Karen, sooo glad there is no sign of rot. So back to the excess salt accumulation (from the other thread).
Rainbow said:"The higher concentration of salt outside of the plant cells in the soil causes water to move outside of the cells to try and equalize the concentration. Some root cells of plants that do not tolerate salt may die, and if bad enough the plant will die. The damage gives the plant a burnt look, often on the leaf edges first. The same thing happens with too much of any mineral."
Source
Karen, seems to me then that the new growth wilted and buds dried and dropped because of lack of water being transported to the apex. Even given lots of water, the roots cannot take it up due to the process of equalization of salt concentrations. Glad this was caught in time....because over-watering and lack of proper drainage will ultimately lead to root rot.
Since some bruising occurred in the process of taking the plant out of the old pot, I suggest hanging her up somewhere to allow for callousing over. At this time, you could also cut back drastically on the long roots. When it's time, plant into a shallow container that is about 4" wider than the diameter of the caudex base. So if the caudex is 8" in diameter, a 12" pot would be ideal.
(p.s.) I was composing this reply when RCanada posted.
