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Cacti & Succulents

What to do with my Echeveria?

14 years ago

My Echeveria is having some problems. One, he was too tall and fell over. So I was going to cut the top off in the spring and restart him. But today, I was poking around in the soil, and that brings me to the second problem - fungus. And it looks like a lot of it. So I was going to replace some of the soil and spray a fungicide. But before I could do that, the pot got knocked over and he fell out completely. So now, I'm not sure where to go.

Should I simply repot him in clean soil? Should I cut now? He's got roots coming out of most of the nodes. I hope it's not too late to do anything for him. The fungus is what's got me worried. I don't know how long it's been there or whether or not it's harmful. And the other things aren't helping matters either.

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Comments (4)

amccour
14 years ago
What kind of fungus is it? It might just be mycorrhiza which is actually a good thing.
plant_junkie
14 years ago
Good fungus? Is it yellow per chance? I have seen in the David Attenborough BBC films The Private Life of Plants that some fungus are completely necessary for the survival of trees and such. Something having to do with breaking down the nutrients into forms that the tree or plant can absorb. Could this be true for cacti and succulents in certain instances?

Steve
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I suggested possibly oedema, but it could be something else on your echeveria. Rest of my post was in relation to your sempervivum (even if you didn't ask-just because of advice you got). Sorry if I was out of line. With so much rain, I guess steps have to be taken. You could grow it in container-outside, maybe in somewhat protected (from rain) location? I have seen many photos of succulents grown in your area; lots, if not most, in containers. See this blog for example: http://www.houstongardengirl.com/2011/08/succulents-of-seattle.html I had to bring all of my plants into the breezeway few times when raining a lot, and we don't get as much rain as you. Not very convenient. They could be 'covered' too. That may not be very convenient either. Rina edited to add: see this post by Howard of his protection against rain: click here This post was edited by rina_ on Tue, Oct 21, 14 at 18:59
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Thank you so much SucculentSavvy. I couldn't imagine what happened to this echeveria because I had never seen this blackness, others in the pot seemed fine and the soil was pretty dry. I have gravel mixed in with this cacti and succulent mix that I purchased. I use that in instead of the perlite or vermiculite that rises to the top when plants get watered. Except in my big cactus pots which are already heavy to move, LOL. I agree this echeveria looked a bit etiolated. That is a term I'm just getting familiar with. Not sure whether it happened here or at the store since I only had the plant a few weeks and it is rolled out into the sun on my garden cart every morning. I also read that these deeper succulent pots, even with several drainage holes, can retain water longer, especially with the gravel top dressing. So even though I did not water heavily, and the soil was dry when I pulled the plant out, potentially the top dressing and depth of the pot didn't allow the soil to dry out well enough. Thank you for helping me figure it out :-)
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It isn't possible and probably not wise to try to eliminate every single bug...there are many beneficials out there too. Rather than using any preventative sprays, one should make sure plants are healthy: they should have excellent drainage, good light exposure and good air circulation. Farina doesn't come back after it was rubbed off. It is there for a reason, which may not be as crucial if plant is growing indoors; but it is perhaps unsightly. Sometimes it is difficult to handle plants without touching leaves, just try to avoid it if possible. Outside, which is better for the plants to be if possible, it is more important - but plant still shouldn't die :) It is normal for oldest leaves to dry up, shrivel and fall off. But aging leaf and water logged leaf are 2 different things, they also look different (I am not saying your plant is waterlogged, you can tell by touching it). How did the one that fell off already looked? And having another one doing same thing doesn't sound right - but plant could be also recovering from a transplanting. So do not panic, just watch it. It should really recuperate within next few days. And having it in better draining mix helps too. This one is outside - got rained on yesterday. I is in very gritty mix:
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mooseling
Original Author
14 years ago
It's white. No idea what kind it is. Guess I should have taken a better look at it. It looked kinda moldy. I've never seen so much fungus in a pot before, which is why I wondered if it might be something bad. None of my other plants seem to have it. I've isolated him from the rest of my plants, just in case.

Is there a way to identify the fungus without a microscope? I only have a dissecting one, which isn't very useful for checking out cells and stuff like that.

The symbiotic relationship with fungus and plants I've always heard about has to do with the fungus increasing the area over which the plant can collect water and the plant can make food for the fungus through photosynthesis. But I've never actually seen the fungi.
norma_2006
14 years ago
I have grown hundred of Echeveria for the Huntington Gardens, I have never seen a fungus or mold. Get rid of all soil, get rid of pot, cut off the head of the plant leaving abouut 3-4 inches of stem and set into an clean empty pot, set in morning sun. Allow roots to grow before you add soil,
Soil must be spotless. I can't advise you how large the pot must be, do not over pot, use your judgement. Do not water until a plant has roots, Winter sun is needed and do not overwater. It will take some time to adjust to the surgery, make sure you use clean steril instruments. Put the plastic container in the micro wave, or clorex water to sterilize it. If you know the name put in two clean new labels, write the name in pencil with a #2 soft lead pencil. Detroy, dispose of the old pot, soil and labels. I have never had a fungus or mold in 30 years in my old collection, make sure you have good air circulation to cut down the possibility having mold, fungus coming back. Norma

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