The benefit of space

It is often natural experiments that highlight points better than anything we could plan.  Things that happen not deliberately, but by chance.  In my garden these tests of hardiness or growth rates, usually start with plans to sell or give plants away.  This was the case here.

Last spring I had to decide what to do with all the offsets from the echeveria "Adonis Blue".  There were a lot. The plan was to plant one large bowl, which would be kept. Then have a second small bowl for the rest, these would be given to friends as I saw them. Moving house got in the way and instead both pots were placed next to each other and left to get on with it.  Given they were placed side by side, and treated identically the growth should have been similar. Here are the pots today.

You wouldn't know they were the same plant, let alone that a year ago they were the same size.  This confirms what I have found before, many succulents do better with more root space.  It could be for many reasons: better control of water, more roots, less cold. Whatever the reason, I'm in the camp that it is fine to keep succulents in small pots if you want less growth, other wise, give them big pots or put them in the ground.  Of course no rule is perfect, there are those that do better when pot bound.