These plants are not very water sensitive in Florida, but are incredibly susceptible to crown-rot, lower stem rot (not root rot but more like the rot yours shows), and sunburn. I grow mine outside until nighttime temps drop below 55 and then indoors on a south facing window. During the summer, as you know living in FL, mine gets that Florida rain 2-4 times a week. The leaves have not split and in fact the plant has some sun damage and is at times almost stone-like in texture, indicating it has been grown rather hard. After a long rain it is softer, but hardens up over the following day. However, sometimes standing water will accumulate in the crevice between leaves; my roommate pulled out the dead flowers from my plant last year (!!!) And combined with some standing water, this caused the new leaves in the central stem of my plant to dry up and die. However, it has sent up a side shoot that is actively growing. I think the key is the Florida heat and high UV levels, and the fact that my soil is 20%grit, 40%perlite, and 50% coconut coir. I learned that coir is especially important in FL because it keeps a high oxygen to water ratio in the root zone, which prevents waterlogged and anoxic roots. I think this and the heat keep this mesemb slowly growing throughout the summer, which helps prevent rot from over-watering. My Fenestraria grows the same way, but if I put it outside too soon and it rains too frequently, many of its leaves will rot in a similar manner to your split rock, from the lower stem but not the roots. But when temperatures reach 80-90, it starts shooting out tons of new growth, even as old growth rots. tl;dr - pot up your replacement in a mix of grit, perlite, and coir, and put it outside for some heat during the summer. It may survive the rain, but it may be better to leave it on a screened-in porch if you are concerned about losing a stem to crown rot

Another plant death has fallen upon my household. This time it was my precious little plant that has been miraculously been growing well for almost half a year. The day before yesterday it just suddenly started wilting and the bottom of its stem started turning brown and woody, and now today I've noticed that the water under it's self watering pot has stop going down. Another death to my hands... and I was so proud of this one. Its the highest plant I've ever grown and now it's just dying before my eyes. I don't think I can save this one. I'm gonna miss u planty ;_;

Art, excellent! That's the best choice! Your Yucca desperately needs to have the old soil exported and new soil imported, and probably a bigger pot. I don't know if those cracks in the trunk are normal or not. This thing about letting the soil dry out leaves so much room for interpretation, but if it really is drying 100%, that is extreme, and at some point, any/all plants can die from desiccation. If the soil is causing issues with root rot (overwatering) without going to such degrees of dryness, that's a horrible situation for the plant, constantly fluctuating between extremes. If the pot is unglazed clay, the roots are able to access oxygen all around the inside of the pot, even if the soil is quite dense and airless. If the soil is more chunky/porous/airy, so that it has oxygen in it while moist and does not cause roots to rot, the only care needed is to water often enough so that it does not dry to the point of damage to the roots. This is a much easier care regime over trying to intuit some magic moment when soil has dried to just the right point where adding more water won't kill the plant because of the airless soil. Nobody should have to be psychic to keep a potted plant alive. Best luck! These concepts are explored in much more detail in the 2 posts linked below: http://forums2.gardenweb.com/discussions/1490818/good-growing-practices-an-overview-for-beginners?n=189 http://forums2.gardenweb.com/discussions/1497307/ukeeping-u-them-looking-good?n=38

A pic would help;). I'm such a visual person. Really helps with giving advice too because without one I'm just guessing what's wrong. The cactus needs to come out of the glass, it's a recipe for a rotten cactus:(. The rocks at the bottom does nothing for drainage. Cactus need actual draining. I would suggest a simple terra cotta pot or anything with a drainage hole. When you repot make sure that mix is light. A great idea would be to get a small bag of perlite. Perlite should be in the same area where you will find your new pot;). Get a little bag of the cheapest cactus mix you can find too. A mixture of 60% perlite and 40% cactus mix will do. Clean all old soil off roots when repotting too. No water for at least a week I would wait two. Since you keep your cactus inside a warm home you should water this cactus no more than once a month during the cooler months. Assuming you are heading into winter;). When spring comes around or when it begins to warm up you can begin to water more. Always make sure the mix is thoroughly dry all the way throughout. You can check with a wooden skewer. Just dip the skewer down to the bottom and if it comes up damp anywhere. Wait to water. Honestly though you can tell when the moisture is gone because the pot will get real light, but if not sure check with the skewer. How much light are you giving your cactus:)?