There are no gardening mistakes, only experiments.
-Janet Kilburn Phillips
You’ve heard once or twice before that succulents are easy to care for. They really are, but that doesn’t mean that they’re problem-free.
Even if you’re just starting to grow these beauties and not seeing any problems yet, it’s important to — in my honest opinion — be knowledgeable of common problems that may arise in the future. The sooner you can identify what’s going on with your plant, the sooner you can do something about it.
On this section, I’m going to cover common problems that almost all succulent growers — beginners and experts alike — experience at some point.
Let’s get started!
WATER stress
Symptom: Leaves are easily falling off the stem, yellowish in color, even looking transparent, or feeling ‘soggy’.
Diagnosis: Over-watered
Action needed: Most overwatered plants develop root rot which is irreversible. If your plant is just slightly overwatered however — meaning there’s no root rot and the stem isn’t completely soggy — you can save it by letting it get morning sun to release some of the moisture. Then replant and start over. To avoid this in the future, make sure you read my basic care section for proper watering techniques.
Symptom: Leaves are shriveling.
Diagnosis: Desiccation — or shriveling of the leaves — due to underwatering.
Action needed: As soon as you notice shriveling of the leaves, give your plant a good soak to recover. Then follow my watering techniques to prevent this from happening again. NOTE: If you have to choose between overwatering and underwatering, choose the latter.
Symptom: Roots are soft or mushy*.
Diagnosis: Root rot due to overwatering.
Action needed: Remove affected part of the plant and discard old soil to avoid contamination then transfer into a new pot with new soil.
*plants with severe root rot might not be as easy to save
sunlight-related
Symptom: Browning of the leaves, burnt.
Diagnosis: Sunburn (obviously from too much sunlight).
Action needed: When the afternoon heat is too intense for the plant, move it where it can get more morning sunlight . If that is not an option (tip for next time), plants that were previously in the shade or got a lot of morning sun should be gradually exposed to afternoon sun. See picture below for my “oops” moment.
Symptom: Stem is taller but leaves are spaced so far apart, looks stretched out.
Diagnosis: Etiolation — or stretching — due to lack of sunlight.
Action needed: Unfortunately, there is no fix for this. Even if you transfer the plant where it can get more sun, the damage has been done. Don’t throw away this plant just yet: you can cut the part where the leaves are stretching and plant it (propagation). For future reference though, place your plants where it can get 3-6 hours of sunlight daily (morning sunlight preferred).
Symptom: Leaves are not changing colors as they should.
Diagnosis: Not enough sunlight.
Action needed: Move plant where it can get direct sunlight 3-6 hours a day to bring back — and maintain! — their vibrant colors.
pest INFESTATION
Symptom: Black, size of an ant, slow crawler, growing in between or on the leaves
Diagnosis: Aphids
Symptom: White, cotton-like stuff in between the leaves (where the leaves and stem meet) or on the leaves
Diagnosis: Mealy bugs
Symptom: White cotton-like or dome-shaped shells
Diagnosis: Scale
Symptom: Black flies that look like mosquitoes
Diagnosis: Fungus gnats
Symptom: Spider webs between leaves or small brown dots on the leaves
Diagnosis: Spider mites
Depending on the severity of infestation, I take the following steps:
1. Spray with a hose. If that doesn’t do it, go to step 2.
2. Use a barbecue stick to get in between the leaves. If there’s too many of them, step 3.
3. Spray insecticidal soap or alcohol in the morning while the affected plants are in the shade. If after a few applications and the infestation is not clearing up, step 4.
4. I would salvage what I can from the plant and throw the rest to avoid other plants from getting infected.
just the way they are
Symptom: Not flowering.
Diagnosis: None — a lot of succulents don’t have flowers.
Action needed: None — they are just as beautiful as plants that flower!
Symptom: The plant is dead but it just had pretty flowers last week!
Diagnosis: The plant is monocarpic which are plants that flower, set seeds, then die.
Action needed: While monocarpic plants don’t die right away after flowering, they will eventually. When that happens, pull out the dead plant and replace — perhaps with one that you propagated.
