This Is Why Your Plants Are Dying
Ok first of all: I’m not a plant expert but I’m like a plant helicopter mom. I’ve been caring for my babies for one year now, and any time they do anything that seems not ok, I research the heck out of it. I’m very proud to say that all 6 plants that I bought last year are still alive, and have multiplied!
Before this year, I killed so many plants. The things I used to do to them are laughable to me now, because I’ve learned so much this year and I was doing everything wrong before. So here I am, proud plant mom, to share all the reasons your plants are dying, in case any of you out there are like 2015 Julie.
Ok here we go:
IT’S TOO FAR AWAY FROM A WINDOW:
We all know plants need light, but this was a revelation to me. It makes a huge difference how close or far from a window your plant is. It’s getting a lot less light 5 feet away from the window than it is right next to it. Some plants can handle that, but almost no plant loves it (remember how plants actually prefer to live outside?), and many plants can’t handle it. Your plant might not be getting enough light even if the room seems bright ish.
Expert Level: pay attention to what direction your windows face. South & West facing windows get bright, hot, direct sunlight in the afternoons and evenings. Some plants will burn if they’re right next to the window, so you can add a sheer curtain or move them a few feet away. North and East facing windows (especially North) will get less light throughout the day, so you’ll probably want your plants riiiight up against the window, or make sure to get plants that can tolerate low light really well.HOME DEPOT SAID IT WAS A LOW LIGHT PLANT SO YOU THOUGHT IT WAS FINE:
“Low light tolerant” means it can possibly survive in low light, but no plant likes that. Plants live on photosynthesis (light!!!). Your plants won’t thrive in low light, but if you really don’t have light and you really want a plant, look for a low light tolerant plant, be careful to give it good drainage and don’t water too often.
Expert Level: get a grow light to provide light for plants that need more if you don’t have a good window spot!YOU’RE SCARED TO OVERWATER SO YOU ONLY GIVE IT LIKE A TINY LITTLE CUP OF WATER:
The term “overwatering” is a little deceiving: Most plants want a good full soak whenever you water. I’m talking, take it outside and let the water pour out through the bottom and even sit in it for a few minutes. You can’t make your plant drink more than it wants to drink, so the issue will never be that you drowned it. What you can do is keep the soil too wet by watering it too often, causing the roots to mold and rot, keeping the plant from getting the nutrients it wants. So, if you don’t have a lot of light, make sure to have really good drainage in the soil so that the water will never sit in there for too long. If you have decent light though, your plant should use up a full soak over the course of a week or two (depends on the size and the light/weather etc) and then it will be ready for water again!
Expert Level: some plants enjoy bottom watering! I do this most of the time with my pothos plants — let them sit in a bowl of water for a couple hours and drink up as much water as they want!YOU WATER IT ON A CONSISTENT SCHEDULE:
I used to water my plants every day (they died), which is horrible for most of them (except if you have a tiny basil plant from the grocery store — then yes). But the whole concept of a watering schedule is tricky even if it’s less often, like once a week or once every two weeks. You might be able to make it work, but I’ve found that it’s better to keep a close eye on my plants and learn the signs for each one that it is getting thirsty before I water it. It really helped me to take lots of pictures of my plants at first so that I could more easily notice any changes. I’ve found that all of my plants except one get slightly wilty leaves when they’re ready for water (The other one does too but not until it’s really really thirsty). Most of them like the soil to dry out pretty well between waterings, so I pick up the pot to see if it’s still heavy with water if I’m not sure. You can also get a cheap water meter if you’re really still not sure if it’s ready for water! In the summer when the days are longer and my plants are getting more light, most of my plants need water about once a week or every ten days. In the winter, I leave some of them a whole month without watering.Expert level: Set up a self-watering hack and let your plants take water whenever they want! I know almost nothing about this but I’m pretty sure it’s legit, and it’s a great solution for when you travel or if you just don’t want to pay as much attention.
IT LOOKS SAD BUT YOU DON’T KNOW WHY SO YOU JUST TRY EVERYTHING OR NOTHING:
Here are the basics of most plants and how to tell what is wrong with them:UNDER-WATERED: dry soil, floppy wilty leaves, leaves lose their shine and look dull, bottom leaves turning yellow around the edges and gradually moving into the rest of the leaf, no new growth, possibly some leaf drop eventually. Give it a good water and be more consistent with watering and most plants can recover from being too dry for a while!
OVER-WATERED/NOT ENOUGH LIGHT: wet soil, leaves turning yellow (not just around the edges, but also the middle of the leaf and possibly not just the bottom leaves), gnats/pests, mold, leaves dropping. Make sure your pot has a drainage hole for excess water. If you catch the signs early, try moving it to a spot with more light, and put it on a towel to help drain some of the water. If your plant has been having serious issues for a while, it might have root rot — keep it in the shade (the roots can’t keep up with too much light now), and pray (haha — I don’t know much about recovering from root rot but I think it’s pretty difficult and you might have to say goodbye).
STRESS / ADJUSTING TO A NEW ENVIRONMENT: bottom leaves dropping sort of suddenly and rapidly when everything else seems fine, no new growth for a long time. This is totally normal. The only thing you can do is try to gradually adjust them from the environment they were used to instead of suddenly, and then try to be very consistent in their environment and care. Some plants just really don’t like change, but you should be able to recover once it gets used to the new spot.
PESTS: weird spots or textures that don’t seem normal. I don’t know a lot about pests, but I use a Neem Oil spray here and there to keep them away. Some plants can survive pests if you eliminate them properly. Some plants won’t really make it. If you get pests, isolate the plant from all your other plants so that it doesn’t spread. Some pests are totally harmless and just annoying — just look it up!