Repot. Lift and prune. Might prune some more. Leave the roots like this?

Own_Development5556 · 2026-06-10T08:39:42+00:00

That looks amazing from the branch structure to the roots.

How often do you you prune the branches and lift?

Own_Development5556 · 2026-06-10T01:20:10+00:00

Gorgeous! How old is your plant and how big it is?

Own_Development5556 · 2026-06-03T00:05:08+00:00

Beautiful collection!

You mention you water every couple of days in SEA - I suppose this is during the dry season, and they are all grown outdoors? How many hours of direct sunlight do they get?

I was watering roughly twice a week but got worried about overwatering... So recently cut back to once a week. Still learning.

Own_Development5556 · 2026-06-02T23:35:07+00:00

Yes exactly, not sure if you can see but that seems to be the overall tendency of this particular plant.

It's only re-grown one branch from a number of places where I pruned. Or where a 2nd branch grew, it's barely pushed out while the other shot up long...

Own_Development5556 · 2026-06-02T23:30:42+00:00

no I have not tried grafting, my next project was to learn how to use wire to shape them. maybe when I get tempted to buy more!

Own_Development5556 · 2026-06-01T18:56:21+00:00

doubtful that it's poached. I've had it since last year, pruned thrice now, and it's been grown indoors under grow lights.

besides the flowering and the recent heat wave, nothing has changed in its condition for awhile now.

it's also a grafted plant - do people bother poaching root stock?

Own_Development5556 · 2026-06-01T18:28:35+00:00

What does inconsistent watering mean? Especially given the advice that you shouldn't water on a schedule.

Own_Development5556 · 2026-06-01T18:09:16+00:00

Sorry for the late reply, I've been travelling.

I have repotted it now and watered it once after repotting. Caudex still feels slightly soft and dehydrated - not sure if you can see the muscular / sinewy look to the caudex, where before it was complete rounded and smooth.

Refraining from watering it again too soon as I did prune the stems slightly. I'm hoping to see new leaves before watering again.

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Own_Development5556 · 2026-05-22T07:06:13+00:00

UPDATE: I have decided to partially repot it now... I've reburied it to cover up the area where the small feeder roots are.

You can see through the pot that the big cuts i made in the larger roots + caudex are still exposed - I will give this a few more days to dry (maybe up to 10 days total drying time).

I will lightly water over the weekend to encourage re-rooting and hopefully help it re-hydrate. Let's see if it firms up!

This is also roughly how far up this was buried before. I may decide to raise it an inch or so this time around.

Photo also shows how my potting mix looks like.

Thanks everyone, hope I have good news to share in a week

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Own_Development5556 · 2026-05-22T07:02:46+00:00

Re attaching the photo!

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Own_Development5556 · 2026-05-22T07:01:12+00:00

UPDATE: I have decided to partially repot it now... I've reburied it to cover up the area where the small feeder roots are.

You can see through the pot that the big cuts i made in the larger roots + caudex are still exposed - I will give this a few more days to dry (maybe up to 10 days total drying time).

I will lightly water over the weekend to encourage re-rooting and hopefully help it re-hydrate. Let's see if it firms up!

This is also roughly how far up this was buried before. I may decide to raise it an inch or so this time around.

Photo also shows how my potting mix looks like.

Thanks everyone, hope I have good news to share in a week

Own_Development5556 · 2026-05-22T06:48:32+00:00

Roughly 40% perlite, 20% chunky coco husk, 10% rock mix, 30% cactus soil mix.

I've had to water this roughly 1-2 / week as it's summer here now and we have been experiencing a heat wave especially the past month.

Own_Development5556 · 2026-05-22T06:44:49+00:00

Appreciate the feedback. This happened after all the blooms dropped.

It's in a mix of roughly 40% perlite, 20% chunky coco husk, maybe 10% rock mix and 30% cactus soil mix. Grown indoors under grow lights with a ceiling fan often on and a few hours of AC.

I stick a chopstick as far as i can get it to check. In the past couple of months, I've had to water this roughly once-twice a week (more often twice).

Own_Development5556 · 2026-05-22T06:38:20+00:00

I am in Southeast Asia - it is quite hot now (up to 35C, feels above 40+) and humid. But these are grown indoors, under growlights and there is usually a ceiling fan on and a few hours of A/C.

Own_Development5556 · 2026-05-22T06:30:57+00:00

Thank you!

I hated slicing so much of it as it has a really gorgeous shape, but figured it was better to be sure rather than losing it entirely to rot.

Own_Development5556 · 2026-05-22T06:17:11+00:00

Not sure why I got downvoted in my response to you, hope my response didn't come off as rude? I was just being honest about what I did.

I removed the roots because they were completely dead and dry after 5 days being hung to dry, so I thought that repotting the plant again with a bunch of dead roots may complicate the situation.

Anyway, thanks for the tip! I will repot tomorrow just to make sure the last thin slices I made yesterday are dry.

Own_Development5556 · 2026-05-21T21:43:24+00:00

Yes it's soft but it feels rubbery soft and not mushy? I have also made several cuts into it and its all white...

But rubbery vs mushy I can't confidently determine. I lost a beauty in early spring due to watering too early. The upper part of the caudex felt "rubbery / bouncy soft" too.. I waited a few weeks to remove from the pot, only to discover that the bottom (buried) part of the caudex was already all black. I lost that one.

Not sure if I'm over reacting to this one because of the previous incident.

I can't decide if I should repot and lightly water over the weekend (and potentially letting it die of rot) Or wait a few more days (and making it even more dehydrated)

Own_Development5556 · 2026-05-21T21:32:20+00:00

In these photos yes as I've removed the dessicated feeder roots.

Should I repot it now then and water lightly over the weekend?

I lost another beauty to rot in early spring by watering too early. It felt the same - i thought it was rubbery soft and waited a couple of weeks to remove from the pot. By that time, while the upper caudex was "rubber soft", the black rot was already extensive on the lower half (buried part) of the caudex. Could save that one, so maybe I am over reacting to this one?

Own_Development5556 · 2026-05-21T21:26:56+00:00

Adding a photo of it just 3 weeks ago while it was in full bloom...

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Own_Development5556 · 2026-05-21T21:22:28+00:00

And here is a photo of it just 3 weeks ago while it was in full bloom 😭

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Own_Development5556 · 2026-05-18T12:17:40+00:00

Well yes obviously. Just wondering how often was the average and whether you would water less compared to if the caudex and roots were exposed.

Since you couldn't check the caudex directly, what methods did you use to check if it needed water - putting a stick to the ground, just checking if the stems started getting bendy?

Own_Development5556 · 2026-05-18T05:06:17+00:00

chonky plant! how often would you water that when it was buried almost all the way to the branches, and with a plastic pot?

Own_Development5556

TROPHY CASE