What causes succulent rot (turning to water) and how should it be solved?
Succulents have a chubby, cute appearance, which attracts many people to grow them, and during the care of succulents, many friends often find that the leaves or some part of their succulents become transparent and yellow, and when pinched with the hand, the surface feels like a bag of water inside. This is actually succulent rot (turning to water), so what causes succulent rot? How should it be prevented? Let us learn about it together.
1. Frequent watering during high temperatures
Succulents originally lived in harsh environments, whether deserts, the Gobi, or rock crevices, and in such environments succulents developed a self-protection function, and it is this skill that causes us to easily see rot when caring for them. We all know that plants themselves have respiration and transpiration, and when the environment is suitable, plants carry out normal transpiration and respiration through the stomata of stems and leaves, and succulents are the same. But if high-temperature weather is encountered, the transpiration triggered by high temperatures brings a large amount of water out of the plant, and when succulents encounter this situation they close the stomata of stems and leaves, thereby locking in water and preventing it from being lost, but if watering is frequent, the root system will continuously absorb water and burst the cell walls, and this is rot.
Solution: First, in the high-temperature season, control watering of succulents, and at the same time maintain good permeability of the root system, then immediately remove the rotting leaves and observe the subsequent situation.
2. Fungal infection
The second cause of succulent rot is infection by fungi. After fungal infection, in order to resist the damage brought by the fungi, the succulent will isolate the fungal-infected part, which means that this part infected by fungi no longer has respiration, photosynthesis, or transpiration, and the original cell walls will also decompose and rupture, causing the phenomenon of rot.
Solution: When succulents are infected by fungi, promptly remove the succulents from the soil, cut off all rotting parts completely, let the wounds on the intact parts dry, then repot them with new soil, and do not use the old soil again.
3. Rot from frostbite
The last situation is rot from frostbite, which generally occurs in winter under extremely severe cold. At this time, ice forming inside the succulent will directly puncture the cell walls, and after the weather warms up, the frostbitten part will droop and turn to water.
Solution: The most fundamental way to solve rot from frostbite is cold protection. If the leaves are frostbitten, remove the leaves promptly; if the stem is frostbitten, it needs to be beheaded, keeping the intact part, slowly moving it to a warm place to let the succulent recover, and after it gradually adapts, or re-root it by cuttings and repot it.
The above is an introduction to the causes of succulent rot and solutions, hoping it can help you. If you want to learn more related knowledge, please stay tuned to us.