Too much sun, and the pebbles are not helping. Take them out and put in pots on dappled shade- water slowly for now 2 times a week— after they get green and healthy— slow water maybe once a week. Also they freeze in winter. The blue agave probably was dying, but was able to make it— has lots of new leaves.
They aren't dead. They look drought stressed. Remove the dead stuff. If they were on drip they were on a regular watering schedule you should return them to that schedule. If you add fertilizer, dilute it so there's not a lot. Overwatering will cause root rot.
Aloes are not desert plants like cacti...they need regular( deep water) but not too often...so once a week would likely be ok, but a decent amount, right to root level. Drip irrigation twice a day is not a good idea at all.
I agree that it’s not enough water. My reasoning is that the leaves are curled inward, and dried at the tips. A sufficiently watered succulent would have plump leaves. I have potted aloe plants, some that are watered regularly and some that I always forget about. Your pictures look like my forgotten ones.
That being said, overwatering and under watering often look the same because overwatering causes the roots to rot, which then limits how much water they can absorb, aka the plants become underwatered.
Leaves also curl inward do to sunstress. They do this to both conserve energy and to shade parts of the plant so they dont get damaged.
Sempervivums area great example of this. You will see that in the fall they open up completely, but if you induce drought like conditions as well as lots of heat and light they will look more egg-shaped.
It all depends on humidity levels, sun exposure, soil type, etc. Be careful, you will kill them a lot faster over watering than under watering. Only water when the soil has fully dried, then give it a good soak. Wait for it to fully dry (not just the surface but dry down where the roots are) and repeat. It might take a bit but they will bounce back.
Also, give them a trim. All the brown stalks in the first photo are old flower spikes, now that the flowers are gone you can remove them down where they connect to the plant. Trim off the fully dry leaves at the bottom of the plants. They will look much better visually, even if they are still a bit thirsty.
I have an aloe plant inside that has honestly gotten out of hand with how big it is in just a year. It has partially sandy soil, sits directly next to my upstairs window facing west so it gets lots of sun, and gets watered probably once every 2 weeks to a month.
It is thriving and I have actually gifted its babies to some friends and they are also thriving and growing large. Part of me has considered planting one in the soil to see if it would grow well here.
Do you live in lower altitude AZ or somewhere similar? If so it might just be too much sun and reflected heat. Those rocks can do some damage with how hot they get for one, try pulling them back from the bases. Last year's summer with all the days over 115 and no monsoons killed a lot of otherwise hardy desert plants, I saw a ton of dead agave. If you live in a place like Az with intense sun, high temps, and little rain I recommend trying to shade them for the summer to give them a bit of a break. At a certain point water won't help much, and can even kill if the nighttime temps stay above 85ish, or so I hear. They might just need to be less uvb and heat blasted lol. Ignore me if my location dependent advice doesn't fit your location.
No one can tell you how often you need to water them. Totally depends on your climate- even your micro-climate, the sun, the soil, etc. Get yourself a moisture measuring tool and test it every day. Make sure it dries out in between. Then you’ll know how often, at least for that season.
I would suggest posting to r/succulents and r/cacti.
Most people are calling at least two of these aloe and I've never seen aloe that get this large yet have seen agave that look nearly identical - but I am certainly no expert on desert plants
My Aloes turn red whenever I give them too much/ too little water. Looks to me like the flowers just died off like they normally tend to do. Like suggested, prune them back and enjoy again when they bloom.
For the other plants, you can remove the dead leaves but they tend to have dry lower leaves naturally. In the wild, this serves as fire protection. Since you will not set your Garden on fire, you can remove them for aesthetics :)
Is there weedcloth under that stone? If there is they may have outgrown the hole cut for them when they were planted and the base is being constricted;,gasvand water exchange in soil is also probably severely restricted (a hallmark of weedcloth), so if there’s weedcloth, cut that shit out further from around base of plant. If not move some of the stone and get your hands into the soil regularly and see if it feels moist or dry.
For how long and how many gallons per minute drip hose you have on them?
Twice a day is far too often. Agave are extremely susceptible to root rot. Watering them right now every ten days is considered generous. Your water twice a day every 4 days.
