Adenium problem growing desert roses

I’m having a problem with one of my adeniums. I obtain 3 desert roses of them at the same time and place. All are about 1 year old  One of my 3 pack collection is dying? Why?- Sal

I need a bit more information on this adenium problem please answer these questions:

1. How often do you water and is the soil completely dry in-between watering?

2. What type of soil are you using for you adeniums?

3.  How often you water the desert roses and how much sunlight they are getting indoors or outside. If you fertilized them or not. Send an image if possible too. – Mike

I used cactus soil for the desert roses. They are planted in the same condition. All other
are fine, just this one the leaves are yellow one by one. I touch the
trunk, it’s soft compared to others. It’s always in sunny location & drain soil. – Sal

Sounds like you are doing everything right. I wonder if it got a fungus or a bug. Have you treated with a fungicide?  I would take the adenium out of the pot. Clean all the soil off the plant. Dip it in superthrive for 1.. 2 minutes (roots only) and re-pot it using fresh soil. Then do not water for two days to give the micro nutrients in superthrive to do some work.  Make sure the soil does not have any peat if possible. Add some more very small nonporous sanitized rocks to the cactus soil mix (about 10%). Cactus soil is not the best for adeniums because 90% contain peat and have too much soil.  Adeniums liek very loose airy soil. Also, since the leaves are falling off I would take them all off in case they have a fungus or a micro bug.

Each differently type of adeniums grow at different rates and some are stronger than others. They may all have been hit with the same problem but only on shows signs because of the variety.  – Mike

22 Replies to “Adenium problem growing desert roses”

  1. my adenium plant was kept in winters in a open place and may be due to severe cold of gwalior its bulb has become spongy and also leaves have shrivelled. Now i have kept it in shade to avoid cold . i am much worried please suggest what to do?

      1. Hello,
        I have a desert rose that is well over 10 yrs old. I live in central pa and always sit my plant outside in the summer. Last summer I noticed a black soot over the entire plant. After doing research, I painstakingly cleaned the causcus, leaves and the entire plant with a natural insecticide…dish soap, vegetable oil and water. It worked wonderfully. As always the plant thrived and bloomed, I moved it in for the winter and it is now completely rotten. The entire plant, stems and root ball (caucus) are soft and mushy. There may be a couple of stems that are not. Is there any way I can save this plant? Any ideas of what could have happened? I love this plant and am so saddened it is dying.

    1. Thank you for your questions. The leaves will fall during the winter and the caudex of the desert rose plants will sometimes get a bit soft. Soft means they can be pressed a bit (about 1/8 inch to 1/4 inch depending upon the size of your desert rose caudex size). However, you should not move it into the shade. It needs sunlight or growing lights. If you are in a cold climate and the window area is very cold for your adenium plant then I suggest getting led growing light with a timer for your desert rose adenium plants during the cold months. Even when they are dormant adeniums need some daylight (80%) light and protection for the cold. If you are using grow lights for your desert rose plans we recommend 6..7 hours of light. The LED light are not as strong as regular sunlight but they are very inexpensive to obtain and operate. If you are in a cold area make sure the soil is completely DRY between watering. Thank you!

  2. If I have overwatered my desert rose and the caudex is spongy what can I do to save it. Only a few leaves have turned yellow and fallen of other than that the plant is very healthy. Please help!

  3. Hi my Adenium obesum seems to be growing fine in every way, but the most recent crop of leaves are misshapen and blotchy, almost warped looking. My other Adeniums are fine and are all in the same soil, same light and same watering schedule.

  4. My adenium lives in coastal southern California and is outside year round. It’s about 10 years old. Right now it’s in full bloom but I’ve noticed that some of the flower buds are twisted instead of straight and this morning I discovered black detritus on one of the leaves and went looking for the worm. I found him – green, slimy with a stripe (I can send pictures!) Should I treat the plant or just remove the part of the plant where I found the worm? And should I just remove the twisted flower buds? Never had a problem with this plant before – except for mealies.

    1. One thing may have nothing to do with the other. Twisted/deformed buds are usually a result of mineral problem. Do you fertilize? Remember not all fertilizers are the same. We use Dyna-Gro Grow and K-L-N to resolve nutrient problems. The pest take off the caterpillar/worm and then you can use a natural insecticide to teat the plant once every 5 days for 3 weeks. Do not use NEEM oil on adeniums.

  5. a few of my small arabicum adenium’s trunk is turning yellow colour. the leaves are still green and have small leaves. , its overall growth is stunted. I tried lesser watering and leaves are dying off, I then water it then the leaves comes on then drop off. what is the cause ???? I live in Malaysia where the weather is hot and plentiful of sunshine. Please assist.

    1. hi , i just planted my pink dessert rose 3 weeks ago and now the flowers are faded gowing brown and dried out , some of the stalls of the plant broke in transit from the garden store , so i just stalked them up with sticks , is this maybe the problem ?

      1. I guess you mean some of the branches are broken. Sometimes if you use grafting tape to connect the broken branches they will re-attach. When an adenium plant is moved from one environment to another they go into water thrifty mode and drop all their flowers/buds/leaves. This is normal.

  6. I have a pink desert rose plant. I live in a tropical country and the plant is in a pot (in potting soil) outside. I’ve had lovely blooms and absolutely love this plant! Lately I noticed white spots on the stems and now there’s cobweb on the underside of a few leaves. Is my plant sick or dying?

  7. I have a desert rose plant that the leave are Turing red on the back of the leaf, and some are growing in reddish/purple. Is this. Normal? I live in Alberta, Canada. I bring the plant in for the winter and water it every 7–10 days only half a cup of water each time. I leave in in direct sunlight for 5-6 hours per day.

  8. Good morning,
    I have a very old Adenium growing in a pot in southeast FL sitting on an eastern facing patio, which gets plenty of light. I am having a terrible time
    trying to get it to sprout leaves. I have just a few coming out now. I’m monitoring very carefully for pests, which I believe was a problem…mealy bugs, maybe even spider mites as well. Its caudex is hard, not squishy at all. I’m watering once a week to every 10 day, but not too much. The branches….and there are many… have new growth and its tips are green, so I know something is going on positive, but I am not having much luck with getting the plant leafy again. I have another smaller Adenium. I noticed it had a bud; however, it fell off and I haven’t had a flower on it again since its purchase in November 2021. I would be happy to send a photo if that might help. I’m really at a loss.

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