Beginners Care Guide to Sansevieria Stuckyi (Elephant’s Tusk Plant)

Sansevieria Stuckyi is a unique-looking snake plant with long, slender, cylinder-shaped leaves. They are a popular indoor plant, often resembling something more like a weapon than an actual plant.

While they stray from the general snake plant shape and appearance, they retain many beneficial qualities. Stuckyi can endure periods of dryness and thrives on neglect, meaning they are the perfect houseplant for the busy individual.

While we are on the topic of individuals being short on time, we’ve included a quick summary of the care requirements for the Elephant Tusk Plant below.

Sansevieria Stuckyi Care Summary

Images of Sansevieria Stuckyi

Getting to Know the Sansevieria Stuckyi

To be a successful indoor plant owner, we believe it is essential to form a fundamental understanding of where your plants originate. It helps to develop an appreciation for the conditions they naturally thrive in, so you can replicate the environment at home.

Name

Scientific Name: Dracaena Stuckyi (recently reclassified from Sansevieria Stuckyi)

Common Names: Elephant’s Tusk, Acyntha Stuckyi,

Note: As you may have already noticed, we’ll interchangeably refer to this stunning plant as an Elephant Tusk snake plant or Sansevieria Stuckyi.

Origin

Native to Africa, the Sansevieria Stuckyi grows in dry arid conditions. They are commonly found in Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Kenya, and South Africa. They have been commercially propagated and can now be found worldwide as indoor and outdoor plants.

Appearance

You could be forgiven if you thought the Sansevieria Stuckyi was the Sansevieria Cylindrica. However, there are some distinct differences.

Like the Cylindrica, the mature Stuckyi comprises foliage that forms long cylinders. Unlike the Cylindrica, the Stuckyi leaves can grow considerably long, sometimes measuring 7 feet (over 2 meters).

Their colors range from a dusty grey/green to a vibrant bottle green with variegated patterns of light green lines running perpendicular across the leaves.

Sansevieria Stuckyi Flowers

Like other snake plants, the Sansevieria Stuckyi can produce flowers on rare occasions. Note, if you have the opportunity to experience a flowering event, take heaps of photos, as they do not flower annually.

However, for them to bloom, conditions need to be optimal.

The Sansevieria Stuckyi flowers look like little bushels of fireworks in suspended animation and develop on stalks that grow from the base of the snake plant. The flowers generally take on a cream to off-white color.

Sansevieria Stuckyi Detailed Care Instructions

This section will elaborate on the care instructions we detailed above. We’ll explain why and provide some helpful tips for treating your Sansevieria Stuckyi with the ultimate care.

Water Requirements

We mentioned earlier that the Elephant Tusk Plant is drought-tolerant. The key word here is tolerant.

Just because they can survive periods of dry and neglect doesn’t mean you can forget about them. They still require regular water top-ups. However, the frequency changes each season. For guidance on seasonal water frequency, check out our article HERE.

Always allow the soil to dry before adding more water to your Sansevieria Stuckyi.

We recommend allowing their soil to dry out between watering. And the best way to determine this is to use a finger soil moisture test or a soil moisture meter from your nursery or online at Amazon.

Lighting Requirements

Provide your Sansevieria Stuckyi with plenty of bright indirect light. Stuckyi can tolerate sunlight. However, midday and afternoon sun is too intense for indoor snake plants and will quickly dehydrate the leaves, causing leaf burn.

Outdoor Sansevieria Stuckyi planted in the ground are hardened to the weather elements and have higher tolerances for sunlight.

Read more HERE for tips on lighting conditions for snake plants.

Temperature Requirements

As succulents originate from African climates, your Sansevieria Stuckyi will favor warm weather.

The recommended temperature for Stuckyi is between 50-90° Fahrenheit (10-32° Celsius).

Keep your Elephant Tusk plants away from freezing temperatures. Water expands when frozen. This means the water reserves in the Stuckyi leaves will freeze, causing irreparable damage to the leaf cells.

If your area is susceptible to frost or freezing temperatures in winter, we recommend bringing your Stuckyi inside the house, where the temperatures will remain satisfactory.

Humidity Requirements

Keep your Stuckyi in between 30 and 50% relative humidity.

Humidity can be challenging to control. However, it is essential for regulating your snake plant’s internal processes, like transpiration.