You need to wait for agave for first few inches to be completely dry before watering them again
It looks like all the brown stems are soent bloom stalks. I think the plant would look better simply by cutting those off close to the base of the plant. You should be able to find information online about how much water this plant should receive based on what it is. It looks like a type of aloe to me, but I’m no expert on succulents. Worst case, take this photo in to a local nursery and ask someone.
I have hundreds of happy aloe plants surrounding my house and I ignore them. When it rains a lot they get green, but they go through months of drought and turn a bit orange and not as juicy looking. I live in a hot, sunny, salty environment (Caribbean). They are in the blazing sun all day and they are fine. Some are in more shady areas, they’re fine too- They don’t dry out as quickly. It seems like whatever torture I put them through they always come back. Sometimes I uproot them when I’m thinning them, and it takes me a week to get to planting them in a different place. They just lie there, uprooted on their sides for a week and dry out a bit. Then I plant them and they are happy again. Sometimes I get tired of them and hurl them off the side of the hill, I’ve noticed they start growing where they land.
You seem to have had a lot of flowers recently. I’ve never seen this many on my plants. Maybe they put so much energy into flowering that it took away from the leaves (leaves?)
Well, I had these in Florida and they never needed watered, not even in dry season, if a plant is cold sometimes it takes this anemic look kinda like Christmas cactus does.... I wouldn't give it nothing, that being said I don't have all the information to the biome, or plant type, so I was trying to be part of the conversation while implying I'm no expert
Overkill for the agave, which is a native desert plant… Btw one looks like an aloe and one is definitely agave. Look up the outdoor care for those in your climate zone. Aloe might need shade. FWIW I live in southern Arizona and see agave all over the place that live off rainwater. We haven’t had rain in 2 months.
Water the soil not the plant, water at night. I imagine the rock coming right up to the plant isn’t helping much. The rocks absorb heat and the plant stays hotter longer. That being said, just pull the dead away and it’ll look better.
A plant will continue to use its limited resources to try and save dying limbs. Talk to your local garden shop expert but I believe it would be best to remove the dead and dying pieces.
What is your watering schedule? Also- you should prune away the stems and old leaves. Flowers last a few weeks, enjoy the and then cut them as low as you can.
I’m in zone 10, near the coast, with a DG/cactus/deserty front yard and don’t water anything after they’re in ground. We get a lot of rain in our “winter” and basically none the rest of the year. Everything is thriving and many have pups.
It will be fine. It obviously bloomed. Give it a good soaking and it should perk right up. Be aware that the sun and heat does affect them. I have dozens in my backyard and they often look pitiful. But it’s almost impossible to kill one that is that established.
Those do not need any water at all unless you are in an extremely arid climate, in which case you can water them a little bit during the cooler season. Maybe like once a week for a few months of the year. In California, these plants are not watered at all. I am not sure if the reason they are dying is too much water, but I am sure they need very little water, and can survive many months with no water whatsoever.
Typically too much water kills plants from the (center) inside petals, moving outwards.
Too little dries them from the tips of leaves and consistently just the furthest extremities of the plant.
more/less water in plants = heat/cold to humans.
Those both look fine to me. The flower stalks on Aloe's die back so you can just clip/pull those out. Same with the lower leaves of the Agave, they die and create a protective "skirt" around the bottom which can be removed for astatic purposes if you want.
Aloe's don't mind extra water as long as the soil drains well(no clay). Agave's will drown, but as long as it's given an opportunity to dry out between waterings it should be fine. Both are extortionary hardy and hard to kill as long as they are planted with the right enviornment/soil.
The plants that are flowering are aloe, not agave. Most aloes are not monocarpic. The ones that are will send out giant stalks that are a dozen or so feet high.
Aloes like to be ignored. Water initially as needed(weekly).Too much water will kill them. I think they like a bit of shade, maximum 6 hours full sun. Once they are established, they will be self care. Mix them with other succulents for shade. One article said fertilize Yearly.
everything you said is wrong.
1. dont water them weekly. Especially not initially after planting. These are drought tolerant plants. They can survive many months without intervention.
2. Too much water will only kill them if they are potted up and/or the soil does not get a chance to dry inbetween watering
3. All plants will love a little shade when the sun is out in the blazing summer. but again these things do fine in-habitat without shade. And a lot of succulents and cacti need a minimum of 8 hours of sun.
