Monocarpic is, in fact, a strategy of many plants to produce progeny. Most monocarpic succulents pup many new plants before they bloom. So by the time they are ready for the bloom, they’ve already created enough plants to replace them. Not only succulents are monocarpic, but many other species in different families.
Common Monocarpic Succulents
Agave and Sempervivum are commonly grown monocarpic plants. There are many more plants that follow this life cycle strategy. Occasionally, as in the case of the Joshua Tree, just a stem dies after flowering, but the remainder of the plant still thrives. Not every plant in every genus is monocarpic, as in the case of Agave. Paddle Plant and most of the Aeonium hybrids are also monocarpic.
You can tell these are monocarpic because the parent plant will begin to wither and die after it flowers. This may be fairly fast, as in Sempervivum, or very slow as with Agave, which can take months or even years to die.
The plant uses all its energy for one final bloom and fruiting and has nothing left to sustain itself.
General Care
Plants that fall in the monocarpic category can still live a long life. Once you see the flower appear, the amount of care you give the parent plant is up to you. Many growers prefer to harvest pups and continue the plant’s life cycle in that way. You may also wish to save seed if you are a collector or enthusiast.
You will want to continue the type of care that is recommended for your species, so the parent plant is healthy, unstressed and has enough energy to produce seed. After the parent is gone, you can simply detach it and leave any pups in the soil. Allow the parent on succulents to dry out and become brittle before harvesting. That means the pups took the last of its energy and that the old plant will be easy to detach. Pups may be dug up and dispersed elsewhere or left as they are.
Source: gardeningknowhow.com
