[fongkheon]

May I know what happen to this lithop?

http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u260/fongkheon/DSCF0054.jpg

http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u260/fongkheon/DSCF0059.jpg

I have three lithop in one pot, but just one of them is "infected". Is this a soil desease ? The body of the lithop is "hard", does not seem like sign of rot.

[nep]

Whoa tooth decay man!!!! Jkjk
Looks like something ate it.

[Wisteria]

such an apt description!

possibly eaten by grub or something else hiding in the soil since the bottom part of the lithops is gone - a pest that eat big mouthfuls

[Ifurita]

It looks like rot to me. I've gotten this(or something similar to this) before when I over watered. The plant can look okay and hard and everything, with just one section being a bit softer(you may not even notice). If that section is near the bottom and large enough, especially if the base is rotten, you can just pluck off the top and it will look the same as in your pic. To verify, you may wish to check the roots of this one and see if those are rotten.

[Abby Lim]

2 of my juicy and fat lithop were eaten by somehing from the top when I re-located the cactis condo to the back garden, it left only a feww mm above soil.

[spheredome]

This is a typical rot which later the decomposition is eaten by the media critters. Gnat flies baby will also cause such problem too.

But it is certainly a good analogy, if you don't brush your teeth, it will rot :lol:/>

[mm]

spheredome, on 10 September 2011 - 10:22 AM, said:

But it is certainly a good analogy, if you don't brush your teeth, it will rot :lol:/>

From the location of the decay, it suggests that poor or a lack of flossing is the probable cause. :)/>

Now from one OT to another. I've never quite understood the fascination with lithops. It strikes me too much of an exercise in patience (at the rate those things grow) and discipline (seeing how easily they rot, with just a single watering at the wrong time in cycle). I tried a few previously, and, personally speaking, found it most unsatisfying. But that's just me.

I really should try watching paint dry next. I hear it's equally exciting, and builds character too :)/>.

This post has been edited by mm: 10 September 2011 - 11:57 AM

[skyfiery]

mm, on 10 September 2011 - 11:56 AM, said:

From the location of the decay, it suggests that poor or a lack of flossing is the probable cause. :)/>

Now from one OT to another. I've never quite understood the fascination with lithops. It strikes me too much of an exercise in patience (at the rate those things grow) and discipline (seeing how easily they rot, with just a single watering at the wrong time in cycle). I tried a few previously, and, personally speaking, found it most unsatisfying. But that's just me.

I really should try watching paint dry next. I hear it's equally exciting, and builds character too :)/>.

Mm, your humor made me laugh loudly. :P/>

The pictures actually reminded me of how my dad's cacti rotted. Their pattern and 'texture' looks almost-exactly the same. So even though I've never grown lithops before, it does look like rot instead of some critter having a 'sweet' tooth for the flesh of the plant.

Sky

[Wisteria]

If overwatering is the cause of the rot, then why is it only 1 lithops is affected when there are 3 lithops in the same pot?

[Ifurita]

It takes time for the rot to progress, not to mention that the media may not be uniformly moist. Notice that even on the rotten plant, the top section is still fairly firm. The other Lithops in the same pot may not have reached the fatal point yet if you're lucky.

[boonboon]

mm, on 10 September 2011 - 11:56 AM, said:

Now from one OT to another. I've never quite understood the fascination with lithops. It strikes me too much of an exercise in patience (at the rate those things grow) and discipline (seeing how easily they rot, with just a single watering at the wrong time in cycle). I tried a few previously, and, personally speaking, found it most unsatisfying. But that's just me.

mm, I feel the same way too. I gave up on lithops already and plants that rot easily. Very demoralising. Graptopetalum is still my favourites. Sometimes, I do have an urge to go overseas for a few years perhaps to grow difficult plants like Lithops, Echeverias, Epiphyllum, Schlumbergera, Sempervivums as they always die on me no matter what I do. Is it purely a climate problem or otherwise? Frankly speaking I am not sure either. I will have tonnes to report if I am successful in growing these plants overseas using our local potting mixtures.