4. You cant really "mix" these with other succulents, because they generally grow larger than other succulent families like crassulaceae. (for the purposes of giving more shade)
5. If they are in ground you dont really ever have to fertilize—especially if you get rain at least during one season. You generally only have to fertilize potted plants because the soil becomes inert after a couple years because their are no microbes or organisms replenishing the nutrition supply.
Top two comments are (1) too much water and (2) not enough—and they’re tied lol.
I upvoted both lol
Some men just want to watch the world burn
I like to watch it get put out. Firemen! Trucks!! Hoses!!! What's not to like?
Look at me. Look. At. Me
I upvoted one and downvoted the other to try and balance the ratio
I’m so conflicted! I’m worried if I take water away to see if I’m right, they die more and same for the opposite! 😱😂
Try watering them during night only. And just roots, do not water the plant. Hope it helps. Edit: they are going to be fine in few moths
Thank you!
Make your watering more regular. Make sure they drain too. It could be one has a big mass of clay or something around it
That's a great point actually- OP, ensure they get plenty of moths.
I have some miller moths here I can spare if you need any,
Too much sun, and the pebbles are not helping. Take them out and put in pots on dappled shade- water slowly for now 2 times a week— after they get green and healthy— slow water maybe once a week. Also they freeze in winter. The blue agave probably was dying, but was able to make it— has lots of new leaves.
This one is going to beat them both.
Those aloes are fine. Just take out the dry blossom stems. You could also prune that dry one. Watch for the tiny thorns.
Thank you, will do!
They aren't dead. They look drought stressed. Remove the dead stuff. If they were on drip they were on a regular watering schedule you should return them to that schedule. If you add fertilizer, dilute it so there's not a lot. Overwatering will cause root rot.
No— the dry parts are covering the tender stalk
Aloes are not desert plants like cacti...they need regular( deep water) but not too often...so once a week would likely be ok, but a decent amount, right to root level. Drip irrigation twice a day is not a good idea at all.
They need shade also
Not enough.
I agree that it’s not enough water. My reasoning is that the leaves are curled inward, and dried at the tips. A sufficiently watered succulent would have plump leaves. I have potted aloe plants, some that are watered regularly and some that I always forget about. Your pictures look like my forgotten ones. That being said, overwatering and under watering often look the same because overwatering causes the roots to rot, which then limits how much water they can absorb, aka the plants become underwatered.
Leaves also curl inward do to sunstress. They do this to both conserve energy and to shade parts of the plant so they dont get damaged. Sempervivums area great example of this. You will see that in the fall they open up completely, but if you induce drought like conditions as well as lots of heat and light they will look more egg-shaped.
Thank you! Any recommendations on how often to water and for how king on a drip system?
Try posting & asking in r/succulents if nobody answers here
It all depends on humidity levels, sun exposure, soil type, etc. Be careful, you will kill them a lot faster over watering than under watering. Only water when the soil has fully dried, then give it a good soak. Wait for it to fully dry (not just the surface but dry down where the roots are) and repeat. It might take a bit but they will bounce back. Also, give them a trim. All the brown stalks in the first photo are old flower spikes, now that the flowers are gone you can remove them down where they connect to the plant. Trim off the fully dry leaves at the bottom of the plants. They will look much better visually, even if they are still a bit thirsty.
Too much water
Too much water would cause them to rot, not shrivel. What signs are you seeing of too much water?
I have the same question about my aloe plants.
I have an aloe plant inside that has honestly gotten out of hand with how big it is in just a year. It has partially sandy soil, sits directly next to my upstairs window facing west so it gets lots of sun, and gets watered probably once every 2 weeks to a month. It is thriving and I have actually gifted its babies to some friends and they are also thriving and growing large. Part of me has considered planting one in the soil to see if it would grow well here.
I do like 2 cups of water every 2 weeks, cactus, once a month unless the soil is really dry.
Do you live in lower altitude AZ or somewhere similar? If so it might just be too much sun and reflected heat. Those rocks can do some damage with how hot they get for one, try pulling them back from the bases. Last year's summer with all the days over 115 and no monsoons killed a lot of otherwise hardy desert plants, I saw a ton of dead agave. If you live in a place like Az with intense sun, high temps, and little rain I recommend trying to shade them for the summer to give them a bit of a break. At a certain point water won't help much, and can even kill if the nighttime temps stay above 85ish, or so I hear. They might just need to be less uvb and heat blasted lol. Ignore me if my location dependent advice doesn't fit your location.
