Unless that's severe dehydration, which could be solved by gradually-increasing amounts of water, it's rot. Depot and check out the subterranean roots, to begin with, but be prepared to go further and farther; I suspect rot but hope not.

is this the gigantic plant you got mail order.. and are trying to root without cutting it into rootable pieces??? .. where is that old post??

if so.. then you left out almost all pertinent history ...

and if not then what is the history of this plant.. other than what the trunk looks like ...

did you move cross country.. and is the sunlight much more intense where you are now???... have you changed you watering habits to attune for such???

ken

is this the same plant???

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/6309535/how-big-of-a-pot-for-a-jade-plant#n=6

Ken, no it’s not. This one has been potted for close to four months.

Cactusmcharris, thanks. I took it out of the put to inspect. After 4 months I was expecting to see some roots. To my surprise there was nothing. See pics. This might be the reason…

I planted four plants four months ago. All plants with the same soil, same sun, same temperature, same type of pot and same watering. 3 are OK and this one wasn’t.

These are the other tree… which look very well! Leaves and truck are hard and healthy

Excellent use of the foam pieces to hold the propagations upright!

Could you chop it higher and start over after it’s well calloused?

That may be rotting...did you squeeze those trunks? Was it 'giving' in or hard?

Rina… it wasn’t hard, kind of soft actually. All trunk was like that… threw it away… will focus on the others!

Thanks Tina! It always works and it’s very easy to install tight and doesn’t harm the plants… I also use the water lines insulation foam as shown in this photo.

Soft usually indicates rot. It may have rotted because it didn't have roots & was watered...I usually don't water until roots start growing, indicated by the new growth. NO ROOTS - NO WATER... Using foam has nothing to do with it, I have used it or other 'stuff' often when trying to secure the plant.

Of course the foam won't affect rooting, but it can firmly brace the trunks without causing any pressure at a contact point.

Yeah, that is what I said...foam doesn't have anything to do with rotting OR rooting...but it will protect trunk...I used it, and also strip of folfed landscape fabric as shown...I also use larger rocks to keep plant stable until roots anchor it...I don't use foam - it may be not enough (but never tried so shouldn' comment...)

Rina, I think it probably wouldn't be enough if one was doing this outside, the wind would still knock stems sideways, but inside, it should be. Those are very pretty rocks!

I use slices of pool noodle in similar ways as Evve's last pic, and other ways, such as allowing a little cutting to stay above water while it takes root. And to keep very tall cuttings upright while taking root, for those that take root easily in water. A 4-foot tall cutting of something like "lucky bamboo" can lean so far that it tips itself over.

And no, I'm not conflating trying to root giant Jade stems, as pictured, in water. I believe those would just rot, and wouldn't recommend anyone try it. But small, green stems can root easily that way.

Evve, I like your rocks too! Plants offer such great opportunities to display and use rocks.

Did Flora delete a comment?

Not sure if new growth can or shall be considered as the evidence of new roots… this plant was full of new growth but had no roots at all

No, Flora did not. Not this Flora, anyway. I know nothing about growing Jade Plants and don’t comment on them.

OK, thank you. I may be losing my mind, but we don't have any proof yet. : )

New growth cannot be considered confirmation that a cutting has produced roots. Growers should choose well-hydrated (recently watered) cuttings from near the top of (apically dominant) plants, and from the side closest to the primary light source. For those of us living in the Northern Hemisphere, the south side plants in the landscape would be considered to be facing the primary light source. Branches/ potential cuttings in these positions will have a greater level of stored photosynthate (food); and for that reason are more likely to root. A very high % of propagules need only water, oxygen, and stored food/ nutrients to create the energy essential to produce primary growth (extension) of branches and leaves, and this can occur whether the cutting has grown roots or not.

For internodal cuttings (cuttings from which the apex/ growing tip of the branch has been removed),

new growth in the leaf axil is not enough to confirm rooting, but appearance of a second leaf (on any given new branch) is. For tip cuttings, which include the apex/ growing tip of the branch, the addition of a new leaf due to extension of the cutting is not proof of rooting, but appearance of a second leaf is.

Always avoid tugging on a cutting to 'see if it has rooted. This can break tiny roots, a setback that slows establishment of the new propagule in its pot.

Al