The Christmas cactus is one of the most common plants in many homes. However, after a while, it’s common for it to start losing the verve it had when you bought it. Do you now have a Christmas cactus with soft leaves?
This problem, believe it or not, can be serious, to the point of damaging the plant very negatively. But to solve it, you must first find out why it happened. And even if we tell you it’s because you’re not giving it the proper care, what have you failed at? Here we leave you the main reasons.
Irrigation
As you know, Watering is one of the most important cares for Christmas cacti. It needs to be watered, but it is true that it does not need it as much as other plants. This is what can cause you to mess up and bring up the dreaded limp leaves.
And it is that, when this plant lacks water, the shine and strength of its leaves are lost. In other words, it begins to reserve itself to stay alive longer at the cost of losing its leaves, which is why they become limp.
Now welljust as lack of irrigation can be a problem, too much is harmful. And a lot. Because by watering it so much, it means that the plant cannot absorb the nutrients from this water and therefore it does not reach the leaves, so you will have the same problem.
The solution in this case is to establish a good balance in the irrigation. Try following this guideline:
In spring and summer, water only once a week.
In autumn and winter, every 15 days.
It’s not something you have to follow to the letter, but if you start there and see how the plant evolves, if you notice that its leaves change, you will have more time to act (with more or less d watering).
Substrate
Another reason the Christmas cactus has limp leaves may be due to the soil you used to plant it. In case you don’t know, the ideal soil for this cactus should carry a lot of organic matter. Otherwise, he will suffer. Maybe not at the beginning (when you bought or transplanted it) but in the short-medium term you will have this problem.
The solution here is much simpler since you will only have to do an emergency soil change, transferring it to soil that you know is doing well.
Pass
Another soil-related problem we discussed earlier that can cause limp leaves to your Christmas cactus is compost. Sometimes not understanding the care a plant needs leads you to make mistakes. And in the case of the Christmas cactus, excess minerals and sodium can be a “death sentence”.
In other words, wanting to give it more energy and have more nutrients can only cause the plant to die from excess. Especially if it’s related to extra sodium or other minerals. If possible, it’s best that you don’t pay it, or if you do, very occasionally.
Old age
All plants have a life cycle. And there are some who put leaves, flowers, etc. that they are not eternal, but that after a while they must die to make way for others.
This is what we are going to find in this chaos with the Christmas cactus. Sometimes you’re not doing anything wrong with your plants, but what’s happening is a natural aging process. whereby the plant begins to let the leaves become softer and softer, it no longer bears flowers, and gradually it dries up or falls off. It’s bad? Far from it, it’s actually good because it implies that a new leaf may be on the way.
Diseases
We can’t avoid it, the truth is that you can also find problems, and serious problems, in your Christmas cactus. When there is no reason for this plant to have limp leaves, at least none of the above reasons, you must take into account that you are facing a plague or a disease.
What do you do in such cases? To start, check the plant from top to bottom. You need to see if there is a pest, insect or something that is rare and can put you on alert. If you find it, try to identify the problem and then seek the best possible treatment.
If this is due to an infestation, you can start by thoroughly cleaning the plant., then seek treatment to treat it and prevent it from happening again. This implies that the plant will be bad for a while, and it may not return to the size you bought it with. But it will save her.
If sick, it can be a little more difficult to locate and treat, but you can always try.
salt buildup
When irrigated with insufficient water or during fertilization, there can sometimes be salt accumulations which, although they do not appear at the beginning or do not cause damage, over time and as the amount increases, can cause problems, making the leaves soft.
The solution is simple: change the water or use sodium-free fertilizers. Either way, the problem should end, and the Christmas cactus should have good leaves.
Sun exposure
Although we are talking about a cactus, the truth is that the location to put it is not so simple. Concretely, if there is too much sun on the leaves, they can burn, but it can also cause them to lose their hydration, hence the leaves appear dehydrated. The solution to recover them is to water it so that it reabsorbs the water it has lost with the sun.
But you should also move it to a less sunny location.
Having a Christmas cactus with soft leaves is not a good thing. Therefore, at least once a week, we recommend that you consult him to anticipate any problem he may encounter. Has this ever happened to you? How did you solve it?