What is this possibly succulent plant and how do I look after it?

Question

I have just come into possession of this plant/tree and I'm hoping to find out three things:

• What it is
• How to look after it
• If I can train it

I don't know much about it except that it is over 15 years old (probably much more but I don't know much of its history) and it's always been in this same pot. There's a rather dense moss growth in the pot, too.

I'm in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia (if that helps with care guidelines).

With regards to training, I don't want to do anything too dramatic; mostly just stop it growing a way that will tip the pot over - just evening it up a bit.

I've attached two photos - one of the whole thing and one (rather poor one) of the leaves and branches in case that helps with identification. I'm told it's a succulent which makes sense because the leaves are quite turgid.

Some of the leaves are slightly yellowed with speckles on them - should I be worried about that?

I don't mean to ask too much; any information about it would be a huge help.

_{Click photo for full size}

Answer 1

Certainly looks like a Jade Plant (Crassula ovata)

I'm not the best at taking care of the things, despite having a certain fondness for them (the college greenhouse I'd visit to get out of the winter blahs had a specimen in a not terribly large pot (25l, perhaps) with two trunks about the size of a human thigh.)

Mine seem more prone to drooping (like your rightmost trunk) than to maintaining that nice upright tree-like growth. Perhaps I need to prune more. As for training, the wikipedia entry claims that they are a good/common first Bonsai project.

The yellowing may be from too much light - a shadier spot might suit it better.