Avocado & Succulent house plants

jayne.fishwick · December 2020

After many, many attempts I’ve finally got an avocado plant to grow from a stone. However it’s besieged with tiny flies. I read that they’re likely laying eggs in the soil & to let it completely dry out & they’ll disappear which I did with success. Yeea. 👏🏼

However the minute I watered it they’re BACK! From outer space... I just turned round to find them here with that sad look upon their face... sorry 🤣 Carried away there. I’ve covered the soil (part vermiculite) with cling film to keep ‘em out but any suggestions?

Secondly, I’ve had a flaming Katy for years that hasn’t flowered since the first time but has grown well & was looking lovely & healthy until suddenly it’s dropped half the leaves & looks a sad specimen of its former self. If I Google a remedy I read could be under or over watering! Less than helpful 🥴. I definitely haven’t overwatered it as I know it’s a succulent blah blah. So I’ve watered it a tad more but it’s still dropping leaves & looking sorrowful. So what can I do? Shall I trim the bare stems or wait it out (or chuck it)? 🤔

Many thanks to those who have read till the end & not nodded off part way! 😬

Obelixx · December 2020

Avocado - why? Have you any idea how big these things want to grow? What are you going to do when it gets too big for your house? They grow well in India, Kenya, California, Mexico - warm all year, plenty of sunlight - and they are fussy about the quality of their water.

Kalanchoe - this plant needs to be allowed to dry out between waterings especially in winter. In summer it will appreciate filtered light, not direct sun, but it still needs bright light and should be fed 2 or 3 times during the growing season to help it re-flower. It needs a gritty compost and the best way to water is to dunk the pot in water till no more bubbles appear then let it drain completely before putting it back on display. They don't do well if you get the foliage wet.

jayne.fishwick · December 2020

Thanks for replying. My friend in Canada showed me her neighbours’ avocado plant & it seemed like a fun challenge! 🙄

The Kalanchoe was doing very well till recently & I pretty much did all that you said, fed & watered it although didn’t dunk. But you can see how it’s looking now so... can it be rescued?

Buttercupdays · December 2020

I use terracotta pots for my cacti and succulents as they dry out more quickly than plastic. Have you checked that no surplus water is sitting in the outer bucket?

It looks more like too much rather than too little water to me. When they are dry they just hunker down in survival mode, like all plants from arid areas and wait it out.

I would tip it out and check the roots are ok, trim off any bits that look rotten if you find them and repot in gritty compost and preferably terracotta. Put more grit under the pot, so it doesn't sit in water if you accidentally overdose and try to find it a place with a bit more light, it seems to be reaching a bit! Mine lives on a south facing windowsill, but I am in the gloomy North west

jayne.fishwick · December 2020

I’m in the gloomy North West too! 🤦🏻‍♀️

I definitely haven’t overwatered it... well I may have now 🙄 after reading leaves dropping could be either under or over watering which I’ve always struggled to understand, what a conflict of advice! 🤷🏻‍♀️ But having killed off plants before by letting my neighbour loose on them (you could wring ‘em out they were that sodden), I’m always careful just to give a trickle to succulents especially in winter.

I have moved it a few feet recently, swapping it with another plant from the floor to nearer the window but not for light purpose as it’s done so well, but never re-flowered. Now I have all these bare stems which I read somewhere may not do anything.

I think I’ll leave it be for the time being as each time I touch it another shed full of leaves drop off!

Thanks for your suggestions though, much appreciated 😬

JennyJ · December 2020

I think if it was mine I'd go for the kill-or-cure approach and cut it back quite hard. That might encourage it to grow out from low down, or it might give up the ghost completely. That's a good excuse to buy a new plant

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wild edges · December 2020

Fungus gnats are a pain. I advise all out warfare as a minimum approach or you'll be battling them until you throw the plants away. It's a good time of year to get on top of them though as plants need less water at the moment. Step one is get some yellow sticky traps and put them near the problem plants. I attach them to a small stick and push them into the soil and that seems to catch plenty. Sadly only about 50% of gnats fall for the traps so you need to catch the rest using the hoover. Cover any bare soil with fine gravel and water the plants from underneath so the top of the pot always stays dry. If the problem persists then you need to buy some mosquito dunks and break some up into the water you give to the plants. It contains a bacteria that kills the larvae. Probably better to do this in the spring though when the plants need more water so you don't risk overwatering now.

Avocados are fun to grow and you can always compost them when they get too big and start again. I use a small vase of water which is a figure of eight shape and the seed fits perfectly above the neck until it's got enough root to be potted on. Or I used to anyway. The vase has mysteriously disappeared without a trace which is probably a divine sign that my wife is sick of me growing avocados

Ergates · December 2020

philippasmith2 said:

If you have a compost heap simply put your avocado stones in there - over the summer months, you'll find they will sprout readily and can be removed and potted up.
They do make quite stately plants for a few years but that's about it unfortunately

What a clever and fun idea! I’ll try that.

jayne.fishwick · December 2020

JennyJ said:

I think if it was mine I'd go for the kill-or-cure approach and cut it back quite hard. That might encourage it to grow out from low down, or it might give up the ghost completely. That's a good excuse to buy a new plant .

That’s what I usually do Jenny.... I’ll give it a go... thanks! 🙏🏼

jayne.fishwick · December 2020

wild edges said:

Fungus gnats are a pain. I advise all out warfare as a minimum approach or you'll be battling them until you throw the plants away. It's a good time of year to get on top of them though as plants need less water at the moment. Step one is get some yellow sticky traps and put them near the problem plants. I attach them to a small stick and push them into the soil and that seems to catch plenty. Sadly only about 50% of gnats fall for the traps so you need to catch the rest using the hoover. Cover any bare soil with fine gravel and water the plants from underneath so the top of the pot always stays dry. If the problem persists then you need to buy some mosquito dunks and break some up into the water you give to the plants. It contains a bacteria that kills the larvae. Probably better to do this in the spring though when the plants need more water so you don't risk overwatering now.
Avocados are fun to grow and you can always compost them when they get too big and start again. I use a small vase of water which is a figure of eight shape and the seed fits perfectly above the neck until it's got enough root to be potted on. Or I used to anyway. The vase has mysteriously disappeared without a trace which is probably a divine sign that my wife is sick of me growing avocados

Thank you Wild Edges for your comprehensive response. I’ll try & find some of the yellow sticky traps for the pesky little blighters that I’ve been chasing & swiping at in mid air! At the moment they’ve stayed away from the avocado after I sprinkled a bit of cinnamon on the soul which I read somewhere. I’ll cover the soil with gravel & water from underneath.

Oddly enough although I’ve tried so many times, none have ever produced roots. This one was a slightly different method of scraping away the outer part, sitting in water in a transparent tub. I nearly didn’t bother to plant it! Tell your wife I hear they bear fruit after 10 years! 🤣 She’ll probably stop buying them next! 😄

strelitzia32 · December 2020

I find sundews quite effective at controlling fungus gnats, as long as you get them in place near the affected pots before you're overrun.

Avocado & Succulent house plants

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