Current mix looks wrong, old and worn out. Will advise a different shaped pot as bellied pots can present probs at repot time, though I realise TC’s don’t have vast root systems. Half pots are best, plastic will do just fine as they have lots of holes. Agree it’s too dry so it’s jettisoned heavy branches at the weakest points. Maybe remove those woody sections and repot healthy sections again by placing an inch or so deep. You can reduce the longest arms and regenerate the plant again. It will refresh it. New growths can and will sprout from remaining trunks in time and fill it out. I cant advise any further tonight it’s midnight wher I’m from and I need some shut-eye! Humus rich compost but good drainage, warmth and filtered light, more water than desert cacti.

Gill

edited to add.....wait a mo, is it double potted, just checked and it looks like plastic regular pot inside that bellied one, better in half pot and plant saucer for air movement and seeing that it doesn’t sit in a puddle.

yawn, I’m off to bed folks......zzzzzzz

'm with Rina and Gill)

Hi all! Thanks for your responses so far! I was definitely thinking it may be an issue with the pot/watering.

So the person I acquired it from told me they repotted it about a year and a half ago into this current pot. It is potted directly in this pot, (there is no plastic pot). The soil stays quite moist/damp for weeks, which is why i havent watered it often. Im always feeling the soil and woody segments checking for rot. It stresses me out to be honest.

So it looks like I will be recruiting my husband to help me repot into something shallower, maybe terra cotta? And a better draining soil. I have a succulent mix which is kind of like a mix of regular soil and gritty mix. Its only slightly gritty. Would that work well?

I'd agree w/ suggestion of ordinary plastic pot w/multiple holes (keeps them from drying out quite so fast which they would in clay).

I think root rot is more an arid land cactus kind of thing. Your plant is thirsty; these are native to tropical jungles, they need moisture & are designed for it. But soil must be very fast draining.

No, succulent mix is too heavy for this, pls. remember, in nature they grow up in the trees. I'd use African Violet mix (AV mix) & Perlite, equal parts of each, making it light & fluffy.

I don't water mine often, but I water it well when I do, no small sips.

Does that saucer come off the bottom? Does the pot have a hole?

If the woody part has any life left, you could make it into a bonsai.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4NpTNXLiHT0&t=7s

Jeff

That is good looking 'bonsai' in the video...Gives me good idea - I should try doing same with one of the woody trunks my TC has.

Everyone has their favorite potting mix that works for them. I live in a very wet and humid area, but I can leave my plants outside all year long. Getting the right mix was a bit of trial and error because most "soils" retain too much water during my summers.

So I use a bark based mix. I have used Repti-bark (from a pet store) and also Orchid bark mix. I still add a handful of African violet soil and a handful of perlite. This drains well and has worked well for me. Surprisingly, gritty mix did not work at all for my TCs.

Repti-bark on the left and Orchid bark on the right -

I'm sure you can save your plant and start some new ones at the same time! Good luck and let us know how it goes!

Rina, I have started all new Thanksgiving Cactus because I didn't have mine in optimal conditions or care. I too have an old one that's woody and would like to try that. He also has an Aloe bonsai which I'd like to try, but I don't think I can ever get a good trunk.

I'm surprised he would get that wrong, but then he's mostly dealing with trees. I just got a Euphorbia trigona 'Ruby' and learned right away that it's not a cactus. He usually does his research well though from what I can tell.

Crenda, I'm going to experiment with other soil types too. I just had them in regular potting soil, which many can live in for decades, but of course we want as optimal conditions as possible. Your example is very significant. Is it bark like that all the way through? Is the Orchid bark bigger pieces? I have some, but each piece is huge.

I like the size of Reptibark. It is not fines, but not as chunky as most Orchid mix.

I don't really measure the AV soil or perlite. After I mix it all up, if it looks good I use it. (sounds like my grandma telling me how to cook something!)

I did try putting some sphagnum moss in the bottom 1/3 of one pot and filled it with the bark mix. That plant is doing well. It may be just a coincidence, but I was trying to see if it would hold moisture better.

I'd love to try placing a plant or two in a tree. But I only have palm trees, so that wouldn't last long.

Lisa

Hope you are still around! We often get carried away suggesting, showing...all in effort to help and encourage :)

If you look at photos Crenda posted, you can see that pots are relatively small - I mean much smaller than you used. She is also using mix with bark in it, which is very suitable for these plants as they usually grow on trees. So following her excellent advice and photos, I am sure you can get some, if not all, cuttings to root.

I think it just wasn't being watered often enough.

Started some Schlumbergera this year after a 18 year break. Outside in my climate is much too bright but I think I have found a spot that they like - after 2 months trial and error and a lot of buds lost. Now I have to get the watering right - nil desperandum

Lisa, I'm afraid I'm the one who got this thread off track. Sorry we took it over, although I'll probably continue some of it. ! I would be sure to take cuttings, which are fairly easy, if nobody has mentioned thta. I just rooted some from three of mine, even though it's winter. I really hope this works out one way or another, and we'd all like to see how it turns out. Hopefully Embothrium is right.

Crenda, for some reason I totally missed the part where you wrote that you add AV soil and Perlite to the bark. Bad reading comprehension. I want to try that. And you only have Palm trees! Poor dear. We really feel for you.

Spanish Fly - I had mine in the sun--for what reason I do not know--and the segments are all red. Terribly stressed. They flowered fine, but I don't think the blooms stayed as long as normal.

Lisa,

Could you pls. answer what I asked above:

"Does that saucer come off the bottom? Does the pot have a hole?" Is that old soil hard to your touch?

Hello everyone! Im still here! I've been busy the past couple of days and forgot to check this post.

Karen, the saucer does not come off. It's attached to the pot. The pot is heavy glazed ceramic and it does have a drainage hole. Im always super careful to allow all my plants to drain thoroughly in the sink before putting them back. Also the soil is not hard. I think its just the wrong soil in the wrong pot. This sucker stays moist for weeks.

So tomorrow is the day! My husband and I are going to get a new pot and soil, and begin the repotting process. I dont look forward to it... i think we'll lose some of those big woody branches. Id prefer to keep them, as I love the old look of the plant. :) We already have a ton of "cuttings" from the branches that have previously fallen off.

I took a look at the soil I have, its a cactus/succulent mix. It has peat, sand, perlite, and limestone. Im thinking of grabbing either orchid bark or more perlite to mix in. *thinking and rereading your suggestions..*

In case anyone is interested, we repotted today. What a project! We had to use spoons to gently excavate and pull as much soil as possible out of the old pot. Once we got enough of it removed, we were able to lift the root ball out... it was still in the shape of its previous pot! Looks like the original owners just plopped it into a bigger pot and filled in the soil around it. So we took the time to really break it all up and separate the plants. The soil inside was still damp. We ended up putting most of the plant into its newer, shallower terra cotta pot, and the extra pieces we put into a second pot. Overall I was very pleased with the process and condition of the roots. :)

It looks great. Thanks for the photos. That's a cool wedding ring too.

Great job on those roots! What potting mix did you end up using? I'm sure your plant will rebound nicely.

We used a cactus/succulent mix (peat, sand, perlite, limestone) and added quite a bit of extra perlite. I considered adding bark, but my garden center only had one type and the pieces were huge. So I settled on the extra perlite. Im hoping that, plus the smaller/shallower terra cotta pot will allow for better drainage/drying and allow me to water more frequently.

Sounds good, Lisa! And I totally agree on those big chunks of bark. Like I always tell people, what works for me may not work for someone else because we don't have identical growing conditions.

Where is it now being kept in relation to any light please? Can’t see a window in your pic....

Gill