Hi everyone! Apologies in advance for formatting, I’m on mobile.
TL;DR: New to succulents, no idea what I’m doing, think I may be unknowingly torturing them 🥺😭 —what do, pls help me not kill my new friends
I’m very, very new to succulents. Never had any before. I saw a fuzzy cutie (I learned yesterday that it’s called a panda plant! I think?) at a pop-up market store just 4 days ago, fell madly in love, and got myself upsold into buying 3 extra buddies for it—and learned all their names from PlantNet about 24 hours ago.
The soil and pot also came from the market store.
So all these were bought not more than a week ago—and I’m seeing things that look bad happening! (And am panicking a bit.)
Possibly Bad Thing 1: The pies from heaven plant didn’t use to have those brownish edges on the bottom leaf (or leaves)—am I messing up? Is it too hot for her? What do I need to do to save her?😢
Possibly Bad Thing 2: The echevaria (I think it’s an echevaria at least) had her top leaf wrinkle up today. I also just noticed she also had a yellow-y looking leaf on the bottom that’s less solid than the green full ones.
She’s had another small, soggy-yellowy-looking leaf at the base for at least the day before yesterday. I gently pulled it off today; it’s the one on the tissue. I added a little more water today for her top leaf since it looked like she needed a drink, but I’m not sure…
I read wrinkly leaves are too little water, but yellow soggy ones are too much? Am I under or over watering? Is the soil or pot wrong? Do I need to buy her a get well soon card to make up for my mistakes? Am I just the worst thing to ever happen to succulents? 😖
So far my lovely fuzzy pandas look okay—or at least don’t look like they’re actively suffering, but I’d appreciate care tips for them too!
Um, other info I can think of off the top of my head:
– Watered them once on Monday when I brought them home, maybe a couple tablespoons of water. Watered double that today since echevaria looked like she’s shriveled/sick.
– Pot is glazed ceramic, self-watering kind with tiny holes and a connected dish at the bottom, put water in the dish on Monday (like the shop guy told me) but today I watered from top down to let extra water drain (after reading this sub).
– I live in Singapore, it’s tropical-sunny here. Midday temps go up to 30 deg C (I think that’s 80-90ish F?) I put them in indirect light the first day, but now they’re on my windowsill in direct sun.
Please ask me if you need more photos or info from me!
I’ll do anything I need to keep my new friends alive and healthy —I just… need some help and guidance on what exactly that is. I’m clueless.
Thank you all so much for reading my sad, anxious rambling! May your own babies live long, happy lives ♥️
by bigbadrolfe
5 Comments
Hi! It seems like you may be new to succulents. If so, we recommend taking a moment to read the [Beginner Basics](https://www.reddit.com/r/succulents/wiki/beginner-basics) wiki and the [FAQ](https://www.reddit.com/r/succulents/wiki/faq) to get up to speed on succulent care and find answers to common questions.
Looking for care information on mimicry plants, or mesembs? Check out [their care guide here](https://www.reddit.com/r/succulents/wiki/mesembs_care_guides/).
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I’m also new to succulents, but I wanted to try to give some advice from what I’ve learned so far.
Most of these guys (to my knowledge at least) should be watered just about once a week, or when their soil is DRY. You can give them more than a few tablespoons of water as well (I water mine like a standard house plant, just less frequently)With most succulents you want to let the soil dry out completely between waterings, and some even like the soil to be dry for a day or two in between as well. The softer “mushy” leaf made me think that maybe these are getting a little too much water (if I’m wrong, please someone correct me ❤️).
Honestly though, I could be wrong with this, but this may just be part of the “adjusting/learning” part of this for your plants. I’ve definitely read things about succulents dropping leaves after being brought home from the store for nothing other than an environment change. I have a couple leaves fall off of my plants when I brought them home too; I even had a few mushy looking leaves I had to remove the day after I got them. I’d say give them time to adjust before worrying *too* much about any “weird things” with the plants.
I hope they start perking up for you as they adjust^^
You’re watering far too much! If the top of the soil is damp, don’t water them. If they’re sitting in water, don’t water them! Neglect will help these guys, let them sit in the sunshine and let them dry out plenty before you even think about giving them any more juice.
> Thank you all so much for reading my sad, anxious rambling!
Don’t fret about it, everyone starts somewhere and everyone makes mistakes – and the biggest and most popular mistake is always over-watering. I killed plenty of plants before I got a good idea of when I should give them a drink and when I absolutely shouldn’t.
Nice plants! As you read, the “soak and dry” method for watering succulents is best. Water fully until water starts to drain from the bottom and then wait until the soil is completely dry before watering again.
Unfortunately, self-watering pots aren’t good for succulents. Since you live in a tropical climate, I would buy an unglazed terracota pot. This will help absorb any excess moisture.
When repotting, use a fast draining soil mix. Preferably, 50% regular succulent soil and 50% perlite. Always wear a good mask when working with soil and perlite!
Less water. If your environment is damp use terracotta pots.
Repot in separate pots, with gritty soil. If you keep them all together some will overgrow the others.
Again. Less. Water. I can’t stress this enough, some are already close to rotting as the falling hyperhydrated leaves are showing.
It will be fine though