My schlumbergera / easter cactus is dropping stems

[havelok]

I've bought a schlumbergera about six weeks ago. It has been dropping stems ever since I bought it. I don't think I'm doing something wrong in its care: it has been repotted when bought (in a cactus soil mixed with orchid bark mix), it's in a bright spot without direct sunlight and no draft or sudden temperature changes. As it's the growing season, I keep the soil slightly moist, but not wet.

I've noticed that the leafs just above the soil line have turned grey. Is that normal? Or an indication that something is wrong? When one of the stems that fell off had a grey leaf, I opened it up for inspection: the insides were mush. Is this rot? Overwatering? Something else?

I've repotted the healthy-looking stems that fell off, and they seem to be doing well. I don't want to repot every stem once it falls off until nothing is left of the original plant. Is there a way to fix the problem?

picture of the grey leafs above the soil line

eastercactus.jpg (37.01 KiB) Viewed 590 times

leaf

eastercactus_leaf.jpg (178.61 KiB) Viewed 590 times

[iann]

That leaf looks rotten to me. If that is what the leaves (they're actually flat stems) at the base are like then I think you'll lose the whole plant. At least you've already saved some healthy stems.

[greenknight]

Back when I used to grow those, I started new ones frequently in order to have small plants to bloom on the windowsill. If you put them in small pots that they quickly fill with roots, you can get them to bloom after one year.