The leaves on top looked green and the rest of the caudex is still normal except for the deflated shrunk area. This can cause the root to rot. You might try changing out the soil – makes sure it’s in a really porous soil like succulent & cactus mix. Some people go overboard and remove all of the old soil, but I almost never do this when repotting plants, nor do I think it’s necessary. Ponytail Palms are quite resistant to insects and diseases. No guarantees, but if you are insistent upon attempting to save this plant, here is what I would do. When this happens, the plant quickly dies. When plants get extremely root bound, you’ll have to work to loosen the … I hope the lizards like it! Sand also isn’t recommended because it can become mushy and get clumped together thus preventing proper drainage. About the Ponytail Palm . You will inevitably break some roots, but don’t stress about it. The growing season is spring to fall and gives water every 1-2 week but makes sure the soil is dried fully on 1-2 inch. Try to find ways to increase humidity to prevent this from happening in the future. Todays date 8/3/2020. Ponytail Palms really prefer full sun for the vast majority of the day since this is what it will be used to in it’s native grounds in southern Mexico. She's actually a succulent within the agave and thrives in similar high light, infrequent watering conditions. As with many other plant diseases, prevention is easier than curing. If you want to actually see me physically repot this plant, check out my repotting video on YouTube! If your Pony tail palm develops dry, brown foliage, a shriveled stem or desiccated roots, you can be sure that these are signs of under watering. Easter Cactus Wilting Or Drooping Why This Happens, Succulent Leaves Turning Black And How To Fix, Succulent Turning White What To Do When This Happens, Why Your Succulent Is Turning Purple Or Pink. How to Grow Snake Plants in Water, Without Soil. The pot you select for your ponytail palm should allow for around an inch of space between the plant's trunk and the rim of the pot. I have a ponytail palm that's at least 30 yrs old. Instead, it’s a succulent. Ponytail Palm. Also, check out my shop on Amazon for all your houseplant care needs:OHIO TROPICS PLANT CARE STOREFRONT. It is a succulent from the Agave family being closely related to Aloe Vera. If this is the case then you will need to start removing any and all rotted roots from the succulent and save any healthy ones you can. Place your Ponytail Palm where it will receive ample amount of high light — ideally in front of a southern or western-facing window as this plant requires at least a few hours of direct sun every day. It sure sounds like a bad case of root rot. I noticed a week or so ago that the bulb area had a soft spot in it. Ponytail Palm Fungus Root and Stem Rot. This goes hand in hand with the overwatering. It causes spotting and rotting on all parts of the trees, especially the leaves. Ponytail palm (Beaucarnea recurvata) is a slow-growing plant. Cutting back ponytail palm is not an effective method of maintenance in that it would leave an open trunk and no greenery. Plant details. The decorative ponytail plant is native to dry, desert regions of Mexico and the southern United States. I have a ponytail palm that we replanted a few years ago. ALL of the leaves turned brown and fell off and now I think it has root rot. Root and stem rot in Ponytail palms is usually indicative of overwatering. Direct su This fungus produces billions of spores on a single plant so there's no way to avoid it. Thanks! It bears narrow, gray-green or dark green foliage that curves out from a large bulblike trunk, causing it to somewhat resemble a palm. The danger in this is that if your pot is too huge, your soil will take a lot longer to dry out and this can encourage problems like root rot. Repotting this succulent in fresh soil and a new container may also be necessary depending on the current conditions. Ponytail Palms have very small root systems that can withstand drought, but rot very easily because they are naturally adapted to arid climates. The ponytail palm, also known as the elephant’s foot, is a whimsical-looking, low-maintenance plant that anyone can enjoy caring for. So if you’re wondering why your Ponytail palm is dying, then it’s time to take a look at what you’re doing wrong so you can prevent this from going to far or happening again. Do you have it in a nice, sunny spot? The base is turning white near the soil and looks like it's "splitting" around the base. E.g. Probably the most common reason why your Ponytail palm succulent is dying is due to overwatering which will cause rot and stop growth from happening with your plant in general. ress_js("//z-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/onejs?MarketPlace=US&adInstanceId=3727937f-fd2d-4a8e-aac6-737ec7e1cc2a"); Ohio Tropics (Raffaele Di Lallo) is a participant in the Amazon.com Services LLC program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. However, if