Day 13 of the great under-watering experiment continues.
This is harder than expected. I want to water these plants in the worst way. The moisture meter is now down to "dry," even on the one plant with soil that drys the slowest of the six plants I own. The " feel, and weight" tests all indicated dry soil. But, I am holding off as this test needs to continue until all indicators are confirmed.
Here's my dilemma. After 13 days of no watering, the "eye test" does not indicate a plant in need of water. The plants are not drooping, the leaves aren't wrinkled, there is no yellowing or fallen leaves and the leaves are still a waxy, deep green.
This has been a great experiment. It has laid waste to my "incorrect" notion of appropriate watering of a jade plant. My previous pots were terra-cotta, and roughly 25% smaller than current pots and could be watered weekly.
So, the question now is: "Should this experiment continue past the two week mark?" My concern from reading various websites is that yellowing/dropped leaves/root damage happen very quickly. Obviously, I don't want that to happen.
Considerations are:
1. The 6 pots were an upgrade to 7" x 6.5" and each are roughly 1.1 gallons, or .15 cubic feet of soil.
2. The 6 pots are ceramic, drain well with both hole/saucer at the base, and are filled with fast draining soil designed for succulents. I have 2" of perlite in the base of each plant.
Any thoughts out among the membership of the National Gardening Association?
I am in new territory here.
