Have you noticed that your jade plant has started growing roots on the stem? If yes, then we can help you with this issue. Just read this article thoroughly, and you will get detailed answers to all your questions regarding this issue.
The main factor that causes the jade plant to develop roots on the stem is dehydration. When the plant does not receive enough water, it grows roots outside the soil to get moisture and oxygen from its environment.
In the following paragraphs, we will go through all the factors that cause a jade plant to develop roots on the stem and how to solve this problem and prevent it from happening again.
Table of Contents
What Causes Jade Plants to Grow Roots on Stems?
When a jade plant grows roots on the stems, it’s mainly because of underwatering. But other factors can cause this problem as well. Lack of sunlight, high temperature, lack of nutrients, and high humidity are all factors that can contribute to this issue in one way or another.
Let’s go over all the factors that cause jade plants to grow roots o stems and explain each separately.
Lack of Water
The roots of a plant are a network of fine fibers that pull water, oxygen, and nutrients from the soil. When the plants are thirsty, the roots send out fine threads to search for water. When these threads are unsuccessful in finding water, the plant will create roots on the stems to extract water from its environment.
If your plants have been under-watered, their aerial roots will start growing longer and longer, trying to reach for moisture and air above the ground.
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Lack of Sunlight
Sunlight is a crucial ingredient to plant growth. The sun’s light helps the plant produce chlorophyll, the pigment responsible for photosynthesis, and the green color of the leaves.
If little or no light is available, the plant will stretch the stems and grow small roots to seek light further afield.
High Temperature
High temperatures can also cause the jade plant to grow aerial roots. In fact, these roots develop to help the plant stay cool by absorbing the moisture from the air.
When the temperature reaches high levels, the plant may also experience thirstiness. This causes the plant to grow aerial roots to get moisture from the air.
High Humidity
High humidity is significant for succulents like jade plants. It helps them get moisture from the air to remain healthy. However, if you don’t provide these plants with enough water while the atmosphere is very moist, the plant will develop roots on the stem.
When the plant is thirsty and the humidity is high, it will feel that it can get moister from the air. As a result, it will quickly develop roots on the stems to get as much moister from the air as possible.
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Lack of Nutrients
If your plant lacks nutrients such as potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron, or manganese, it will start growing aerial roots. In fact, this is one of the obvious signs that a plant needs nutrients.
Aerial roots allow the plant to absorb these missing nutrients through the air, so the plant can produce food and energy to stay alive.
Lack of Support
Lack of support may also be one of the reasons why your plant produces roots on the stems. The plant needs support for its branch to grow upwards. If the plant has no support, it will try to compensate by growing small roots that will help it stay upright.
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What Do Aerial Roots Look like on Jade Plants?
Aerial roots are the thin, long roots that sprout from the stems of jade plants. They grow into the air, providing the plant with easy access to moisture and nutrients.
The color of aerial roots depends upon the soil type and the plant’s health. Jade plant aerial roots are often white but can be green or pink also.
Aerial roots are more likely to appear during the growing season, especially in spring and summer. In fact, during this time of the year, the temperature rises significantly, which may cause the plant to feel thirsty. Therefore, it tries to grow roots on the stem to fight water shortages.
This is not to say that aerial roots can’t show up during the rest of the year. In fact, when the soil dries out, aerial roots can also appear in the dormancy period.
Aerial roots are not necessarily something to worry about because they will not cause any harm to the plant. But if you are worried about them, there are some things you can do to alleviate the issue.
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What Should I Do If My Jade Plant Is Developing Aerial Roots?
Water Regularly
The amount of water needed for each plant depends upon its size and the environment where it lives. So, following a rigid schedule, watering plants can usually lead to overwatering or underwatering.
We propose to keep your jade plant safe from areal roots or any other watering problem by checking the soil before adding water. You can do this using your finger or a moister meter.
If you have a moister meter or can afford to buy one, then all you have to do is insert the probe of this device into the soil and watch the needle or the display. If it shows that the soil is dry, you can add water to the plant.
If you don’t want to use a moister meter, you can check the soil by digging your finger deep into the soil. If the soil feels moist to your finger, then you can add water to the soil. But if the soil feels dry to your finger, you should wait a bit longer before adding water to the plant.
Provide Enough Sunlight
Jade plant requires at least 4 hours of sunlight a day. You can provide your plant with this light by placing it near a sunny window sill or patio. Ensure the sun rays go through the glass before reaching the plant to avoid any leaf damage.
Also, you should pay attention to the direction of sunlight. Generally, south- and west-facing windows provide houseplants the best and safest kind of lights.
If you don’t have enough sunlight where you live, you can use grow lights available at any good garden center or online store. However, it would help to be careful when using this light for your plant.
Before using artificial light, you should ensure it is safe for your plant. For that purpose, you should buy a testing kit to test the intensity of the lights on the plants. Also, you should place the grow light a few inches away and put it on the top. This will help prevent your plant from getting burned or leggy.
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Reduce Humidity
While jade plant prefers to grow in humid environments, this plant will not do well if the humidity exceeds 50%. Also, when the high moisture is accompanied by underwatering, this plant can quickly develop aerial roots.
You can use a dehumidifier to reduce the humidity level around your jade plant. This device pulls water vapor out of the air and condenses it into liquid.
You can also reduce humidity by increasing the airflow around the plant. This can be done by using a vent or opening windows and doors.
Feed the Plant
The Jade plant is known for growing under neglect, making many gardeners forget about fertilizing it.
If you don’t fertilize this plant while the soil is depleted, then developing aerial roots will be the only way for it to get food and survive.
To avoid this situation, you should fertilize your jade plant at least once a month during the growing season. You can use a balanced liquid fertilizer with a 10-10-10 NPK ratio.
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Cut the Aerial Roots
If you don’t like the look of atrial roots on your plant, you can cut them. Make sure you don’t pull them or perform this task using a knife. Try to cut those roots using a scissor or a pruner to avoid causing any harm to the stem.
Use the Aerial Roots to Propagate a New Plant
Finally, if you are against the waist and want to use the aerial roots, then you can use them to propagate a new plant.
Here is a step-by-step guide on how to propagate aerial roots:
1. cut the stem below the roots.
2. Remove the leaves from the stem and cut them into a few pieces.
4. keep the pieces in water for about 2-3 weeks.
Once you start seeing roots from the nodes, you can plant each piece in a separate pot. After a few weeks, the new plant will start growing.
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