We treat the "home doctor": how to save aloe if rotted roots?

Aloe is often called an agave or "home doctor". This is a strong plant with fleshy bluish-green leaves with spikes on the edges.

It is unpretentious and does not require special conditions for detention, however, and it can be exposed to diseases. Often this is due to non-compliance with the rules of care.

You will learn more about how to detect an ailment in time, about the signs and causes of rotting of the roots of a plant and how to save it from this article.

How to detect a problem in time?

Rotting of the roots often occurs with improper care. This is a dangerous disease, often leading to the death of the agave. Since the plant is in a pot, it is not always possible to understand that the root system is suffering. Therefore, a regular examination of aloe is necessary in order to identify alarming symptoms by external signs.

Often, flower growers, until the very last moment, drag out plants from the pot with a recess, for fear of harming it. They try to feed the situation or other measures to change the situation, but this only exacerbates the situation. There are no external signs of improvement, but the “home doctor” continues to grow weak.

Signs of decay of the root system of the plant

• With a regular inspection of the agave, you can notice that the growth has stopped or slowed down, and the plant does not react to watering.
• Withering of old leaves begins.
• Aloe vera begins to be barely exposed from below.
• The barrel is drying out.
• At the root neck, the plant becomes so thin that it can even break off. More information about the causes of problems with leaves and about the features of care can be found here.
• The appearance of the agave looks satisfactory, but the lower leaves become soft, loose, as if saturated with water. More information about the causes of problems with leaves, as well as about the features of care, can be found here.
• A strong, pungent, unpleasant odor comes from the pot.

Causes of the disease

Recall that aloe refers to succulents. In the natural environment, agave grows in an arid, hot climate on sandy, well-ventilated, light soils. Violation of agricultural technology when growing succulents leads to big problems.

Frequent watering

With constant wetting of the earthen coma, the soil spreads. If the earth is heavy, clay, a dense crust forms on the surface after drying. Since the plant breathes not only its ground but also the underground part, carbon dioxide is constantly released into the soil. Souring of land during waterlogging is a frequent consequence of this. Many nutrients go into forms that are not absorbed by the plant.

Strong dampness and increased acidity of the soil lead to the onset of root disease.

Close pot

The roots of an adult plant in a tight pot are woven into a tight ring. With excessive overmoistening, the moisture inside the coma is constant, and there is almost no oxygen. At the same time, the earth may look dried up from above. This difference leads to the fact that the plant experiences additional stress and begins to rot inside.

Hypothermia

If supercooling is added to excess moisture, the situation is exacerbated. According to statistics, the roots of succulents more often rot in the autumn and winter, when the windows blow heavily, and the earth in pots cools. But even in the warm season, pouring cold water harms the plant.

Pathogenic Infections

Sometimes with moderate watering, a disease can develop due to a fungal infection. This happens if aloe is planted in a container in which a diseased plant lived before it. Some bacteria can live on the walls of an old pot for years, and as soon as a favorable situation arises for them, they will easily master a new space.

Organic fertilizer dressing

Often, flower growers, trying to revive a diseased plant with dressings, exacerbate the situation, causing a surge in the development of bacteria that provoke rot. Manure or bird droppings is especially harmful to aloe.

In the period of illness of the plant, it is better to refrain from dressing.

How to save the agave if its root system is damaged?

What to do if aloe roots have already partially rotted? An urgent plant transplant is required.

The transplantation process consists of several steps:

1. Take aloe out of the pot, gently freeing it from a clod of earth.
2. Rinse the roots with warm, running water
3. Put the plant on a clean cloth or paper, dry the roots for several hours
4. Determine the degree of damage.
5. Use a clean, sharp knife to remove rotten roots to a healthy tissue.
6. Powder the slices with charcoal, sulfur powder, or a crushed tablet of activated carbon to prevent infection.
7. Dry the cropped roots for one day. Aloe painlessly tolerates this procedure.
8. Prepare new soil for planting. The soil should be light, breathable with the addition of river sand in a ratio of 2: 1. You can use the finished mixture for cacti.
9. It is advisable to use a new pot for planting. If replacement is not possible, wash the old container thoroughly with soap and water.
10. At the bottom of the pot to make a drainage of sand.
11. Pour over the prepared soil mixture and plant the plant without watering or slightly moistening the substrate.
12. Put the plant in a warm, shaded place.
13. Do the first watering three weeks after planting.

Caring for a “home doctor” after a transplant

When the agave has taken root, switch to the mode of moderate moistening of the earth with room temperature water.

It is recommended to water the agave twice a month in the warm season. In autumn and winter, water aloe once a month, or even leave the plant without water until spring. Carefully ensure that the plant does not stand in the cold or in a draft.

Observing the golden rule for aloe that dry content is better than waterlogging, you can enjoy the healthy look of a "home doctor" for a long time.

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