Problems with Nelii

[greenknight]

Surface drying doesn't tell you if the mix underneath is dry. There's no advantage to evaporation from the surface - if the potting mix is staying wet too long, you need a mix that retains less water, surface evaporation is not going to fix it.

[Aiko]

I have the same concerns regarding a layer of pebbles or grid on top of the soil. I tried it once for sowing, and also for that I went back to 'normal'.

[iann]

Using a top dressing definitely reduces evaporation. What you call dying out "naturally" is not a good thing, though. "Natural" drying out is draining to lower levels of the soil and this doesn't happen in a pot, leaving the plant in unnaturally wet conditions close to the surface. We need to adjust the soil mix to account for this. Just relying on evaporation leads to other problems, such as salt buildup and excessively quick drying in summer. Ultimately you'll end up relying on evaporation when it happens to be cool and humid and then your plants will rot anyway. Find a soil mix that only holds an amount of water that the plant can drink in a safe period, only water when the plant is ready to take up the water, and then you won't have problems.

Incidentally, a porous clay pot provides even more extreme evaporation. Small pots dry by evaporation incredibly fast, but large ones quite slowly.

[cjdavies4]

nelli rotten.jpg (71.85 KiB) Viewed 2466 times

16667390_10155158128787847_1668552331_o.jpg (89.75 KiB) Viewed 2464 times

I can upload more pictures if it is not clear enough
I'm hoping this is still in the early stages and I can prevent any further damage
So this is the second pleiopilos nelli I've tried to keep at my desk. Unfortunately I'm stuck in a room without windows, so I have to rely on fluorescent office lighting (which I know is less than ideal). But anyways my last lil fella began rotting from the bottom like this guy, eventually losing every head. I haven't waters this one yet as I know they need very little water. I really love this species and would like to keep this one alive, is it most likely a light issue? I don't think it's a watering issue as the soil pretty dry.

[iann]

It is very hard to tell whether these are rotting or just preparing to lose the old leaves. If it is rotting, it will go pretty fast. You can save the leaves inside, maybe, by cutting back and re-rooting. Whenever I've tried it, they are very slow. The real answer is sunlight. Oh and "pretty dry" probably isn't dry enough. Aim for "completely dry" most of the time. As you can see, it is a long way from thirsty.