Senna,

Yes, there is. You need dry soil, some rocks (for propping up the stem), and the stem itself, trimmed to completely healthy tissue with a hygienic knife.

First, ensure that your soil is porous. Either it wasn't, your pot wasn't draining, or it was being watered to much - these are the reasons your plant rotted.

Second, place the cleanly-cut end into the soil slightly, prop it up with rocks, and put it in a warm area that's getting indirect sun. Do not water it - mist it only every few days. Also, the more bottom heat you can provide, the better and faster it will root.

Once again, make sure it's got porous soil and don't water it - it has no roots, ergo it needs no watering.

You might want to do a search at this site - there's a lot more detailed information, but what's here will get you on the right road. Your plant's proper name is Crassula ovata, but you can use either it or 'jade' in your search.

It's possible.....there was a thread here quite a while ago of a plant with a huge trunk that had been re-rooted. I think the roots had rotted like yours.

Follow Jeffs advice...I was searching for the thread but Jeff is one of the folks I learned alot from on this forum.

Senna,

I forgot to tell you - you can root it in a very small pot, one that's barely larger than your plant. This way you need less soil around a rootless stump. Once there's definite growth, or until months afterward (these plants are that tough) you can repot it into more suitable surroundings. Just make sure you don't overpot - this may be one of the reasons it lost its roots in the first place.

Sure, there's a chance.
Cut away all the unhealthy roots, sprinkle with cinnamon, and re-pot in a fast-draining mix.
Just treat it like a large cutting.

You *could* even chop the entire root-ball off, and then re-root the entire plant.
But I'd only do that if the roots couldn't be salvaged.

If you rinsed the root-ball to clean it, leave it out of soil to dry for 1 - 3 days.
Put it somewhere dry, but not in direct sunlight. I like to stand them upright in a
cardboard box on a wad of newspaper or a mound of dry Perlite.

When you re-pot in a new, porous and gritty mix, leave your Jade in a shady location for about a week.
Do not water it at all.

After a week, water it well and introduce it to morning sun.
The newest leaves should begin to perk up. In 1 - 2 weeks, the leaves
will soften again, and the plant is ready to be watered.

Josh

Wow, thanks for the responses already. I've done a little reading in the archives since posting my question.

I purchased some potting mix labeled for cactus, but it seems that those in the know are potting Crassula species in DIY mixtures, the most referenced of which consists of pine bark fines, something called "Turface", and crushed granite. I assume this sort of mixture is therefore considered superior to packaged commercial products like I found?

At this point, I have not chopped off what's left of the root ball (but there isn't much left, it's pretty much just a bare stump that was sitting in the dirt); it sounds as though the recommendation is to wash off all the old dirt, cut off everything that's mushy, let it dry/callous over for a few days, and then rest it in fresh soil, leaving it unwatered until there are signs of recovery?

Curious though; why the cinnamon? Is it a natural anti-fungal or growth stimulant?

Cinnamon is used here an an anti-fungal. A trick I learned from orchid growers.

FYI: if you haven't already 'washed' the mix off the old roots/stump pls. don't. Since it had rotted, 'washing' is not what it needs. I don't know where this idea comes from, but I suggest you simply crumble off any mix (dirt) remaining on the roots/stump w/your fingers. When the mix is dry, it comes right off (this is how I handle all my plants).

If you're thinking of repotting into the same pot, pls. disinfect or sterilize it first. Good luck!