Question
Thank you Greg!  Having read your answer this seems a logical explanation, I may have been worrying unnecessarily.  I have had two sedum 'aurora' (possibly similar to the jelly bean plant someone previously mentioned?) plants which both died in a similar way.  The lower leaves dried up and fell off whilst the rest of the plant looked healthy.  Unfortunately all the leaves fell off and the plants died.  Do you know why this happened?  Thank you
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Followup To
Question -
Hi Greg,  I recently purchased three small aloes in the early autumn but they now seem to be dying.  On all three the oldest leaves are drying up.  Am I correct in thinking that the majority of aloes grow during the winter months (nov-mar) in the northern hemisphere/ summer in the southern hemisphere?  As it is currently winter for me I am not watering them much at all, could this be the problem?  Soon after I purchased them I repotted them into a slightly larger pot as they were very potbound.  I dont think I damaged any roots but could this also be the cause for the slow death of these plants?  If you could help me save what's left of them I would be really grateful, Jo
Answer -
Dear Jo,

You are correct, their growth cycle is reversed here in the northern hemisphere. Also, all Aloes grow from the center or apex of the plant. If the very bottom leaves are the ones falling off or druing up, that is normal. It sounds to me like your plants are fine. If the leaves start to die from the center, then there is a problem. Hope this helps.

Sincerely,

Greg

Answer
Dear Jo,

It sounds like maybe the root system died, so the plants just withered. Succulents generally die one of two ways. Either they have crown rot in which the plant dies from the top down, or root rot (which will spread up through the stems) which causes the plant to die from the bottom up.

Occaisionally they can be injured in the middle (freezing, sun burn, etc) which can also spell demise for the plant. Succulents are very finely tuned to their natural enviroment, so what ever succulent you have, do as much research as possible on it. A very good resource is: http://www.desert-tropicals.com/   Enjoy!

Sincerely,

Greg