Silver Dollar Succulent Care (Xerosicyos Danguyi)

Today I’m talking all about the cool and gorgeous xerosicyos danguyi plant, aka the silver dollar plant, silver dollar succulent, penny plant, coin plant, and more. This plant has a lot of names, and a lot of those names are also common names of other plants.

I have had my plant for many years after originally buying a cutting on Etsy (affiliate link), and it has grown wonderfully over the years. I’ve chosen to keep it in its same small pot on a windowsill, so I’ve also pruned it many ties and given away the cuttings.

Xerosicyos danguyi background

The silver dollar succulent vine is part of the Cucurbitaceae family and hails from Madagascar. This plant is actually from the same family as cucumber and squash! It is fast growing, especially outdoors in an ideal environment.

It’s an evergreen plant with thin stems and thick, round leaves that grow 1 to 2 inches wide. The stems also have tendrils along them to help the plant climb and grab onto surfaces like trellises, branches, and poles. The tendrils hook to pretty much anything they can and remind me of sugar snap peas and cucumbers.

Light

The silver dollar succulent does well in everything from partial sun to full sun. If you have it indoors, put it in your sunniest spot. I have my plant in a south-facing window that gets bright light from last morning into the evening.

If you choose to grow your plant outside (in the spring and summer—or if you live in an area that’s warm year round), the plant will thrive in full sun. However, if you are moving your plant from a spot indoors to an area outdoors, make sure to acclimate your plant slowly to avoid scorching on the foliage.

I recommend putting the plant in an area that gets direct morning sun for a week or so. Then moving the plant to somewhere that gets full sun all day. The morning sun is weaker and will help build up your plant’s tolerance to the more harsh afternoon sun.

Water

Like most succulents, the silver dollar vine is extremely drought tolerant. I recommend watering yours only after the soil has dried out. For me, that means about once a week indoors during the spring, summer, and early fall. However, if I had it outdoors, I’d probably give it water every day or so that it didn’t rain since it would be in a container.

If you water succulents too frequently, it can lead to root rot. Signs of root rot include mushy stems and leaves, as well as yellowing leaves dropping off the plant. It will kill the plant.

If you aren’t watering enough, you’ll likely notice that the plants normally plump leaves will become thin and wrinkly. If you notice this, water the plant immediately, soaking the soil and letting all of the excess water drain from the pot. Your plant should rebound!

Soil

In addition to a proper watering schedule, you can help prevent overwatering by planting your silver dollar succulent using any well-draining succulent soil. You can buy a bag of succulent or cactus soil at most plant nurseries—or check out my article about how to make your own succulent soil at home.

I also recommend planting your baby in a pot with drainage holes. Without drainage holes, there is nowhere for excess water to go. The soil will become waterlogged, drowning the plant and leading to root rot.

Temperature & humidity

This plant will survive down to just under freezing. However, like a lot of other succulents, it is happiest in warmer temperatures. In October, I bring my succulents indoors for the winter and don’t bring them back outside until just after any danger of frost.

Silver dollar succulents also do very well in lower humidity levels, making them a great choice for our often dryer homes. They will do fine outdoors for the summer if you are somewhere humid, though.

Pruning

I have pruned my plant many times over the years since I prefer to keep it in a small pot on a windowsill. You can cut anywhere on the plant to contain its size. Keep in mind that if you cut off a branch, it will callus over and won’t regrow.

Instead, it will shoot a new stem off just below the cut point as illustrated in the pic below. Because of this, pruning is a great way to create fullness on a plant.

Propagation

I have pruned and rooted many cuttings from my silver dollar vine. Propagating these plants is a pretty simple process and is a lot like propagating some other succulents. Simply cut off a piece of newer growth that is branching off of the main stem. The first photo below is a good example of where I might take a cutting on my plant.

Make sure the cutting has a few sets of leaves. Remove the bottom-most set of leaves to expose to prepare the plant for soil. Then let the cutting dry out for a few days on a windowsill. This will help the cutting control water intake as it is establishing new roots.

Use fresh cactus or succulent soil to plant the cutting in a small pot. Keep the cutting relatively moist—a bit more so than you would an established plant—for a few weeks. Once you can gently tug the cutting and get resistance, begin watering the plant as normal.

The second photo below is an example of several smaller cuttings I took from my plant on spring. I planted then all together and set them on my potting bench outdoors, letting mother nature water them and giving them a drink if we were in a dry spell. They rooted wonderfully!

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