Hello from your pot! I know you mean well with all that water, but I'm struggling. I'm a Spider Plant, and my roots are simple; they need to breathe air as much as they need to drink water. When I'm sitting in soggy soil for too long, my roots begin to suffocate and rot. I can't take up water or nutrients properly, even though the soil is wet. This is a terrible irony for me. I will show you clear signs that I am in distress. Please look for my leaves turning pale, becoming soft, and feeling mushy at the base. They might even develop dark, water-soaked spots. The most telling sign is if my foliage, usually so perky, becomes limp and weak. In a final, desperate act to save myself, the tips of my leaves may turn brown. If you notice a musty, unpleasant smell coming from my soil, that's the smell of my roots decaying. It's a critical situation.
When you see my signs of suffering, you must act quickly. First, please stop watering me immediately. This is the most crucial step. Next, gently tilt my pot and carefully lift me out. You need to see the damage to my root system. Gently shake off the wet, clinging soil and examine my roots. Healthy roots are firm and white or orange. Rotten roots, however, will be brown or black, feel mushy and slimy, and may fall apart easily. This is the source of my sickness. Using clean, sharp scissors, you must carefully cut away all the rotten roots. Be brave but precise; leaving any rotten tissue behind will allow the decay to spread. This is a life-saving surgery for me.
After my root trimming, I need a fresh environment. My old soil is contaminated and holds too much water. Please repot me into a clean pot that has excellent drainage holes. The pot doesn't need to be much bigger; a cozy space is better for my recovery. The most important thing is the new soil. Please use a fresh, well-draining potting mix. A mix designed for cacti and succulents is perfect because it allows water to flow through quickly, giving my remaining healthy roots the air they crave. When you repot me, be gentle with my fragile roots. Place me in the new pot, fill it with the fresh soil, and do not water me immediately. I need a few days to allow the root wounds from the trimming to callous over. This helps prevent new infections.
My recovery will take time and patience. Please place me in a spot with bright, indirect light. Direct sunlight right now would be too stressful. Wait about a week before giving me my first drink of water. When you do water, do so sparingly, just enough to moisten the new soil. Then, let the soil dry out almost completely before watering again. The key is to mimic the drought-and-downpour cycle I am adapted to. For the first few months, please do not fertilize me. My root system is too delicate to handle fertilizer, which could burn my roots and set back my recovery. Focus on letting me grow new, strong, white roots. You will know I am recovering when you see new, green leaves starting to emerge from my center. This is my way of saying thank you for saving me.
