A Gardeners Forum Forums General Discussion The House Plant Forum Please advise!

I have a beautiful & old Jade tree plant. It seems to lose leaves excessively. What's wrong and what can I do?

can you give details on where it's sitting, and how you care for it? from my experience, jades loosing leaves is a sign of not enough water, but there are other reasons as well.

It is in a northeast facing room. Not too much light, especially in the summer months. Tress outside block the light somewhat.In a Terra cotta pot. I water it when it dries out.

Jades lose leaves when under any kind of stress. If you have recently re-potted or moved its location, it can drop leaves. They usually, slowly recover. Check for any possible pests on the plant or in the soil.

Oh, and welcome to the forum, RevDavid.

What pests am I lookin' for and it hasn't been in stress that I know of.

Also the leaves that fall are very full of water and get mushy!

Pests aren't the likely culprit, but you'd know them if you saw them, I'm not sure what you should expect...if you don't see them, you can probably eliminate pests. I doubt it's disease, either. I agree that stress is the likely explanation. How long have you had it, how long has it been where it is...I belive Jades are one of the succulent plants that prefers to dry out somewhat between waterings, but at the same time, doesn't like to be dry for too long.
succulents can be somewhat finicky that way.
Do the leaves yellow before they fall? Do they get crisp at all?
My immediate conclusion would have to be that your watering regimine needs adjusting, but...
Have you fertilized recently, or changed any routine? That could count as a stress factor, moreso than neglect, really.

Ah!!
I was typing while you posted, cut back on water, then see what happens.

They don't get crisp. they just fall off. I have not fertilized and it has been there since October 2008. Thanks. Since the leaves are so wet I'm thinking maybe too much water. how long should I go between waterings!

Make sure it dries below the soil line at least an inch but more is better. Then water sparingly. Try every two weeks instead of every week. and see if it perks up.

Thank you I will. I'll let you know.

Meanwhile, try this. Get a pot full of cactus starting soil, or a soil with say, 50% sand, and put the fallen leaves in it. More than likely, you will get rooted plants to replant into other containers.

Too much water is right....let the jade dry out completely then give it water. I have a large jade plant sitting in a south window and I water it about once a month or every 3 weeks. You may loose quite a few leaves, but don't give up on your jade it will bounce back. Sometimes it just needs to be trimmed a bit then off it goes again.

I have a Jade, I usually let it go completly dry and then water. I usually water it about once every 2 weeks when its hot, but mine is outside on the porch. Since your's is inside, it will probably not need watering as much.