plants.
Use a thermometer to make sure that your plant stays warm enough. If necessary, relocate the jade plant to a warmer area.
Wrinkly foliage or leaves dropping off
When a jade plant starts showing wrinkled foliage, it’s typically a symptom of underwatering. In extreme cases, foliage can drop off the jade plant and you may notice your jade plant’s leaves yellowing or turning brown. Keep your jade plant soil mix slightly moist to perk the plant back up.
Limp stems
If you don’t cut back on watering a jade plant in the winter, it can cause limp stems and rotting roots. This can quickly become a severe problem. Remove the plant and slice off the mushy rotted roots, then let the plant dry out before watering again.
Mealybugs or spider mites
Finding mealybugs or spider mites on your jade plant can indicate conditions that are too dry. These insects thrive when humidity levels drop lower than 20%. A hygrometer helps maintain the proper humidity range, helping to protect the plant against pests.
Ideal Temperature & Humidity Considerations for Jade Plants
Cultivating the correct humidity and temperature for Crassula ovata is pretty straightforward. These succulents love temperatures that range from 55ºF to 75ºF (12 to 23ºC). Thankfully, these also tend to be pretty standard household temperatures.
Jade plants can hold up quite well during the winter. However, try not to let the temperature drop below 50ºF (10ºC). If it gets too cold, it’s a good idea to relocate your jade plant into a warmer room.
Jade plants are experts at growing in dry conditions, so they don’t need high humidity levels. Somewhere between 30% and 50% is perfect. This tends to be the ideal humidity level for our homes anyway, making it pretty easy to achieve.
Use hygrometers and thermometers to find the sweet spot for your jade plant. Before bringing home a jade plant, use these tools to monitor different areas of your home. This helps you decide where your jade plant will be happiest.
East or south-facing windows are the ideal locations for jade plants. This will give them four to six hours of sunlight, but it also helps provide enough warmth.
One thing that jade plants don’t like is drafts. Don’t expose your Crassula ovata to cold drafts from windows or air vents. Doorways and other high-traffic areas of your home can also create unwanted drafts.
At the other end of the scale, jade plants won’t appreciate hot, dry drafts from radiators or hot air vents either. Leaving one of these succulents too close to a radiator makes the air too dry and may drop humidity levels below 30%.
How to Boost Humidity in Your Home
Although jade plants don’t usually need extra humidity, they can sometimes require a helping hand. Jade plants need between 30% and 50% humidity to live their best life. This may be difficult during sweltering, dry summers, but a humidity tray is a perfect solution.
Take a shallow tray and fill it with some pebbles before adding add some filtered water or rainwater. Make sure that the liquid doesn’t submerge the pebbles. You want the water level to be just below the stones. Then place the jade plant’s pot on top of the tray so it can sip water through the drainage holes.
It’s also possible to boost humidity by positioning your plants together in groups. This allows them to share the humidity created by evaporating water. As this humidity collects in the air, every plant in the group benefits.
Caring for Jade Plants in Spring & Summer
Crassula ovata need about four to six hours of bright, indirect light each day. This makes an east-facing window the perfect summer sunbathing spot for a jade plant. However, leaving a jade plant directly exposed to the summer sun in the afternoon can be too much for it. During extremely hot summers, relocate the jade plant out of direct sunlight.
Summers that are hotter than expected also typically create extremely dry conditions. Jade plants might be used to handle droughts, but even they have limits. If the summer heat becomes too dry, use a humidity tray to provide a bit of relief.
Spring and summer are also the best times to consider repotting, pruning, or propagating your jade plants.
They are considered mildly toxic to pets though so it’s best to keep them out of reach of any eager cats or dogs in your home.
Caring for Jade Plants Over Winter
Keeping an eye on the temperature of your jade plant is even more important in the winter. These succulents can cope with colder temperatures, but anything below 50ºF (10ºC) is too cold. Cold drafts from open windows or vents are another thing to watch out for.
A simple thermometer helps maintain the right jade plant temperature during the winter. You might have to move the plant to a warmer location. However, try and avoid places that are too close to heat sources like radiators.
It can also be tricky to get the humidity right in the winter. Moving the plant to a warm place next to a radiator actually makes the air too dry. A hygrometer is your friend here, helping you find the best place to put your jade plant in the winter.
You’ll also want to hold back from fertilizing your jade plant during the winter months.
Jade Plant Temperature & Humidity Tolerances FAQs:
What temperature is too cold for Jade plants?
Jade plants stand up quite well to the winter chill. But when temperatures drop lower than 50ºF (10ºC), it’s too cold. A thermometer can help monitor the situation. If necessary, you should transfer the plant to a warmer perch.
What temperature is too hot for Jade plants?
Most houseplant owners will find it pretty challenging to find a temperature too high for a jade plant. These succulents are used to coping with temperatures as high as 104ºF (40ºC) in their native climate. Anything above that will be a challenge for them.
Are Jade plants heat-sensitive?
As natives of the dry, rocky regions of South Africa, jade plants are used to dealing with droughts and hot conditions. This means that they aren’t susceptible to heat. However, they start to complain when temperatures drop below 50ºF.
Can I leave my Jade plant outside?
Jade plants can cope pretty well outdoors in USDA Zones 10 and 11. These succulents can tolerate outdoor temperatures of around 30ºF in these regions if there’s no frost. But in colder, frost-prone areas, jade plants should be sheltered indoors.
How do I know if my Jade plant is healthy?
A healthy jade plant has vibrant green foliage and stout woody stems that don’t droop too much. If you spot red marks around the boundaries of the foliage, don’t worry. That means that the plant is getting plenty of light.
Wrapping Up
There’s a reason why jade plants are ideal for novice plant parents. These South African succulents can cope with most temperatures and aren’t super fussy about humidity.
For most of the year, Jade plants can happily tolerate temperatures between 55 and 75ºF (12 to 23ºC). During the colder months, jade plants will still cope quite happily as long as the temperature stays above 50ºF (10ºC). Jade plants thrive when humidity is kept between 30 and 50%.
If you’re looking for your nex jade plant, see our in-depth guide to the best plant shops delivering jade plants nationwide.
Andrew is the Editorial Director at Petal Republic. He holds a BSc degree in Plant Sciences and has trained professionally at leading floristry schools in London and Paris. In amongst overseeing a global editorial team, Andrew's a passionate content creator around all things flowers, floral design, gardening, and houseplants.
