Lithops

Bodies still wrinkled and creased across all five, most pronounced on the pale pair. No plumping yet since the 2026-07-30 heat stress episode.

Fissures closed, no new leaf tips visible – this is continued dehydration from the heat, not the start of a split. One reddish body sitting up on a short exposed neck.

Moved out of scorching direct sun, kept in bright light. Gritty mix and zeolite top dressing look right, saucer dry.

2026-08-01: a trace of distilled water splashed into the bottom of the terracotta, hoping for slight wicking to the roots. Amount was a single drop – almost certainly not enough for the plant to register. Logged here rather than as a watering entry on purpose, so the watering status stays honest.

Side-by-side against the 2026-07-30 photos: flank pleating looks slightly shallower now and the pale specimen marginally less creased. Improvement is real but very slow – consistent with roots still reestablishing. No change to plan: no water until September, daily morning firmness check.

Accidentally left on an outdoor windowsill during a 36°C heatwave. Small terracotta in direct sun puts root zone well above air temperature – roots stop functioning.

Diagnosis: deflation was heat stress + post-repot root disruption, not sunburn or thirst. Bare-rooted at repot means torn root hairs that cannot absorb regardless of soil moisture. The rust/red coloration is natural anthocyanin blushing, not sunburn.

Observations from photos: top faces flat to slightly domed, flanks visibly pleated in side view; one fissure clearly open (new leaf pair or flower bud, unidentified); pale specimen more deflated than the dark reds; papery remnant near the back is an old leaf pair from a previous split, harmless; white specks near a fissure confirmed as mix remnants, not pests.

Current strategy: no water until September. Monitoring daily – morning firmness check before sun exposure. Still hard and firm = good.

Watch: recovery may lag any future watering by 2 weeks or more while roots reestablish. Open fissure expected to be a flower bud – watch for it to develop and open in September.

Acquired same day as original Diego (Mammillaria). Repotted immediately into 85–90% gritty mix. Not watered post-repot – standard lithops protocol, letting settle dry.

Photo order: the first three show the plant as bought, still in its original nursery pot with a dark organic medium and old papery leaf pairs at the base. The fourth is the gritty mix prepared for the repot. The fifth is the finished repot in terracotta.