Help! Yellow leaves on my houseplants
You enjoy your green houseplants to the fullest, but then… suddenly you see yellow leaves! What does this mean and what can you do about it? It can have several causes, so it is important to check this with your plant to make it happy again afterwards. You can read how to do this in this blog.
- Too much water
When a plant has too much water, the leaves of your plant can turn yellow. Sometimes the top layer of the pot is almost dry, while at the bottom of the pot all the water collects and the roots drown.
Solution: Remove your plant from its pot, remove as much soil as possible and add new soil. Use a water-permeable pot with, for example, a saucer underneath. As a result, the roots of your plant are now protected against too much water more quickly.
- Too little sunlight
Plants need light to grow. One plants a little more than the other. But they all need light. When a plant gets too little sunlight, the leaves can also turn yellow. Find out, for example, where the plant prefers to be.
Solution: Place your plant in a place with more indirect light or a place with more sun. Experiment a bit where he prefers to be. Give your plant some time to get used to its new spot. Sometimes it can take some time for your plant to show that it is comfortable here.
- critters
It can also happen that there are pests in or on your plant. The bugs attack the leaves and they turn yellow. Would you like to know more about this subject and its approach? Then read the blog 'Help there are bugs in my houseplants'.
Solution: Inspect your plant carefully and see if you see any bugs. If so, quarantine your plant so that no more plants are infected. Then spray the plant with a special pesticide. Always read the label carefully before you get started.
- dehydration
It can happen that you accidentally forgot to water a plant or because of the dry air your plant dries faster than you are used to. The plant indicates by means of yellow, dry and wrinkled leaves that it would like a few sips of water.
Solution: Make sure your plant is watered quickly. Preferably you put it in a saucer with water so that it absorbs water directly from the bottom. Do you regularly forget this plant? Then write, for example, on the refrigerator or a place that you often see that you should not forget to water the plant.
- Humidity
Many houseplants originate from rainforests and the air here is very humid. In the living room where you have your plants, the humidity is many times lower. Now you can see that some plants are not happy with this. The leaves have brown edges and they turn yellow. A sign to do something about your humidity!
Solution: Increase the humidity by means of: containers with water on the heating, watering your house plants or placing humidifiers. This increases the humidity in the house, which is better for both the plants and your own health. It is also preferable to put your plants together in groups. This keeps the moisture between the leaves longer and keeps them in better condition.
- Too little nutrition
Plants get nutrition from the soil/potting soil. When the potting soil is outdated and it no longer contains nutrients for the plant, yellow leaves can appear. This can be a reason when you can't find any bugs, the plant is moist enough but not too moist and it is in a good place in terms of daylight.
Solution: Add fresh potting soil to the plant. Preferably, you take it out of its pot and remove the old potting soil around the roots. Your plant will soon become happy again because it can again absorb nutrients through the soil. What you can also do is feed your plant. You add this to the irrigation water, for example. The packaging states how much to give and how often to repeat this.
Looking for houseplant nutrition? Stekjesbrief has different types in the webshop.
- Disease
It can also happen that your plant is sick. This is sometimes not very easy to see. It could be something going on inside the plant.
Solution: This is difficult to answer. It kind of depends on what's going on. If your plant is already too far gone, it will be a drive to the container for it. Better to get rid of one plant than to have the rest of your urban jungle infected.
- What to do with the yellow leaves?
So there are now yellow leaves on your plant. What are you supposed to do with this now? Does your plant have multiple leaves and some are yellow? Cut this off. In this way, your plant no longer sends energy there and can focus on the healthy leaves. Is there only one leaf left but are the roots of your plant still healthy? Let it sit until new leaves emerge. Often the leaf that is yellow then dies off on its own.
