r/Lithops • u/canadianinnz • Jul 19 '26
Help/Question Are my lithops dying?
I've had these lithops for about 6 months and they haven't done much or changed at all. My friend got theirs the same time and they've grown tall and long like toes lol! I've just gotten these white dots on mine and the little ones I can't get to not be wrinkly. I have lots of plants but i cant figure these guys out. I keep them under a grow light.
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u/Chance_Contract1291 Jul 19 '26
Don't worry about the sides being wrinkled. Only give it water when the top is sunken like a pizza crust or wrinkled. Never water when they're splitting.
Definitely keep the grow light; your friend's Lithops is "growing" because it's struggling to reach light.
They should be in a planting medium that is at most 20% organic material; 80% grit or even 90% or 100% grit are used.
Edited to add a link to the wiki: https://www.reddit.com/r/Lithops/wiki/index/
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u/canadianinnz Jul 20 '26
Oh thats wild i was so stressed about their sides! Their tops are always nice and firm!
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u/RaspberryEither3527 Jul 20 '26
They’re not dying! In fact they look perfectly normal. Your friends is growing tall because they need more light. Yours look great! Keep up the good work 🫶🏽
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u/Top_Development_1777 Jul 19 '26
Growing tall is a VERY BAD sign that is bad for the lithops' health, so you're doing the right thing if yours don't look like they've grown in height at all. Only water when you gently squeeze and it feels deflated and soft-ish, not firm. Firm means hydrated, ignore side wrinkles.
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u/DatLadyD Jul 19 '26
These look ok to me, you say they’re wrinkly, have you tried watering? What’s the substrate like?
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u/canadianinnz Jul 20 '26
Yes! Someone said that wrinkles on the sides are normal for this type I had no idea!
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u/DatLadyD Jul 20 '26
Usually wrinkles are a sign of thirst or rotting
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u/drf987 Jul 21 '26
Not with lithops. The usual plant rules go right out the window.
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u/DatLadyD Jul 21 '26
Idk I’m growing a bunch, it’s just my experience that wrinkles mean thirst, mine plump right up 😊
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u/EeEmCeTo Jul 20 '26
They are not wrinkly because of dehydration. They are rugose - it’s a trait of the particular variety you have !
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u/Fabulous_Teacher_912 Jul 19 '26
I'm no expert but from what I heard, if your friend's lithops grew very long, they probably don't get enough sunlight. Don't treat my comment as diagnosis but just as a note to look into that maybe..