How to Revive a Dying Zebra Succulent

Zebra succulents are my current favorite succulent as I love the variegated coloration, which is rare in the succulent world. I have had one for years and propagated many more as they constantly produce off-setts!

In my time looking after my zebra succulents, I have had to trouble-shoot problems to do with overwatering, sunburn, and the leaf tips turning brown.

In this article, I share with you all the tips and secrets I have learned from first-hand experience to help you identify the problem and implement the solution with a step-by-step guide…

To get straight to the point…

Most often, the reason I see for a dying zebra succulent is most often because of overwatering which turns the leaves brown or yellow with a drooping and dying appearance. Too much direct sunlight can turn zebra succulents white. Watering too lightly causes leaf tips to turn brown and the lower leaves to die back.

For us to revive dying zebra succulents (Haworthiopsis fasciata), we need to recreate the conditions of their native environment with gritty, well-draining soils, watering when the soil has dried out, and locate zebra succulents in bright, indirect light.

I think it’s first worth acknowledging that overwatering rather than underwatering is more often the cause of a dying zebra plant due to its adaptations to tolerate drought conditions.

Keep reading to learn how to revive your dying zebra plant…

Why are My Zebra Plant Leaves Turning Yellow, Brown, and Soft?

• Symptoms. The leaves of the zebra succulent turn yellow, brown, or even black, with a soft and mushy feel to the leaves.
• Causes. Water too often, slow draining soils, pots without good drainage, or saucers and trays underneath pots preventing water from draining around the roots.

To save our plants, I find it always helps if we appreciate how they grow in their native environment…

Zebra plants are drought-resistant succulents native to South Africa where they grow in gritty, well-draining soil that does not retain much water, with infrequent rainfall in bright, indirect light.

One of the most common problems is the Zebra succulents turning brown or yellow with mushy leaves with a dying appearance if the soil is damp, or saturated, or even just too moist around the roots for too long from watering too often.

To grow zebra succulents so that their leaves remain healthy, it is important for us to recreate some of the growing conditions in their native environment by planting them in gritty soil and watering only when the soil has dried out completely.

Watering your zebra succulent too often, or planting it in ordinary potting soil which tends to remain damp for too long, causes too much moisture around the roots for this drought tolerant plant to tolerate.

You need to look out for Yellow, brown, and mushy leaves as they are the first signs of stress due to overwatering.

From my experience, I found this can be accentuated by the fact that zebra succulents can enter state or dormancy in Summer if the temperatures are really high.

I know this may seem strange (it did to me at first), but a summer dormancy where the zebra succulents stop growing is a survival strategy to conserve water reserves in hot and dry climates.

This reduces the demand for moisture, which increases the risk of the leaves turning yellow or brown in response to frequent watering.

This is why we have to be so careful when watering.

I think it is worth mentioning that it’s also important that your zebra succulent is in a pot with drainage in the base to allow excess water to drain out the bottom so that the soil does not become saturated.

Note that saucers, trays, and decorative outer pots can also prevent water from escaping from the base of the pot properly which can also be the cause of yellow or brown leaves or potential root rot.

Step-by-Step How I Revive Yellow and Brown Zebra Succulents

• Scale back the watering. If you are watering zebra succulents more than once per week, then you are watering too often. Our zebra succulents should only be watered when the soil in the pot has dried out completely. Typically, this means I water my succulent once every 7-14 days or so, but exactly how often varies according to your climate, the time of year, the soil capacity to retain moisture, and the size of the pot.
• Replace the potting soil if it stays damp. Even if you are watering zebra succulents with the right frequency, the leaves can still turn brown or yellow with a dying appearance if the soil is slowly draining or stays damp for too long. Therefore, I advise replacing the soil with specially formulated succulent and cacti soil (available from garden centers and on Amazon), which recreates the well-draining, gritty soil profile of the zebra succulent’s native environment.

