Saving a Mushy Snake Plant from Rot

Saving a Mushy Snake Plant from Rot

I killed my first snake plant. I know, I know. Everyone says they’re impossible to kill, but I managed it. The thing turned into mush over the course of about three weeks, and I just stood there watching it happen because I didn’t know what to do. That was five years ago, and I’ve since learned how to spot the problem early and actually fix it.

If you’re reading this, your snake plant probably looks terrible right now. The leaves might be flopping over, turning yellow, or feeling soft when you touch them. I get it. Let’s figure out if it’s root rot and what you can do about it.

How to tell if your Snake Plant has root rot

The first sign is usually the leaves. Healthy snake plant leaves stand upright and feel firm, almost like they’re made of thick rubber. When rot sets in, they start to lose that structure. You’ll notice them leaning or folding over at the base. If you gently squeeze a leaf near the soil line, it might feel squishy instead of solid.

Here’s what I do when I suspect something’s wrong. I look at the base of the plant where the leaves emerge from the soil. If you see any dark, wet-looking spots or if the leaves are turning brown or black right at the soil level, that’s a red flag. Sometimes the outer layer of the leaf will start to peel away at the bottom, and underneath you’ll find this wet, mushy tissue. That’s rot.

The color change is another giveaway. Snake plants don’t just turn yellow for no reason. If the lower leaves are going from their normal green to a pale yellow or even a translucent yellow, and they’re soft to the touch, you’re dealing with rot. I’ve also seen leaves develop this weird wrinkled texture, like the plant is deflating from the inside out.

You can also check the soil itself. Stick your finger down into the pot about two inches. If it’s wet and it’s been more than two weeks since you watered, something’s wrong. Snake plants are succulents. They store water in their leaves, so they don’t need constantly damp soil. According to research from the University of Florida’s Environmental Horticulture Department, sansevieria species are particularly prone to root rot when kept in poorly draining soil or watered too frequently.

The biggest mistake I made with my first snake plant was assuming it needed regular watering like my pothos. I watered it every week like clockwork, and the pot didn’t have a drainage hole. The water just sat there, and the roots suffocated. Now I know better, but back then I thought I was being a good plant parent.

Why are the leaves turning yellow and soft?

When your snake plant’s roots sit in waterlogged soil, they can’t breathe. Roots need oxygen just like we do, and when the soil is constantly saturated, the air pockets that normally exist between soil particles fill up with water. The roots start to die, and once they’re dead, they become a breeding ground for fungi and bacteria.

The rot doesn’t stay in the roots. It travels up into the rhizome (that thick underground stem that snake plants grow from) and then into the leaves themselves. That’s why you see the yellowing and softness starting at the base and working its way up. The plant is literally rotting from the bottom up.

I read a study from the Journal of Plant Pathology that identified several fungal species responsible for root rot in houseplants, including Pythium and Phytophthora. These fungi thrive in wet conditions and attack stressed plants. Once they get established, they spread quickly through the root system.

The yellow color happens because the rotting roots can’t absorb nutrients or water anymore. Even though the soil is soaking wet, the plant is essentially dying of thirst because the roots aren’t functional. It’s like having a broken straw. The water’s right there, but you can’t drink it. The plant starts breaking down chlorophyll in the leaves (that’s what makes them green), and you see that yellow color appear.

The softness is the actual tissue breaking down. The cell walls are collapsing, and the structural integrity of the leaf is gone. If you’ve ever left vegetables in the back of your fridge for too long, it’s the same concept. Things get mushy when they rot.

In my apartment, I’ve noticed this happens most often in winter. I keep watering on the same schedule as summer, but the plants aren’t growing as actively and the soil doesn’t dry out as fast. The combination of slower evaporation and continued watering creates perfect conditions for rot.

Above: A close up look at the symptoms.

The ‘Smell Test’ for healthy roots

This is going to sound weird, but you need to smell your plant. Not the leaves (though those smell fine, kind of like nothing). You need to take it out of the pot and smell the roots.

Healthy snake plant roots should smell like dirt. Just clean, earthy soil. There might be a slightly sweet or neutral scent, but nothing strong. When I repot a healthy plant, I barely notice any smell at all.

Rotten roots smell terrible. It’s a sour, musty smell that hits you immediately. Some people describe it as smelling like decay or compost that’s gone bad. I think it smells like wet cardboard that’s been sitting in a basement for months. You’ll know it when you smell it. There’s no mistaking that odor.

To do the smell test properly, you need to unpot the plant. I know this feels scary if you’ve never done it before, but it’s necessary. Tip the pot on its side and gently slide the plant out. You might need to squeeze the sides of the pot if it’s plastic, or run a knife around the inside edge if it’s really stuck.

Once you have the root ball exposed, look at the roots themselves. Healthy roots are white or light tan, and they’re firm when you touch them. Rotten roots are brown, black, or gray, and they’re slimy or mushy. If you pinch a rotten root between your fingers, the outer layer might slide right off, leaving a thread-like center behind. That’s definitely rot.

Bring the root ball up to your nose and take a sniff. If it smells bad, you have rot. If it smells like normal soil, you might have caught the problem before it spread to the roots, and the issue is just in the lower leaves.

I learned about the smell test from a blog called The Practical Planter, and it’s honestly been the most reliable way I’ve found to diagnose root problems. You can’t always see rot, especially if it’s just starting, but you can almost always smell it.

