Plant CollectionWatering
Watered on 2026-09-16.
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4d
16d
Pedro Tropipascal
8 days ago
never fertilized
Ponytail palm · Beaucarnea recurvata
✅ Safe for dogs
Non-toxic to dogs.
- Acquired
- July 29, 2026
- Category
- Succulent / Dry Crew
- Plant state
- 🪴 Potted
- Pot
- 22cm terracotta
- Soil
- ~85% mineral gritty mix (1L zeolite + 1L keramzit + 1L perlite + ~0.5L DMP/Gardners substrate)
- Light needs
- ☀️ Bright indirect
- Watering cue
- Bone dry throughout before watering; roughly every 10–14 days
- Fertilizer
- Agro succulent fertilizer · every 70 days
- Vacation safe
- Yes, 2 weeks
Care notes
No water for 7–10 days post-repot, then first light water. Empty saucer after watering.
Bright indirect light for ~2 weeks, then gradual introduction to direct sun.
New crown growth expected in 3–6 weeks.
No fertilizer for 2 months post-repot.
Water: 50/50 standing tap water + distilled.
Next repot only when triggered (root-bound, collapsed structure, pot change) – time it for spring.
Never mist. Semi-arid Mexican species that prefers dry air – misting risks fungal leaf spotting and water pooling in the leaf crown.
Brown leaf tips are a water-quality signal, not dry air. Shift toward more distilled before considering anything humidity-related.
Journal
Bark crack on caudex – no rot signs
Observed: a horizontal crack in the bark on the upper two-thirds of the caudex – bark only, not through the stem. The lower portion of the caudex is noticeably darker in color than the rest of the trunk. No mush, softness, discoloration through the tissue, oozing, or smell at either spot.
Assessment: consistent with normal caudex bark splitting as the trunk thickens, and older, more weathered bark near the base. Pedro came from the shop with a smaller caudex, so continued base thickening is expected.
Watch: recheck periodically for softness, discoloration, ooze, or smell at the crack or the darker zone.
Watering – day 13, bone dry
Observed: substrate bone dry throughout, as expected.
Done: watered.
Watered – 1.5L distilled, bone dry as expected
Observed: Bone dry throughout, as expected.
Amount: 1.5L distilled water.
Watered – 1000ml with willow water
Amount: 750ml until draining from bottom, then an additional 250ml top-up (1000ml total).
Method: Soaked 15 minutes before emptying the saucer.
Additive: Willow water added.
Possible dead crown on one leaf group
The growth point on one of the leaf groups looks dark and sunken – the crown for that group may be dead.
Two old leaves are still attached there. Nothing removed for now. Watch next: whether a new leaf pushes from that point. If nothing sprouts and those two leaves dry off, the group is gone. The rest of the plant is unaffected.
Acquired + immediate repot
Acquired alongside Don Diego. Decision: repot same-day rather than let it settle – correct call for the species and the season.
Health assessment: dense deep-green foliage, brown tips cosmetic, caudex slim from greenhouse growing (normal). Overall good health.
Pot oversized; ruled out plastic inner pot and burying deeper. Settled on reduced fill volume with a shallow 2–3cm recess below the rim.
Final mix ~85% mineral: 1L zeolite + 1L keramzit + 1L perlite + ~0.5L DMP/Gardners substrate.
Bare-rooted dry, ~60 min total. Damage minimal – structural roots intact, only hair-root loss. One ant found, no treatment needed.
Leaf marks investigated: white flecks are mineral deposits (cosmetic); tan raised ovals failed the nail test – healed mechanical scarring, not scale.