• Plant zebra succulents in pots and containers with drainage holes in the base. I know this step may seem obvious, but I often see people make this mistake with other houseplants. Drainage holes allow the excess water to drain from the bottom of the pot after watering, which allows the soil to dry out properly and prevents the zebra plant from dying from root rot.
• Plant zebra succulents in pots that are proportional to the size of the plant. I think this is my best tip. We need to be aware that larger pots contain more soil, which means they have a greater capacity for retaining moisture. This causes the pot to dry out a lot slower than a smaller pot, which can increase the risk of the zebra plants suffering from root rot and dying. Smaller pots that are proportional to the size of the plant dry out at a rate that suits the zebra succulent to maintain the optimal balance of moisture.
• Empty saucers, trays, and outer pots regularly. Saucers, trays, and decorative outer pots are often used to prevent excess water from spilling from the soil in the home after a bout of watering. Ensure that you empty anything underneath your pot that may retain water regularly to prevent your zebra succulent from dying of water stress.

My method for establishing when the potting soil is dry, is to feel the soil at the bottom through the drainage hole. If the soil is still damp then I delay watering for a few days. If the soil is dry then this is the perfect time to water your zebra succulent.

If we water when the soil dries out, then this replicates the natural cycle of moisture conditions of the soil in the zebra plant’s native environment, which keeps the plant healthy.

would also ensure that there are no roots or compacted soil that are blocking the drainage holes that could slow down drainage.

Once the soil has dried out completely around the roots of the zebra succulent and you are watering with the best practices or replaced the soil with gritty succulent soil then your zebra plant has a chance to revive from its dying appearance.

You should start to see signs of improvement in the condition of your zebra succulent in the following 2 weeks.

When the leaves of zebra succulents turn yellow or brown, this is often just a sign of stress from overwatering, but if they start to turn black, then I find this can indicate root rot, which is much more difficult for the plant to recover from.

If the zebra succulent has healthy offsets growing in the pot then I would recommend trying to remove them from the diseased black part of the plant for propagation.

(Zebra succulents can require watering more often or less often depending on the time of year; read my article to learn all the best practices for watering zebra succulents).

Why is My Zebra Succulent Turning Red, Yellow or White?

• Symptoms. Leaves turn red, yellow, or even white (rather than dark green) without feeling mushy, like an overwatered zebra succulent.
• Causes. Too much sun. Zebra succulents thrive in bright, indirect light.

This happened to my zebra succulent! I placed it in full sun like some of my other succulents!

However, I subsequently learned that Zebra succulents grow naturally in shaded areas in their native environment rather than in direct sunlight.

This is why zebra succulents make excellent house plants, as they can adapt to indoor conditions very easily.

In their optimal conditions, zebra succulents grow in bright, indirect light which gives them a healthy, dark green color to their leaves which contrasts to the gorgeous white markings that I love so much!

However, if your zebra succulent is placed in direct sunlight, it can show signs of stress, such as turning red and eventually white, which is a sign the plant is trying to cope with too much sun.

Sometimes I have seen some zebra succulents turn yellow due specifically a combination of to too much sun and dehydration.

To revive my sun-damaged zebra plant, move it to an ideal bright space with indirect light. I moved mine to a bright bathroom which had frosted glass and created bright diffused light.

However, my zebra plant did recover its appearance from excess sun even if it’s located in optimal conditions. However, it did carry on living and created a new off sett which I was able to cut away from the main plant and propagate successfully.

Why Does My Zebra Succulent Have Brown Tips and Brown Lower Leaves?

• Symptoms. Zebra plants can develop brown tips on the end of their leaves, and their lower leaves can turn brown and crispy rather than mushy.
• Causes. Drought stress is due to not watering or watering too lightly or having too much airflow.

If the tips of the leaves are turning brown and the leaves at the base of your zebra succulent feel dry and crispy, this is a sign of drought stress.

This has happened to me.

As we discussed, zebra succulents are drought-resistant plants and thrive in dry environments but can still suffer drought stress from underwatering.

It is often said that ‘succulents do not need much water,’ but this can be misinterpreted to mean that succulents such as the zebra plant should not be watered with a significant amount of water when, in reality, zebra succulents require a generous soak, so that excess water trickles from the base of the pot.

However whilst zebra plants require a generous soak, they should only be watered when the soil has dried out completely to replicate the watering conditions in its natural habitat.

A common mistake I see whenever I am doing troubleshooting is Watering too lightly, as this only moistens the top inch of the soil and the water does not infiltrate the soil properly to reach the roots where the moisture is required.

This causes the zebra plant to suffer drought stress, with the leaf tips turning brown and the lower leaves turning dry and dying back.