Cutting away the rot to save the plant

This is the part where you need to be ruthless. I’m not great at throwing away parts of plants. I always think maybe I can save just a little more, but with rot, you can’t be sentimental. You have to cut away everything that’s affected, or it will just spread to the healthy tissue.

First, pull the plant completely out of the old soil. Shake off as much soil as you can from the roots and rhizome. I usually do this over a trash bag or outside if the weather’s nice. Don’t try to save the old soil. It’s contaminated with whatever caused the rot in the first place.

Get a sharp, clean knife or a pair of scissors. I use my kitchen shears that I keep just for plants (my partner would kill me if I used the good kitchen scissors). Wipe the blades down with rubbing alcohol to sterilize them. This prevents spreading any pathogens from one cut to the next.

Look at each leaf and follow it down to where it connects to the rhizome. If the leaf is yellow, soft, or mushy at any point, cut it off completely. Don’t leave a stub. Cut right at the base where it emerges from the rhizome. According to the University of Minnesota Extension, removing all affected tissue is critical because even a small amount of remaining rot can reinfect the plant.

Next, examine the rhizome itself. This is the thick, horizontal stem that the leaves grow from. It should be firm and white or pale green on the inside. If you see any brown, black, or soft spots, cut them out. I literally cut into the rhizome with my knife and carve out the rotten sections like I’m cutting a bad spot out of an apple.

For the roots, trim away anything that’s brown, black, or slimy. Cut back to where you see white, firm root tissue. If all the roots are rotted (this happened to me once), cut them all off. Snake plants can regrow roots from the rhizome if you give them the right conditions.

After you’ve done all your cutting, you should be left with only firm, healthy tissue. It might not be much. My first saved snake plant was literally just one leaf attached to a small piece of rhizome after I cut away all the rot. But it survived and grew new leaves.

Let the cut surfaces air dry for a few hours before you repot. Some people say to let them dry overnight, but I’ve had success with just a few hours. The idea is to let the wounds callus over slightly so they’re not as vulnerable to new infections when you put them back in soil.

Above: The tools you need to fix this.

Repotting into dry soil immediately

Do not put your freshly cut snake plant into wet soil. This is crucial. You need completely dry potting mix.

I use a cactus and succulent soil mix because it drains well and doesn’t hold onto water for too long. You can also make your own by mixing regular potting soil with perlite or coarse sand. The ratio I use is about half potting soil and half perlite. The goal is to create a mix that water runs through quickly, leaving the soil just barely damp rather than soggy.

Choose a pot with drainage holes. I cannot stress this enough. Your snake plant will rot again if you put it in a pot without drainage, no matter how careful you are with watering. The water needs somewhere to go. I’ve had good results with terracotta pots because they’re porous and allow the soil to dry out faster, but plastic pots with good drainage holes work fine too.

The pot should be just slightly larger than the root system you have left. If you cut away most of the roots, you might actually need to size down from the original pot. A pot that’s too large will hold more soil and therefore more water than the plant needs, which increases the risk of rot happening again.

Fill the pot about halfway with your dry soil mix. Position the plant so that the rhizome sits just below the surface of the soil, the same depth it was planted before. Hold it in place and fill in around it with more dry soil. Press the soil down gently to stabilize the plant, but don’t pack it too tightly. You want air pockets in there.

Here’s the hardest part. Do not water it yet. I know it seems wrong to plant something in dry soil and just leave it, but the plant has been sitting in too much water. It doesn’t need more right now. The cut surfaces need time to heal without being exposed to moisture.

Wait at least a week before you give it any water. I usually wait two weeks just to be safe. The plant won’t die from lack of water in that time. Remember, snake plants are built to handle drought. When you do finally water, give it just enough that the soil is barely damp, not soaking wet.

Place the repotted plant in bright, indirect light. Not full sun (that will stress it out even more), but not a dark corner either. I put mine on a shelf about six feet from a south-facing window, and it’s been happy there.

Don’t fertilize for at least a month or two. The plant needs to focus on growing new roots, not new leaves. Fertilizer can actually burn damaged roots and make things worse.

I won’t lie to you, the plant might look rough for a while. The remaining leaves might turn a bit pale or lose some of their rigidity while the plant adjusts. That’s normal. As long as they don’t get mushy or start rotting, you’re fine. It took my rescued snake plant about two months before it looked truly healthy again and started putting out new growth.

Going forward, the key is to water less than you think you should. I water my snake plants about once a month in summer and once every six to eight weeks in winter. I let the soil get completely dry between waterings. I know it feels neglectful, but these plants genuinely prefer it. The University of Georgia’s Cooperative Extension notes that sansevieria are highly drought-tolerant and that overwatering is the primary cause of death in these plants.

If you managed to save even one healthy leaf, you’ve given your plant a fighting chance. I’ve brought back snake plants that were down to a single leaf and a tiny piece of rhizome. They’re tough once you give them the conditions they actually need. Your mushy, sad snake plant can recover. You just have to be willing to cut away the damage and start fresh with better watering habits.

References

University of Florida, Environmental Horticulture Department. “Sansevieria Production Guide.” EDIS, https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/

Journal of Plant Pathology. “Root Rot Fungi in Ornamental Plants.” Various studies on Pythium and Phytophthora species.

The Practical Planter. “How to Diagnose Root Rot by Smell.” Blog archive.

University of Minnesota Extension. “Root Rot in Houseplants.” Gardening Resources, https://extension.umn.edu/

University of Georgia, Cooperative Extension. “Sansevieria: Snake Plant Care.” Publication archive.