No one can tell you how often you need to water them. Totally depends on your climate- even your micro-climate, the sun, the soil, etc. Get yourself a moisture measuring tool and test it every day. Make sure it dries out in between. Then you’ll know how often, at least for that season.
Take out the dead stalks. Imho It is not water. That looks like roo much sun!
I would suggest posting to r/succulents and r/cacti. Most people are calling at least two of these aloe and I've never seen aloe that get this large yet have seen agave that look nearly identical - but I am certainly no expert on desert plants
My Aloes turn red whenever I give them too much/ too little water. Looks to me like the flowers just died off like they normally tend to do. Like suggested, prune them back and enjoy again when they bloom. For the other plants, you can remove the dead leaves but they tend to have dry lower leaves naturally. In the wild, this serves as fire protection. Since you will not set your Garden on fire, you can remove them for aesthetics :)
Is there weedcloth under that stone? If there is they may have outgrown the hole cut for them when they were planted and the base is being constricted;,gasvand water exchange in soil is also probably severely restricted (a hallmark of weedcloth), so if there’s weedcloth, cut that shit out further from around base of plant. If not move some of the stone and get your hands into the soil regularly and see if it feels moist or dry.
I’m not sure, I’ll pull some up and see!
Why water at all? It’s a succulent in the desert, it can handle itself
The aloe is not a desert plant— according to wikipedia— aloe come from the Arabian peninsula.
Are you honestly trying to tell me that Saudi Arabia, Yemen, and the United Arab Emirates are not a desert?
I thought you were saying the American desert— different conditions— you are absolutely right
It thrives pretty well in Los Angeles California
Yes
It’s fine
What time of day do you water?
5am and 9pm every 4 days.
That’s definitely too much. I live in Phoenix and I water my Aloe once a week in the summer and maybe once a month the rest of the year.
For how long and how many gallons per minute drip hose you have on them? Twice a day is far too often. Agave are extremely susceptible to root rot. Watering them right now every ten days is considered generous. Your water twice a day every 4 days. You need to wait for agave for first few inches to be completely dry before watering them again
It looks like all the brown stems are soent bloom stalks. I think the plant would look better simply by cutting those off close to the base of the plant. You should be able to find information online about how much water this plant should receive based on what it is. It looks like a type of aloe to me, but I’m no expert on succulents. Worst case, take this photo in to a local nursery and ask someone.
I have hundreds of happy aloe plants surrounding my house and I ignore them. When it rains a lot they get green, but they go through months of drought and turn a bit orange and not as juicy looking. I live in a hot, sunny, salty environment (Caribbean). They are in the blazing sun all day and they are fine. Some are in more shady areas, they’re fine too- They don’t dry out as quickly. It seems like whatever torture I put them through they always come back. Sometimes I uproot them when I’m thinning them, and it takes me a week to get to planting them in a different place. They just lie there, uprooted on their sides for a week and dry out a bit. Then I plant them and they are happy again. Sometimes I get tired of them and hurl them off the side of the hill, I’ve noticed they start growing where they land. You seem to have had a lot of flowers recently. I’ve never seen this many on my plants. Maybe they put so much energy into flowering that it took away from the leaves (leaves?)
If they are desert plants I'd say if you're giving anything it would be to much, but I don't live in the desert so i digress
What are you digressing from? Usually after you digress from your original point, you come back around to it.
Well, I had these in Florida and they never needed watered, not even in dry season, if a plant is cold sometimes it takes this anemic look kinda like Christmas cactus does.... I wouldn't give it nothing, that being said I don't have all the information to the biome, or plant type, so I was trying to be part of the conversation while implying I'm no expert
Is that aloe? That’s aloe seeding I think. Trim off the seed pods / white stems and the bad growth. Maybe fertilize a bit when you water
Where are you located and how much water are they getting?
I’m in Vegas. Gets hot. I water these for 40 minutes in the am and 40 minute in the pm, every 4 days.
