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by Tom
(Chicago)

vinelike-succulent-with-many-roots-on-leaves-and-no-buds-21607453

Long, scraggy vine-like behavior. No flowers or buds, but many roots on fleshy leaves. Vines are 3-4′ long. See photo.

Drought Smart Plants reply:
Oh that poor thing! I would say it’s some kind of Rhipsalis, or Rick Rack plant, judging from the zig zag edges of the leaves.

Whenever a plant is growing roots like that out of the leaves it generally indicates some kind of issue with the soil, and the roots (the kind it’s supposed to have) are rotting.

If the pot has no drainage hole, this can be an issue, as the water pools and drowns the roots.

It speaks to the incredible resourcefulness of these kinds of plants that they can send out roots from the leaves to take over the gathering of nutrients and moisture from the air.

If you pull the plant out of the pot, you’ll be able to see if this is the case. Healthy roots will look white or pink at the ends, dead ones will be mushy, black or brown, or withered.

At this point, you have two choices:
Repot the existing plant into a larger pot with a drain hole using some kind of soil mix with good drainage, but also some compost as a base (many potting soils use peat moss or coir, which is acceptable). The soil mix should always be sterilized if it’s for indoor plants.

The second option is to take cuttings off the plant, and discard the original plant.

I do this routinely with most plants I get, as they seem to do much better for me – I think they are adapted to my conditions and soil mix right from the start.

Many commercial greenhouses use techniques and soil mixes that will encourage the most amount of growth right at the start, and after the plant uses up all the nutrients and clogs the soil with roots, it becomes rootbound, and languishes.

Best of luck with your plant – oh, and by the way, when happy, these plants will bloom, but as I’m not 100% sure exactly which kind it is, I can’t tell you what they will look like.

Jacki

See these pages too for some similar plants:

Schlumbergera

Epiphyllum

Succulent Plant Propagation

Comments for vine-like succulent with many roots on leaves and no buds

Jun 02, 2016

vine like succulent
by: Debbieplantlady

that is an epiphyllum orchid cactus that blooms large flowers at night