Why Is My Succulent Squishy - T-Tees - Your Answers Await, Life's Questions Unraveled

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What does an overwatered succulent look like?

If your plant looks a little strange, or you’re worried you may have overwatered it recently, some signs and symptoms will show up, which we’ll look at now.

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The surface water and the brown mold spot are the early signs of a fungal disease starting to take hold.

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Although there are exceptions to the rule (aren’t there always), what you’re looking for is reasonably consistent between succulent plants. The five most common signs are detailed below.

Click the photo below for an interactive summary.

The 5 Common Signs of an Overwatered Succulent

This Eve’s Pin Cactus (Austrocylindropuntia subulata) has a bad case of overwatering. The wet soil and mushy wet stems are unmistakable indicators.

What causes it?

This may seem a stupid question as the cause of overwatering is obviously “too much water”. But this is a simplistic answer and does nothing to help anyone who wants to avoid repeating the same mistakes.

Several other factors will be at play that will push your plant into that “overwatered” state.

How to save an overwatered succulent

What to do when your plant is too far gone?

The damage from overwatering can sometimes be too widespread, or it could have progressed too far before you could do anything about it.

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If your plant can’t realistically be saved in its current form, you could try something else to create a legacy replica instead.

The entire root system was destroyed, but with a little time, a brand new one was grown.

Many succulents can be propagated through stem or leaf cuttings. Using my Eve’s Pin Cactus experience to illustrate. When all the lower stems started to rot, and the upper parts literally fell to the ground, I knew this was a plant that I could not save by “cutting out the rot”.

Instead, I let the ends of the otherwise healthy “arms” dry out for a day before pushing them into a barely moist, free draining potting mix. I moved it to a warm, bright windowsill, left it alone for a month or two, and waited. I must have only watered it once, perhaps twice, during the entire period.

This is not a healthy plant. When the central stem and base of an overwatered succulent plant goes rotten like this, that’s it. Nothing can be done to save it.

Overwatered succulents can be saved if you catch things early enough and if the symptoms are more localized rather than widespread.

If your attempts don’t succeed and you lose your plant, don’t feel too bad about it. The best way forward is to learn from what’s happened, and you’ll have a better chance at stopping it from happening with the next one.