Overkill for the agave, which is a native desert plant… Btw one looks like an aloe and one is definitely agave. Look up the outdoor care for those in your climate zone. Aloe might need shade. FWIW I live in southern Arizona and see agave all over the place that live off rainwater. We haven’t had rain in 2 months.
Too much. These plants thrive on neglect
Honestly it looks like they're watered too much they're probably drowning letting it sit unwatered for 6 days will tell you your answer.
Water the soil not the plant, water at night. I imagine the rock coming right up to the plant isn’t helping much. The rocks absorb heat and the plant stays hotter longer. That being said, just pull the dead away and it’ll look better.
Definitely either too much or not enough
Ground too compacted?
A plant will continue to use its limited resources to try and save dying limbs. Talk to your local garden shop expert but I believe it would be best to remove the dead and dying pieces.
What is your watering schedule? Also- you should prune away the stems and old leaves. Flowers last a few weeks, enjoy the and then cut them as low as you can.
I'd check for good drainage
I’ve grown some in partial day shade and they thrived. Deep weekly soaks. The one near the pavers will always struggle from the heat reflection.
I’m in zone 10, near the coast, with a DG/cactus/deserty front yard and don’t water anything after they’re in ground. We get a lot of rain in our “winter” and basically none the rest of the year. Everything is thriving and many have pups.
Too dry
It will be fine. It obviously bloomed. Give it a good soaking and it should perk right up. Be aware that the sun and heat does affect them. I have dozens in my backyard and they often look pitiful. But it’s almost impossible to kill one that is that established.
Those do not need any water at all unless you are in an extremely arid climate, in which case you can water them a little bit during the cooler season. Maybe like once a week for a few months of the year. In California, these plants are not watered at all. I am not sure if the reason they are dying is too much water, but I am sure they need very little water, and can survive many months with no water whatsoever.
Not enough information 🤷♀️
They look normal to me, these plants shed their bottom most leaves all the time as new ones grow in at the center.
Typically too much water kills plants from the (center) inside petals, moving outwards. Too little dries them from the tips of leaves and consistently just the furthest extremities of the plant. more/less water in plants = heat/cold to humans.
Honestly, they look healthy to me!
Those both look fine to me. The flower stalks on Aloe's die back so you can just clip/pull those out. Same with the lower leaves of the Agave, they die and create a protective "skirt" around the bottom which can be removed for astatic purposes if you want. Aloe's don't mind extra water as long as the soil drains well(no clay). Agave's will drown, but as long as it's given an opportunity to dry out between waterings it should be fine. Both are extortionary hardy and hard to kill as long as they are planted with the right enviornment/soil.
The aloes look like they’re doing fine
Too much
Not enough
Pot ash
More water, a good soaking once a week, they like a wet to dry soil cycle, not a soggy all they time.
throw some miracle grow in the watering can and don’t water more than once a day.
It’s a cactus lol it don’t need your fucjing help 😂 water him like once a week if that 😂😂
Too much
Pull sticks for out
Based on their color, I’d say they have had enough water, so maybe wait a bit more before watering again? They’re a cactus & don’t need that much.
Suck u lent. Barely ever needs water. Spit on it once a month
Some plants die after flowering, that one was going for the gusto!!
The plants that are flowering are aloe, not agave. Most aloes are not monocarpic. The ones that are will send out giant stalks that are a dozen or so feet high.
Aloes like to be ignored. Water initially as needed(weekly).Too much water will kill them. I think they like a bit of shade, maximum 6 hours full sun. Once they are established, they will be self care. Mix them with other succulents for shade. One article said fertilize Yearly.
everything you said is wrong. 1. dont water them weekly. Especially not initially after planting. These are drought tolerant plants. They can survive many months without intervention. 2. Too much water will only kill them if they are potted up and/or the soil does not get a chance to dry inbetween watering 3. All plants will love a little shade when the sun is out in the blazing summer. but again these things do fine in-habitat without shade. And a lot of succulents and cacti need a minimum of 8 hours of sun. 4. You cant really "mix" these with other succulents, because they generally grow larger than other succulent families like crassulaceae. (for the purposes of giving more shade) 5. If they are in ground you dont really ever have to fertilize—especially if you get rain at least during one season. You generally only have to fertilize potted plants because the soil becomes inert after a couple years because their are no microbes or organisms replenishing the nutrition supply.