How many ways have you seen succulents die?
Summer is here, and succulents don't want to live anymore... I believe many friends have this trouble: no matter how carefully you care for them, every summer a whole bunch of succulents ends up dead. So what are the various ways succulents die? What problems should you watch out for? I've put together several common ways succulents die, and I hope everyone pays attention:
Sunburned to death
Summer UV is intense, and succulents sunburn easily. Especially at 1-2 pm each day, when the sunlight is strongest, succulents can be scorched by the sun quickly and are hard to recover
Solution: shade
For succulents grown outdoors or on a south-facing balcony or windowsill, moving them in and out whenever the sun is strong is not a long-term solution. Best to shade them - a small piece of shade cloth does the job
Smothered to death
In summer, a succulent's leaves respire less, so it mainly relies on its roots to breathe. If the soil you use isn't breathable enough, you can very well smother it!
Solution: change the soil
You can still change the soil in summer, just be careful not to injure the roots. Coco coir soil and granular soil are both fairly breathable, and you can also mix in some turquoise, maifan stone, volcanic rock and so on, which retain moisture while staying breathable
Dying young
Summer is already a hard time for succulents to establish, especially those that are hard to keep alive. The Echeveria elegans group is especially severe - they simply won't root, leading to an early death. Truly, they die before they can even set out.
Steamed to death
The summer heat waves are like a steamer for succulents - one wrong move and they're steamed cooked. Not only that, improper watering can also steam a succulent to death
Solution: put them in a ventilated environment, and pay attention to watering times
Balconies, windowsills, corridors and other ventilated spots are best for growing succulents. In summer everywhere is hot, but without ventilation, water can neither evaporate nor be absorbed, and they get steamed cooked in no time
Dormant succulents should be watered less in summer, not not at all. Watering should also be done in the early morning (before 9 am) or evening (after 7 pm) when temperatures are lower. At other times the pot temperature is high, and the water you pour in turns hot
Dying of thirst
Most people believe succulents are very drought-tolerant, so they don't dare water them. Especially in summer, they get anxious and cling to the iron rule of rather letting them dry out than watering.
Succulents are drought-tolerant, but that doesn't mean they don't need water. All plants need water for growth and development. Drought tolerance just means they endure a little better. Water when it's time to water.
[Solution] Water as soon as the soil surface turns pale; don't wait until the entire potting mix is bone dry. Of course, some succulents are winter-growing varieties that go dormant in summer, so in summer you can water very, very little.
Starved to death
Like most green-leafed plants, succulents carry out photosynthesis by absorbing carbon dioxide from the air. In summer, with high temperatures, the succulent slows down more and more, gets "hungrier" and "hungrier", and finally weakens
Solution: put them in a ventilated spot, or ventilate artificially
A ventilated environment keeps succulents vigorous. If you really can't find a ventilated spot, a small fan pointed at the succulent works too, but be careful not to place it too close
Sprayed to death
You take a spray bottle, sprinkle a little water to cool the succulent down, and the result is a ruined appearance... Direct sunlight plus water droplets acts like a convex lens - everyone should understand that principle. If you want to spray, spray a little around it, but don't spray it onto the succulent's body.
Bitten to death
Don't think there are no bugs in summer. On the contrary, summer not only brings succulents' natural enemy, the mealybug, but also other small black flies buzzing around the succulents~
Solution: remove by hand, kill with alcohol
Since succulents are fairly small, you can dip a cotton swab in alcohol (60% concentration) and wipe the leaves with bugs on them. This not only kills the bugs but also disinfects
Blackened to death
Summer really is the peak season for succulent black rot - you never know when one will suddenly rot black and die. Black rot is mostly root rot, and I've talked about how to deal with succulent root rot many times
Solution: ventilate and control water; avoid contagion
To prevent root rot and black rot, you must give succulents a ventilated environment and control watering so it isn't too much - otherwise, with both stuffy heat and dampness, rot is inevitable! Also, as soon as you spot leaves with black spots, remove them at once to avoid contagion
Dying from etiolation
A girl kept a Firecracker (Crassula capitella) in an office facing north, and then it grew leggy, longer and longer, thinner and thinner, more tender and tender, until the tender thin stem broke clean into three pieces... Succulents need light, light, light!
Dying of heat
When it comes to summer, even people feel hot, let alone a tiny succulent. Unlike the natural environment, home-grown succulents are planted in small pots, which heat up quickly, making them even more likely to die of heat!
Solution: the double-pot method
Besides moving succulents to a cool, ventilated spot, you can also slip the succulent pot inside a larger flowerpot (preferably a ceramic one). This isn't "adding clothes", but enhancing insulation to keep the succulent from being damaged by heat
Fussed to death
People who grow succulents get nervous as soon as summer comes - moving them here, watering them there, turning on the AC again... A perfectly good succulent gets fussed to death
Solution: observe promptly and adapt as things change
I think: every household's succulents are different, so you must "treat the illness with the right medicine". Succulents prefer a stable environment, so don't fuss blindly - just adapt as things change