you want to grow multiple trunks on a ponytail palm, you can take the drastic action of cutting off the plant’s growing tip. Although the Ponytail Palm can hold water in it’s trunk for up to a month at a time, you still want some quality fast draining soil mix to keep the soil dry. Plants moved from indoors to permanent outside locations should be gradually exposed to the increase in light and temperature change. Plants afflicted with this disease experience rot around their stems, in the area where the stem joins the root. I have a ponytail palm that's at least 30 yrs old. The Ponytail Palm, also known as Beaucarnea Recurvata, or Nolina is a distinctive looking houseplant with a swollen thick brown stem at its base that stores water. The... A Dark, Soot-Like Fungus. If you have poor drainage, no matter how little you water, you can still have an overwatered, root rotted ponytail palm succulent. cutting A backcut is also possible at any time with the Ponytail Palm. Please advise. In the past, it has been classified as either Nolina recurvata or Beaucarnea recurvata, but the latter is now the correct classification of this plant. If you notice any of these signs early on, then you should stop all watering immediately and let your Ponytail palm dry out so it can return to normal before it actually starts dying. Top Dressing The Ponytail Palm . Your goal is to loosen the roots so that they can easily grow into the new soil in its new home. Don’t get me wrong, your Ponytail Palm can survive in pretty cold weather but not for that long. To prevent this from happening again you should consider using a quality grow light if indoors or just providing more full sunlight if growing outdoors. There are 3 very important things that you need to know for success so allow me to show you! Ponytail Palm Root Structure Ponytail Palm Disease Problems. Place your Ponytail Palm where it will receive ample amount of high light — ideally in front of a southern or western-facing window as this plant requires at least a few hours of direct sun every day. I don’t know what you did when you repotted, but if you removed all or some of the soil from the original rootball, then it will be very hard for your Ponytail to recover. Growing ponytail palms in the home is easy. Propagating a ponytail palm is done through division—separating the baby plants (pups) from the mother. Overwatering will lead to root rot. Since the Ponytail Palm is a flat root, you should rather choose a flat plant container. Yellow leaves on your ponytail palm can be a sign of overfertilizing. The ponytail palm is native to parts of Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize. Ponytail palm likes to grow in medium dry soil and does not want Soggy soil. Yeah, with the good hair. Which is GOOD and you want the soil to dry out quickly, but as a result of this fact, I figured that the plant was pretty root bound. Leaf Spot, bacterial leaf streak and what your plant may be suffering from--stem rot. Although the Ponytail Palm can grow in low nutrient soil, it will reward you with rich foliage if you fertilize it 2-3 times per year. Lourens says. The action would expose the stem to mold and mildew and it would likely rot before it could ever start producing any more leaves or offsets. So far, it appears to be healthy, just a little short on the tail. My own plant was growing beautifully for many years in the same pot, but eventually, the soil was drying out much more quickly than it used to. Customer Question. The danger is that if you slip and add a lot of extra water, it has nowhere to go. If you’re growing indoors, you have to use a free-draining cactus style soil mix and a pot with proper drainage. It will make it easier to tease the roots apart. Other common names for this plant include bottle palm tree or elephant foot tree. Look how pot bound! Soil will dry completely between waterings, avoiding one of the main killers of this plant – root rot! Stem Rot; Stem Rot is a common problem with ponytail palms, signs include the plant’s stem and the base becoming very soft and the leaves turning yellow. Direct sun or bright, filtered light. If your soil is dry, go ahead and water it. Best offers for your garden - http://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/1Wy5buU-----How to Cure Root Rot With Hydrogen Peroxide. It is unclear why you cut the top of the plant off, but Beaucarnea caudexes are rather woody and not green on the inside. They have large base bulbs that store water so they can withstand drought. Required fields are marked *. Some of the first signs you will notice if your plant is getting too much water will be yellow leaves or soft leaves close to the base of your Ponytail palm. This … Especially for succulents! When you add the plant and start to add soil to the new pot, gently firm the soil down with your hands as you go along so that there are no air pockets and your plant is secure and is not wobbling. The ideal repotting period is early spring from mid-February to the