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Hello and thank you in advance for any help. This forum has already proved very kind and helpful with one of my trees as I recently started as a beginner.

Several months ago during the summer (east coast US) I bought this jade plant and had it outside in a fair amount of sunlight. I struggled to fully understand its watering needs as my inexperience, combined with its living in lava stones (where I found it hard to judge moisture content) worked against me.

However, it was going pretty well until cold weather came. Based on the temperatures at night, before it became too cold I moved the plant inside. It was going alright at first but slowly declined. Not knowing what to do I fear I tried too many remedies: I thought perhaps the window it was near was too thin and letting it get cold, so I moved it further, I tried watering it less, I tried watering it more. These last two because the leaves started to pucker and everywhere I looked for advice seemed to indicate that symptom could imply either over- or under-watering, which confused me. I will point out that the plant lives in a bonsai planter with plenty of drainage at the bottom.

Please note that I can find no evidence of pests. There may be some obvious points I'm missing here, and if there are follow-up questions I can get answers. But mainly my concern is that it is not showing clear signs to me of going south. Many leaves have now fallen off and, as shown in the picture, many are not looking long for this world. One last note: there are multiple other jade plants in the house that are thriving. They are not bonsai but are house plants and are many years old, and so I assume a little sturdier, but I take that as some evidence that the environment is not unsuitable for them.

Any help is greatly appreciated so that I can save this plant and continue my learning!

Watering jades can indeed be confusing.

If underwatering leafs will shrivel and fall off.

If overwatering leafs will expand untill falling off.

If severe overwatering the roots will die, stop taking water and the leafs will shrivel and fall off.

That means the symptom of underwatering and severe overwatering is the same.

Looking at your last picture it looks like the bottom section is shriveled. Feel it with your fingers, it is also muschy and soft?

Thanks for helping out with this. The leaves situation sounds distressingly like your description of the severe overwatering. In answer to your question, I think not. The skin at the bottom, where it is differently colored (red box in the updated photo) is dry and soft, but within a hair's breadth of pressure it is firm and sturdy inside. The very lowest part (green box) are a bit more tender but I don't think would match the adjectives you gave.

Are there any crucial next steps I could take? Should I empty out all the soil and do further observations? I have replacement soil of the same kind and could easily expose the roots and take actions, but I don't know what they would be.

I like to exclude one possibility from your initial post. You write you are concerned about temperature. In winter I keep my portulacaria in 5 degrees and it works great. Our winters is long. Apart from a few sunny days when temperature raise they are in 5c for at least 3 months, sometimes close to 5. Low temperature is not the issue. Actually it is a demand for flowering together with totally drynesd. Something most people babying their jades never experience.

The lower part of the trunk surelly not looks healthy. My best guess is that it was severelly overwatered at some point and the roots died. Since it is not mushy at the moment it seems to me that it has dried up after that.

This species can live long time without water or without roots. I am quite sure the roots and the bottom part is dead. I would cut it above the shriveled part and regrow it as a cutting. But before cut all healthy tops to lower water needs. All cuttings can easily be grown as cuttings and in the long run become new plants. TBH: The top cuttings have a higher chance of success than the main stem. Just make sure every part you are using is dried out completelly before potting up and not watered until there are signs of growth.

Never underestimate the draught tollerance of jades.

Thank you. I must have overwatered it as you have deduced, but I appreciate your guidance in saving the plant. I will try the regrowing process. Thank you for your help.