In the past week, 3 of my succulents died because of this. As far as I noticed, it's acting very fast because in a day or two since I see something is wrong, the plant dies. I try to be very careful when I'm watering it (only when it's necessary). The outside pot is just for decoration, the inside pot has drainage holes. They are facing a west sided window and from what I've read the light is good. I know that this succulent will die too, I just want to know what is causing it and how to avoid it in the future.
by Afotistos
21 Comments
Looks overwatered
I agree definitely over watered to the point it’s rotting from the stem
Overwatered. Also they hate water on their leaves. Try bottom watering in the future.
It’s overwatered and, judging by the stem being rotten all the way to the top, is beyond salvation.
My guess would also be poor soil (likely not
airy enough) and light – even a south facing window will be hardly enough, succulents are not really inside plants. Not saying it’s not possible, just need a couple of extra steps to make them happy. But light note is just for the future/next succulent, this one is definitely perished from overwatering.
You only want to water these when the leaves are feeling soft. As long as they still feel firm and as if they’d snap when you bend them, don’t water. Doesn’t matter how long the soil has been dry inbetween. *When* you water, soak it for 15 mins, then let drain and put back in the sunniest spot you have.
If you aren’t sure if they need water yet, wait until you’re absolutely certain. This is true for the vast majority of house plants
You are watering too often and/or the soil stays wet too long after watering
How often are you watering them?
I don’t think it’s just over watering I think it’s also watering over the plant itself, if you’re keeping that plant indoors I don’t think it’s a good idea to be watering the plant itself, should only be watering the base
Everyone is saying full sun, but mine are happiest when getting morning sun afternoon shade, or filtered sun
Over watering
Are you using cactus soil? Succulents can be weird about watering when they don’t get full sun.
You. You and the water are killing it. It’s ok though, dust yourself off and try again!
Wo’a
Do you take the the pot it’s actually in out of the decorative pot when you water? The drainage holes mean nothing if its still sitting in water
I only water my succulents when the leaves start to wrinkle or have some give when I pinch them in addition to making sure the soil is bone dry. Then I drown them with water from the faucet in the sink and let them drip for 10 minutes or so before putting them back in their sunny spots. I am a chronic overwaterer so succulents were hard for me at first. After killing many, I think I got the hang of it.
Definitely overwatered. For reference, I go weeks, sometimes a month, without watering mine.
Try to propagate the leaves in the a mix of soil w a little sand/ succulent soil. Good luck👍🌹
The inside pot has holes, but it’s still sitting in water due to the outside pot.
So so much water 😟
Oof, we’ve all been there. I didn’t see this in the comments, so I’ll add here, definitely opt for a Cactus soil mix, but be sure to add perlite to the mix. Super cheap, doesn’t need to be fancy. I mix them in a 1:1 ratio and that works well for me, even with terracotta pots.
If you’re wanting to salvage what you have left, try popping off some of the top leaves that still look okay. You can put them on top of a little bit of soil in a tray or pie tin or seed starter pots and spray with water every couple days. You can even stick them in the side of another plant if you still have some that are doing okay. Some, if not all, should root (if they’re still healthy) and grow little pups that you can plant in a small pot.
I learned over time that succulents just work for me because I am able to neglect them while I’m going through life’s highs and lows. I didn’t water mine during burnout for about 6 months and I think I only lost 4 out of 26 plants. I am still watering and keeping those ones under grow lights because tbh, I feel like they’re still gonna surprise me and come back, but I’ve already taken cuttings from them before they were toast, so I’m not really at a loss. I just hit my 1-month mark since watering again for the first time and some of the smaller ones look ready for water, but the bigger ones still seem happy as is. I’ve still got my tropical/indoor plants that need more frequently watering, and those look great, but succulents are great at managing in those dryer conditions since they store water in their leaves. When I give them plenty of time to dry out and use up the water they’ve stored, they get a REALLY good soak in my shower. I make sure to water until I no longer see air bubbles coming to the surface, and I make sure they’re draining COMPLETELY before I put them back in their home. I supplement most of them with grow lights because I have limited light in this newer house; not a lot of window sill space with adequate light.
So, while most people point to the soil and watering frequency as being the issues, those aren’t the only factors here. Making sure they get enough light is also really important. Light meters can be really helpful, but mainly just monitor that spot you keep them in to make sure that, if they had eyes, they could see the sky for the whole day. It’s even better if they get direct sun in the morning or evening. And then, monitor conditions in your home as well. Is it pretty warm and dry? Or is it humid where you live? Are the seals in your windows keeping all the cold air out at night (this is a concern for me in the winter)? And then, what kind of pot is it in? Terracotta is great, but not a requirement. Plastic is just fine, but maybe plastic inside of ceramic is helping retain more moisture in that type of soil.
All this to say, these are all things you’ll just learn to notice over time as you pay attention to how your plant does. Try the different soil for now, and see if that has enough of an impact before changing things in other ways. And it’s not necessarily that they were in the wrong/bad soil, it just sounds like they were still in soil from the nursery, which was probably outdoors, so that kind of soil is good for those conditions. If they were in specific cactus soil with extra perlite outdoors (especially in a hot summer climate), they probably wouldn’t be able to take in the amount of water and nutrients they need before the soil dried out.
Sorry for the novel, having a day and this was a good escape for a bit. ☺️
You. It’s you…
So the first succulent I got I overwatered, so I put it in a window and forgot about it for a month. Then I suddenly remembered it existed and looked at it and it was thriving!