Kim
How do you properly Care for aloe vera plant? I have loss two to root rot. I thought I was letting it dry out before watering. đ€·ââïž
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How do you properly Care for aloe vera plant? I have loss two to root⊠| Anything about plants | Communauté Planta
12 commentaires
WhitneyI let my aloeâs leaves get a little squishy before watering. If theyâre still firm, I donât water, even if the soil is dry. Iâve gone 6 months without watering before and itâs in a 4 inch terra cotta pot. Theyâre really hard to kill by under watering.
1 j'aime- Kim
WOW! Thank you! Iâm going to try again. I also think I need to put in a warmer spot.
0 J'aime - Whitney
Yeah, mine unfortunately doesnât get much light. Itâs over 20 years old and still pretty small. But I neglect it a lot, and I use the leaves often for burns, so it works hard for me.
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- Waspinator
Try adding a drainage layer at the very bottom of the pot. Use small, inorganic material like gravel or perlite for that, like the bottom layer of a terrarium. Also be careful when watering to not get any water stuck in the center between the leaves; it just pools and stagnates there like with orchid crown rot
1 j'aime- Kim
Thank you so much! What is the best method of watering. Should I water from the bottom or along the outside edges?
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Madisoneither method is fine as long as you avoid getting water in the crown. I usually bottom water mine to be safe because Iâm a messy pourer.
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- EllenLikesPlants
Hm, my aloe is pretty easy. Itâs definitely true to let it get dry. The leaves will tell you when it needs watering by looking sad and limp. Mine is at my office with not much light. Itâs in a pot with drainage.
0 J'aime - Madison
Youâre not alone; I also almost lost mine to root rot! But hereâs how I figured out to finally get mine back on track (and apologies if I tell you to do something youâve already done, just covering all the bases): Watering/Fertilizing: Planta tells me to water my Aloe Vera way too often, so I use the reminder as a prompt to check the soil, not necessarily to water it yet. My favorite way to check that the soil is truly 100% dry is by sticking a toothpick or wooden skewer all the way down in the soil until it touches the bottom of the pot. Then I leave it in the soil for 1-5 minutes and take it out to check. If it has soaked up any moisture at all or has any moist dirt clinging to it, itâs not time to water yet. I only water once that chopstick or skewer comes out completely dry and clean. You can top or bottom water, but if you top water just make sure to avoid getting water in the center of the crown. Light: While they can handle lower light levels, they really love bright light. Mine lives in a south facing window. Giving it more light will help prevent root rot; plants use up water more quickly when they have plenty of light which means less time sitting in soggy soil. Pots/planters: At one point, mine was in too big of a planter which also contributed to root rot. When the planter is too big for the roots of the plant, they canât soak up all the moisture, so it will sit in soggy soil for too long. Make sure the planter youâre using is only 1 inch bigger than the root ball- definitely no bigger than 2 inches. I prefer to keep mine in terracotta now because it helps wick away moisture from the soil, but plastic would also work. Avoid putting in ceramic planters since they retain so much more moisture and make sure your pot has holes in the bottom for good drainage. A drainage layer wonât help if you donât have a way for water to leave the container. Soil: If itâs not in a super well draining soil, youâll want to change that out. A good example recipe would be 1/3 normal cactus soil, 1/3 perlite, and 1/3 orchid bark. All stuff that is usually available at big box stores. This gives the soil plenty of drainage and aeration which will also help prevent root rot (assuming you let it dry fully in between waterings). Sorry if that was too much info đ I enjoy sharing this kind of stuff. Good luck!
3 J'aime- Kim
Thank you so much!! This is exactly what I was looking for. I always have drainage holes for all my plants. You gave me some very useful information, like the soil and checking for moisture with a skewer. I on occasion use skewer but I definitely donât leave it in long enough. What consist of a drainage layer?
1 j'aime - Madison
if your pot/planter has drainage in it and your soil mixture has good drainage mixed in (like perlite and orchid bark) then you shouldnât necessarily need an extra drainage layer at the bottom. you could use something like perlite or lava rocks but personally I would just mix my soil with equal parts perlite and orchid bark and call it a day.
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KJI second the skewer in soil method for checking to see if itâs truly dry and ready for water. Chopstick works. terracotta pot and high quality cactus/succulent soil. When I purchased my aloe at Loweâs I took a good look at the roots and it seemed to me it was already headed for root rot. So I gave the roots a very good rinse before repotting in better soil; removed dark rotted roots.
3 J'aime- Kim
Thank you so much.
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