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I just received a Crassula ovata var. It was quite top heavy and… | Anything about plants | Planta community

Grandma2aDancer

I just received a Crassula ovata var. It was quite top heavy and couldn’t stand upright. It was in a 4 inch pot. It felt dry on top, but felt quite heavy, like it was full of water or something. I took it out of the pot and it was most definitely dry-very dry. I was unable to look at the inner roots because the “soil” was essentially solid! I wasn’t able to even pick it apart, it was that hard. Don’t how how it was getting any O2, but the plant looks quite healthy to me. I have it soaking in water right now and after about 30 minutes I’ve been able to coax about 1 Tb of organic matter away from it. It feels like all coco core to me with a sparse amount of perlite. No dirt fell out and none fell off when I gently shook it. I plan on putting it in a 6 inch ceramic pot with good drainage and soil like it needs. I won’t need to repot for quite a long time and I have no need to try to keep it the size it is. Pictures are when I was able to get the tiny amount coaxed out. Any advice is welcomed, appreciated and hoped for!

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5 comments

  1. Adrian

    Gently removing any of the soil you can, and replacing it with some fresh cactus mix will definitely do some help, and spritzing it with some hydrogen peroxide should help kill any possibly lingering bacteria and give the roots some extra oxygen to work with. You could try scraping more the of soil off with a plastic fork to remove more of the old soil without damaging the roots as much. Jades like to become root-bound and take up the shape of their pots pretty often, but if you’re worried about the old soil being hydrophobic now, bottom-watering the plant can help get the water right to the root system while reducing the risk of overwatering it or leaving it sitting in excess water in its new pot. I bottom water mine for about 10 minutes, then take it out and let it drain over a cup similar in size to the bottom of the pot, or drain in the sink. Hope this helps!

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    • Grandma2aDancer

      Thank you, it definitely does help! I appreciate the tips and will go back to work on it with plastic fork in hand😊I wouldn’t have considered that, but it certainly makes sense. Do you spray the peroxide on or use it in larger amount to wash the roots? Thanks again!

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    • Adrian

      Usually when I’m trying to soak a plant with hydrophobic soil to loosen up all the old dirt, I add some squirts from a bottle to the water, but since you already soaked it, spraying it on the roots should do the trick to kill any lingering bacteria.

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  2. Grandma2aDancer

    After THREE, yes 3, hours-I finally have all (ummm, most all) the cement (or at least that’s what it felt like) removed and peroxide applied by and repotted! I I m so afraid that it’s going to be shocked and die 😱. I lost 2 little leaves and maybe a 1 inch section of a small root. I forgot to take any photos along the way, it looks good now.

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  3. Grandma2aDancer

    Thank you for your thoughts, your ideas and your advice. Thank you all so very much!

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