Tropicals & Tender Perennials: Epi rescueplea for advice!, 1 by imapigeon

imapigeon wrote:
In the '70s in SoCal, my boss had a fabulous collection of succulents & epis. At the time, I'd never even heard of them, but soon I was hooked. He gave me a start from his beautiful pink epi, and I had it for about a year. Then DH and I got shipped overseas, so I gave the plant to my MIL. When we came back to CA 5 years later, SHE was hooked. She gave me some starts from hers, but I didn't have a good place to keep them safe from the winter cold, so I didn't ask for any more after the starts died or got devoured by snails.

When she passed away, I asked DH to bring me all her epis, which no one had been taking care of. I now have a small greenhouse to winter them in, and I'm a lot more plant-savvy than I was 20 years ago. But I didn't know what I was getting into. When he pulled into the driveway and started unloading these poor babies, I almost cried.

As you can see from the pix, these plants are in VERY sad shape, and I don't even know where to start. Should I pull them out of their pots (many of which are broken anyway) and try to repot the whole thing, or would it be better to just take some leaves off and try to start new plants? Or should I try to get them healthier in their existing pots before moving them?

If I can salvage these plants, I'd like to try, but I'm more than a little overwhelmed.....advice would be deeply appreciated!