The scenario: my jade plant is growth off of my mothers very old plant in NY (I am in FL). She brought it down to me in FL and it has been pretty healthy with some brown discolorations but good growth. I recently re-potted the plant (using miracle-grow potting soil) and because of the spots I started researching how to properly care for the plant. We were watering it once a week fairly heavily. I believe possibly over watering. I have now backed off and started allowing the soil to dry out 1/2 inches deep before re-watering. And I guess possibly did not use the right soil for re-potting either. (I do have at least an inch of rocks in the bottom of the new pot and it drains freely)
It has been in various spots, mostly outside, until we started getting a lot of could weather, then we put it inside near a window where it received partial sun from the west. I read a few different opinions on what kind of lighting... Filtered light, direct light, etc. It now receives direct sun-light from about 11am to 6pm.
I believe that I have some kind of pest after re-potting and read I could us an antibacterial soap / water mix and spray on twice a day to rid the plant of the pests. Under one leaf I saw what looked like a black egg patch of some kind. I did this and sprayed the plant pretty heavily for three days (i covered the soil with a towel so it did not get any in the pot). Today I noticed the ends of some leaves looked water-loged/black/rotted possibly because of spraying with the solution?
Long story short, here is a picture and I hope you can help me out. You can see the spots I was talking about and also the black discoloration on the end of the leaves.
I am in California zone 9 (maybe 8 because of my elevation). My jades grow in the ground outside here in anything from light shade to full sun. They can take quite a bit of cold. Mine do in the winters when temps get down into the low 30's and even dipping into the high 20's for a little while. I plant jades because they are so forgiving and aren't fussy about the care. And need little water. Just good drainage. I know you should let your jade get very dry before watering, much more than 1/2 inch below the surface. Almost completely dry. I would put mine back outside in your Orlando area. And if you have a heavy rainy season ahead actually protect it from the rain under an overhang if possible. I think your plant will respond to this more than anything else you can do for it. And they prefer less food or no food. So save your miracle grow for plants that are food hogs. Look around at yards in your neighborhood. Or in plantings in front of stores and restaurants. I am pretty certain you will find jades just growing like crazy in peoples gardens outdoors. .
~Tina
Drama Free Zone. What every gardener loves the most, Begins and ends in rich compost. (Tina)
Jades are succulents and have the ability to store water in their leaves. They will last in very well and free draining despite little watering. The thing to remember is to water enough so that the leaves never wrinkle. Wrinkled leaves mean not enough water. I water mine when the soil is almost all dried out I'm in z5 so mine is indoors now. I wouldn't use potting soil, I would use a cactus mix as it drains a bit better than potting soil. Or when I use potting soil, I add perlite (the little white bits) to make the potting soil better draining and looser.
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When weeding, the best way to make sure you are removing a weed and not a valuable plant is to pull on it. If it comes out of the ground easily, it is a valuable plant. Mary Ann LaPensee
welcome doohic in orlando, you should be able to grow your jade outside year-round. and, i changed your image file to a link because we have a 640x480 max size on photos here. thanks for understanding!
jades are very hardy plants - as others mentioned, they're succulents and store moisture, so, they don't need very frequent watering.
the best soil to put them in is cactus soil mixed with extra perlite - you want really good drainage so the roots aren't sitting in soggy stuff as that will cause rot to start.
they also don't need to be fertilized too frequently at all - i give mine some fert once, maybe twice a year and only during active growth (summer time). even in your area, they will go a bit dormant in the winter months - not as extreme as they do up north, still the growth will slow down a bit. they should never be fertilized during the dormant stage. they also need even less water than usual when they're in dormant stage.
i would suggest repotting in a better soil mix and forego any fertilizing until mid-summer. repotting always causes a bit of stress and you've also got something else going on, too. you'll want to let the plant fully recuperate before fertilizing again.
unglazed clay pots are perfect and you want to make sure there is a drainage hole in the bottom. after repotting, let the plant sit in the dry soil for a week at least and more like two, and then water. small increments until all the soil is thoroughly moistened and then allow the soil to dry out down at least an inch from the top before watering again.
the black spots are likely fungus from the overwatering and the excessive fertilizer in the soil. you also want to make sure there is good air movement where the plant is located...if you've got it where it's very close to a wall (or window), move it out a foot or so; if you've got in on a bookshelf or in a row crowded with other plants, move it elsewhere. lack of air movement and the overwatering/soggy soil makes for prime conditions for fungus to get a hold.
i would repot and let it recover as it will for a couple weeks and then either take the leaves off (since it's only a few) or you could treat with fungicide appropriate for jades (crassula) to help the healing process as well as to stop it from spreading - although, repotting; proper placement and allowing it to dry out sufficiently should basically fix the issue).
when you repot, do a good check of the roots. they should be white and a bit fleshy. cut off any that are black/brown or mushy (regardless of color). use a sharp knife or fresh razor blade and heat it first to sterilize it (let it cool before touching the plant). if all the roots are shot, you can cut them off completely and re-root the piece. if the roots are shot, check the base of the trunk, too. if soft, cut off above where it's soft so that you get rid of all the bad stuff.
if you do need to re-root it, let it dry for a week before potting it up...and then, once it's potted, let it sit in the dry soil for another week and then water it. not as thoroughly as you would if the roots were there...enough to moisten the soil right around the base...do the same small amount every 10-12 days for a few times and then check the plant to see if roots have formed - just give a gentle tug or push. if it moves a lot, no roots yet, if it stays put, you've got roots. once you have roots, do a full watering and then let the soil dry well before rewatering.
you can keep the plant outside - humidity can be an issue for them, though, so, during the most humid times of the year, i'd bring it inside.
they do very well in full light for most of the day...they will do okay in lower light conditions also - just won't grow as quickly as they would in full light.
they will pout (and drop leaves) when you change lighting conditions...so, always make changes gradually (over the course of a couple weeks).
if you're going to move it inside/outside, it should be placed in the same basic position regardless of whether in or out...just remember that outside conditions are much stronger than inside, so when it's out, it's going to need less bright conditions - a spot on a porch that is shaded for part of or most of the day as compared to the window right there that gets sun for all the day. windows DO block some of the strength of the sun as well as some of it's heat. once the plant is acclimated to outside conditions after a couple of weeks you can move it to a brighter spot and then you'll just need to reverse the procedure when you're going to need to take it back inside.
Hi there! Last October, I was experiencing the same problem that you had. I had a crassula (jade) cactus which was indoors for a long while, then I moved it out in the sun, it grew but once the cold set in, I had to move it back indoors, and then the problem started. So after lots of advice from our friends here, I learned some lessons: a) don't overwater esp in winter, b) don't keep moving the plant (there is some sense to the saying "we need to grow roots" for both plants and people), c) and lastly, leave it alone!
My crassula shed almost 50% of its leaves, but look at it now! It's healthy again and totally green. I water once in 7 to 10 days and in between that time, I don't bother about the plant. Good luck with yours!!! :wink:
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in orlando, you should be able to grow your jade outside year-round. and, i changed your image file to a link because we have a 640x480 max size on photos here. thanks for understanding!
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