So my 5 year old beloved Jade plant was showing signs of great distress in recent months.  Leaves were cracking and yellow, the growth pattern looked...odd.  Then I noticed that a few of the stems that were growing adjacent to the main trunk of the plant were exhibiting signs of stem rot.

I knew it was time to pull it from the pot and see what was going on.

I should say, The plant lives in a window for most of the year getting bright indirect light, and then in the summer months I move it outside for even brighter, more direct sunlight, which it seems to love.  I am very aware of not overwatering and make sure the pot is basically completely dry to the bottom before watering.

So when I removed the plant from the pot, I realized that there was an insanely tight rootball at the base of the trunk that was was so tight and bound up and it seemed like the soil might have never dried out there. It was also not very drainage friendly soil around the root ball.  Which I believe was the cause of the rot.

The base of the trunk was soft and mushy, so I cut the trunk (with disinfected shears) well above where any rot was.  The newly cut trunk looked free and clear of rot.  Not it is time to let it callus over before planting into soil to allow new root growth and hopefully a new rot free era for my plant.  Then, just yesterday, while callousing, I noticed there is a small spot on the would of the trunk that is a little darker and looks like it might be rot (circled in photo above) but I'm sure when I cut it there was none.

My questions is this: Should I cut further up, thus requiring more time to callus before planted and risk too much time out of site and living root free?  OR and I being paranoid and it is fine to plant as is?

Lastly, one extra question:  Should I dip into rooting hormone before planting it back in soil?

Thank you for reading!

Jade Plant Stem Rot. Drastic Measures Taken. Now I have a Question.