end of March. Pink rot fungus is a rose or salmon-colored fungus that usually infects older palm trees growing in coastal areas where it is humid. Ponytail palm plants are useful in the tropical to semi-tropical exterior landscape, or as a potted specimen for the home. Thank you Renee I like to start by grabbing the root ball at the base and gently pulling things loose. Some of the links in this post may be affiliate links. In addition, the leaves emanate from a central point like a ponytail, thus the name. There is no sign of root rot as I have not watered the plant for a long time. So also the thickened foot comes properly to the validity. I just noticed that my ponytail palm bulb has shrunk or collapsed. Next, I like to work on the sides of the rootball and loosen up the sides. Oddly enough, a ponytail palm tree is neither a palm nor a tree. Some of the first signs you will notice if your plant is getting too much water will be yellow leaves or soft leaves close to the base of your Ponytail palm. As you will see in the video below, this Ponytail Palm was very root bound and now has room to grow. I enjoyed watching your video on the ponytail palm. Burying even a small part of the stem can lead to rot. I did repot it about 2 years ago. Don't let her common name fool you—she's not a palm at all. Overwatering or poor soil drainage frequently is responsible for root and stem rots. This … Probably the most common reason why your Ponytail palm succulent is dying is due to overwatering which will cause rot and stop growth from happening with your plant in general. Are you ready to repot your Ponytail Palm (Beaucarnea recurvata) and you want to make sure that you’re doing everything correctly? These locks can grow up to three feet indoors, and more than ten feet outdoors. The reason you have to do this is that otherwise, your plant will have a much harder time growing out of the densely packed ball of roots in order to grow into the soil in your new pot. More info: the plant itself it doing fine. Since I am not adding depth, would the width be too much? Ponytail Palms need to stay on the dry side & to have excellent drainage. Crispy brown tips on the ends of the leaves. The diameter of the pot should never be more than a half to one inch wider than the width of the bulb at its widest part. Please do me a favor and share this post to social media because it will help me spread the Ohio Tropics houseplant care tips to the masses! The leaves themselves can also start to fall of when you have been watering too much. Overwatering will lead to root rot. I never use any potting mix straight out of the bag. Let it dry between waterings. If it takes a month for the soil to dry deep into the pot, then that is not soon enough to prevent root rot. If you want to repot the plant, you should do it in the spring or early summer at the latest. Place these floras into an area that receives plenty of bright, indirect light. ALL of the leaves turned brown and fell off and now I think it has root rot. Because it seemed to be to tight in its old container. There is no evidence of it dying. Water thoroughly and let the plant dry out between watering sessions. Remove the yellow leaves and slow down on the fertilizer. You’ll want to leave about one inch from the soil to the top of the pot so you have room to water and have a “reservoir.” Don’t forget to do this or it can get very messy when you water! I have never personally propagated a ponytail palm plant, but I am planning to work on it and update this post when I can. But the containter does not have a hole. In the end I used 4 parts succulent soil mixed with 1 part pumice and 1 part of perlite. The long narrow curly, dark green leaves flow up from this base much like a plume of water in a fountain. If you've had it that long and it looks good, keep doing what you're doing for now. I like to place a broken piece of terra cotta pot over the drainage hole (like an upsidedown U) so that it keeps the soil in but lets water out. I actually ended up using both pumice and perlite because I didn’t have enough pumice. I went from a 7″ diameter pot to an 8″ diameter pot, but it was deeper than the old pot. Hope this helps! I would recommend perhaps drilling a drainage hole at the bottom of your pot, or transferring it into a pot that has one. This succulent is often mistakenly called a palm because of its single trunk with leaves at the top. You really don’t even have to worry about this plant getting too much sun as the more is actually better in this case. This can be a difficult issue with a large outdoor specimen. IT HAS BEEN AN INDOOR PLANT BEFORE SHE THREW IT OUT.. tRYING TO SAVE IT THANKS. The palms develop pups, or side shoots, as they mature.These smaller versions of the parent plant are easy to divide away from the mother palm. Is humid new soil in its new home loosened things up a bit of... This is easily preventable by ponytail palm root rot watering when the top 3 to inches. 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