When there is not enough moisture in the air (low humidity), it accelerates transpiration, which quickly dehydrates your plant and causes water stress. On the other hand, too much moisture will prevent transpiration, and your Sansevieria Stuckyi will suffocate.

We have written an in-depth article discussing how humidity affects snake plants.

Soil & Fertilizer Requirements

One thing we always do when we introduce a new snake plant to our collection is to repot them into fresh homemade soil.

Choosing the best soil for your Sansevieria Stuckyi can significantly impact your plant parent experience. The proper soil will reduce the frequency of your watering, facilitate the uptake of nutrients by your snake plant, and reduce its susceptibility to pests and disease.

To be effective, your snake plant soil must be:

• well-draining,
• a loamy consistency (light and airy), and
• contain some organic materials with water absorption properties.

We have devised a recipe for the perfect snake plant potting mix. You can also watch our video on making snake plant soil below.

Pest and Diseases

If there is one disease that you should familiarise yourself with for your Sansevieria Stuckyi, it is root rot.

Root rot is a fungal disease that can develop when your snake plant has been sitting in waterlogged soil from being overwatered. The process of eliminating root rot is straightforward. However, it is onerous. You can read our step-by-step guide for removing root rot in snake plants HERE.

Some leaf-borne fungal diseases can infect your Stuckyi, such as mildew and leaf spot. We explore these diseases and (more importantly) treatments HERE.

Regarding pests, snake plants are most susceptible to sap-sucking insects like mealybugs, spider mites, and thrips. These pests have the equipment to penetrate the tough outer layer of the foliage and access the nutrient-rich sap.

The best way to detect any signs of pests (or disease, for that matter) is to regularly inspect your Sansevieria Stuckyi and manually remove any pests you see. The key is not letting their population get out of hand, becoming an infestation.

You can read more about symptoms of pest infestation HERE.

Pot Size

We consider planter container selection for your Sansevieria Stuckyi more critical than other indoor houseplants.

Sansevieria Stuckyi, like other snake plants, requires a tight root system to support its large leaves.

When placed in a container too large for their root system, they will refocus their energy on developing the roots rather than growing new leaves. While they are still growing (under the soil), they will appear to be experiencing stunted growth.

Your snake plant pot should also have adequate drainage with plenty of drainage holes. As we pointed out earlier, constantly moist soil rots your Sansevieria Stuckyi’s root system.

Sansevieria Stuckyi Propagation Techniques

For Stuckyi, we like to use the water propagation technique.

This is because the main attraction of this unique plant is its uniquely shaped leaves and growth patterns. Propagating cuttings with water will ensure rapid growth. Plus, you can propagate multiple cuttings at once.

To propagate by plant cutting, follow these steps:

1. Identify and Cut Leaf – Choose a leaf that looks healthy and vibrant with no visible signs of pests or disease. Selecting the right leaf will give it the best opportunity for success. Cut the leaf towards the base with a sterilized pair of garden scissors (or a sharp knife). We like to use an upside-down V cut (or an arrowhead-shaped cut) for snake plants, as it will naturally prop the cutting up in your container, which will help to prevent rot from setting in. It also helps to prevent new roots from growing at unhelpful angles (usually with straight cuts).
2. Air Dry Your Cutting – Allow your cutting to dry for 2-4 days in a safe place so that it doesn’t accidentally get knocked to the ground. Air drying your cutting allows the wound to form a callous, which helps to prevent any rot or disease from developing.
3. Find a Container – find a tall and thin container to support your snake plant leaf cutting. We like to use glass containers like mason jars or small vases. The glass allows you to examine your cutting without disturbing it (such as lifting it out of the water to see if roots are growing).
4. Begin the Rooting Process – The final step is to piece everything together. Place your cutting in the container and fill it with distilled water so the bottom third of the cutting is submerged. It is essential to ensure the calloused wound is beneath the water line to encourage root growth.

We strongly recommend using filtered or distilled water for the propagation process. Where you live, tap water may have chemicals that inhibit the propagation process.

Sansevieria Stuckyi – Common Questions

What is the difference between Sansevieria Stuckyi and Cylindrica?

Apart from their names, the primary difference between the Styuckyi and the Cylindrica is their height. As we have already established, Sansevieria Stuckyi can grow to an impressive 7-8 feet in height. While the Sansevieria Cylindrica only grows to 3-4 feet and is considered a medium-sized snake plant.