[Ifurita]

boonboon, on 10 September 2011 - 09:22 PM, said:

mm, I feel the same way too. I gave up on lithops already and plants that rot easily. Very demoralising. Graptopetalum is still my favourites. Sometimes, I do have an urge to go overseas for a few years perhaps to grow difficult plants like Lithops, Echeverias, Epiphyllum, Schlumbergera, Sempervivums as they always die on me no matter what I do. Is it purely a climate problem or otherwise? Frankly speaking I am not sure either. I will have tonnes to report if I am successful in growing these plants overseas using our local potting mixtures.

I think its a combination of climate and lack of skill(do forgive me for saying so). Our climate is very humid, which means that the media doesn't dry as quickly and hence the rot problem if watering is not done carefully. Add in that our direct sun can at times even cause burns/bleaching to some succulents(my Pseudolithos are victims of this) and that makes things even more nasty. Some of these plants may even need a temperature drop at night...in their native areas the days may be hot, but the nights are cool, so this *may* apply to *some* of these plants. All these factors increase difficulty by quite a large margin. However, that doesn't mean the plants are impossible to grow, just very difficult...and that's where skill comes in. I've had my share of Lithops rot on me too, all thanks to my itchy fingers causing me to water too much during the rest period. Still, I know it is possible to grow them because I've gotten Lithops through one whole growth cycle before and even flowering. That particular plant lasted quite a while...before I just had to get paranoid and water too much...you know what happened afterwards. :(/>

This post has been edited by Ifurita: 10 September 2011 - 10:04 PM

[derelor]

Its a matter of practice. Pay more school fees and in no time, we will all be experts.
hmmm... this sounds like mahjong.

my last batch of lithops are all dead except one, they dun do well without direct sun or under artificial lighting.

Now trying another batch in very good light. I give them a good drenching once a week. Let's see how long they will last me, before they surrender. Hahaha!!! :hysterical:/>

[spheredome]

Don't despair, in due time (probably in 1+ month if my stock arrive nicely) I will be releasing uniquely grown lithops which will make them growable here.

[derelor]

I feel that the rot is a eventual problem caused by the leaning of the tall lithop towards the sun and not so much of over-watering. If it is caused by over-watering, the soft rot will take over in a matter of hours to a day. What I think is that when the lithop lean towards the light, more "pressure" will be exerted on the neck due to the plant's own weight or pointed/sharp potting mix like stones bruising it. Finally leading to rot.

What I am doing now is that I pot my lithops pretty deep, and lets see what happens.

cheers

[spheredome]

From my observation, there are 2 types of death; rot and dying. Elongated lithop will die while overwatering causes rot.

A dead lithop will collapse like balloon, which is not a problem, while rot (like the one in pic) is caused by media or weak plants and pest manisfesting to the entire base. Even a strong fertilizer can cause it. Certain types of lowland lithops (mostly brown type) can grow with much problem.

I just faced a setback on one of my test subjects, one of test sample media got unusually soggy wet last 2 days resulting in mold rot which I am figuring why (first time seeing). Have to review the video recording of what happened with the environment in the past.

[kevin]

Rot ;(

I have similar case too. It will change to a weird color n suddenly everything will collapse. I found that you can't water them alot when they are cubby, they will just drink non stop until they burst like a balloon.

[fongkheon]

Thank you for all the replies and suggestions.

Now I am quite confirm that is "rot" :(/>

[Abby Lim]

derelor, on 12 September 2011 - 12:04 PM, said:

I feel that the rot is a eventual problem caused by the leaning of the tall lithop towards the sun and not so much of over-watering. If it is caused by over-watering, the soft rot will take over in a matter of hours to a day. What I think is that when the lithop lean towards the light, more "pressure" will be exerted on the neck due to the plant's own weight or pointed/sharp potting mix like stones bruising it. Finally leading to rot.

What I am doing now is that I pot my lithops pretty deep, and lets see what happens.

cheers

Hi friend, I may need your help to move them back to the rooftop asap, too wet and too little sun after their move, even some of them do well there, come over and see them on your own.

[XLplanter]

Poor tooth must be in pain! Ouch! :hitmyself:/>
Seems the smart bug is doing the decay and rotting well, so you don't notice it.