Hello, I have a string of pearls plant that I purchased in late July. I have it in a southeast window that has a gazebo on the deck. It came in a plastic hanging pot. I have noticed new growth has become pale turning white. I reently repotted it a terracotta pot for succulents with Cactus soil. I cut all the pale/white leaves off. While doing that I noticed this stem with a white coating, shortly after bringing it home I found three leaves that looked like paint had dripped on them, I removbed them. It looks and feels like paint, it is hard, It is not soft or cottony. It truly looks and feels like paint, which it is not. There are no signs of bugs or any pests at all. I am stumped and hope you may be able to help.
Thank you for contacting the Toronto Master Gardeners.
I notice that you have made some major changes to the string of pearls (Senecio rowleyanus) environment that should address some of the common reasons that they do not thrive. I have attached below two master gardener articles on succulents that discuss their growing requirements.
I am wondering if the hard white coating on the stem and some of the pearls that you have since removed, could have been due to dried sap from the plant. String of Pearls (Senecio rowleyanus) like many succulents can suffer from sunburn if they are exposed quickly to harsh summer sunlight. They prefer strong diffuse light.
It is very hard to diagnose injuries, and diseases on plants with a photograph, there are other factors that could cause this, you said that you noticed white on three leaves after you brought it home, maybe there was something going ion where you purcahesed it, maybe it was paint that was dripped on it. You did the right thing by removing it. If it appears again please contact us again.
https://www.torontomastergardeners.ca/askagardener/string-of-pearls-plant/
Good luck.