What happened to mine is that my zebra plant was still in the same potting as when I bought it from the store, and the potting soil contained peat. The peat dried out completely and became hydrophobic which means the water just runs off the surface without infiltrating properly.

So, I felt the soil beneath the surface and it was completely dry even after watering, so it was obvious this was the reason for the leaf tips turning brown.

We also need to be aware that too much wind, air currents from air conditioning, draughts, forced air, or convection currents from sources of heat can all cause the soil and leaves of your zebra succulent to dry out quickly and turn the leaf tips brown with a dying appearance.

(To learn more, read my article, zebra succulent with brown leaf tips).

How I Revived My Zebra Succulents with Brown Leaf Tips and Brown Lower Leaves

• Zebra succulents should be watered when the soil has dried out. I recommend feeling the soil at the bottom of the pot to monitor how long it takes for the soil to dry out, then water it with a good soak. This can help to establish the optimal water schedule for zebra succulents so that it does not suffer from drought stress or overwatering and potentially root rot.
• Always water zebra succulents with a generous soak so that excess water trickles from the base of the pot. This is the best way to ensure you have used enough water to infiltrate the soil properly so that the roots can uptake the moisture they require.
• Ensure that the zebra succulent is in a room without significant draughts or air currents, as they can dry out the soil and the leaves. I would locate zebra succulents in bright, indirect light and away from strong air currents.

The way I solved my specific problem with the hydrophobic soil was to wash off the soil under a tap, being careful not to damage the roots. I then replaced the soil with my store bought ‘succulent and cacti soil’ which contains lots of grit.

The grit helps to maintain an open, porous soil structure even if the soil dries out, which allows water to easily infiltrate the soil and reach the zebra plant’s roots.

Pro tip: I always pick up my succulent pots to assess their weight. As they dry out, they feel much lighter, so I know when they need watering.

Watering the zebra succulent as often as required with a good soak and locating it in an area out of air currents ensures that it can revive from its drought stress and dying appearance.

With 2 or 3 watering cycles your zebra plant should show signs of recovery. I recommend remove any dry, crispy leaves from the base of the plant if they pull off easily to improve the appearance of the plant.

In terms of the brown tips, they do not turn green again, but they do eventually fall off and the leaf keeps growing, so I can assure you that it does eventually recover its appearance!

I got this comment from one of my readers:

“Okay, I feel I haven’t done anything extreme, only very carefully clipping the tips. It lives in a 3” non terra-cotta fire glass with 6 drainage holes in the bottom. I soak it in my bathroom sink about once a month, accept during the hottest months in Phoenix. I always let it drain completely in my bathroom with out sunlight. Should I move it to, 4” with drainage. Thinking it could breath much healthier. Michael.“

This reminded me that whilst zebra succulents are drought tolerant and grow in a hot climate in very well draining, rocky soil, the specific area of South Africa where they grow is actually relatively high in humidity of up to 81% average in March.

I can tell you from firsthhand experience that we absolutley don’t need an indoor humidity of 81% to grow zebra succulents without brown tips, but in the dryer climates where I lived I always had better results growing my zebra succulents in my bathroom due to the natural hmidity.

Another great trick I love to use is to group my humidity loving plants close together which creates a really micro climate of humidity indoors.

I found my zebra succulents dry tips were most prevalent when I lived in New York in an apartment when the heating was on in the Winter and to some extent when the air con was on in the Summer. To counteract this effect, I use a plant humidifer whhich works very well for all my humidity loving plants.

(For all the best practices, read my article on how to grow and care for zebra succulents).

If you have any more questions or insights for zebra succulents, please comment below!

Key Takeaways:

• A dying zebra plant is usually caused by watering too often or slow-draining, damp soils, which cause the leaves to turn brown or yellow as a sign of stress. Zebra plants turn white if they are in too much direct sunlight. The leaf tips turn brown with dying lower leaves due to drought stress.
• Scale back how often you water zebra plants so that the soil has a chance to dry out. Plant zebra succulents in well-draining soil and in pots with drainage holes in the base to allow excess water to escape. Empty saucers, trays, and outer pots regularly to prevent root rot.
• Locate zebra succulents in bright, indirect light. Leaves that turn red, white, or even yellow can indicate too much sun.
• Water zebra succulents with a generous soak and locate in still areas of the house to avoid drought stress and to revive the plant.