Dr. Raiz Ahmed Lone
Plants are pretty good at communicating when things aren’t going well, but knowing what to look out for is half the battle.
Whether you’ve been a diligent plant parent or you’ve gotten a little lax tending to your greenery, things can and will go wrong. When dealing with the natural world some things are beyond our control and it’s important to learn from mistakes. Each experience adds to your plant knowledge and will help you tackle any future issues. Observation is key; not just checking in with your indoor plants, but looking at how they respond to water and light, as well as noticing any changes in growth.
Sometimes, a problem can have different causes, (i.e. leaves with brown, dry tips can be caused by poor drainage, lack of humidity or watering issues). This is why it is better to identify the causes, rather than the problems.

Your ill plant may be affected by a combination of problems, (i.e. your plant may be over watered, in a container without proper drainage and located in a spot without enough light), so you need to make sure you’ve addressed all the problems listed here below.
- OVER WATERING
Over watering plants is almost worse than under watering them! This is really the number one cause of house plants death. Most of the times people over water their plants because they assume that whatever problem the plant may have, is related to needing more water. Perhaps the plant needs more or less light or simply better drainage, but instead, they give it more water, making whatever problem the plant may have, even worse.
Typical symptoms of over watered plants are; Roots rot, (waterlogged roots cannot absorb oxygen, causing the plant’s death.), Un-healthy, droopy growth, Leaf burn, (brown tips), Yellow Leaves, Soprophytic Fungus, (the lovely fluffy white mould on the top surface of the plant’s soil).
Potential Solutions;
If over watering is in-fact the cause of your plant’s illness, you’ll notice right away; a pool of smelly water at the bottom of your pot if the pot doesn’t have any draining holes, soggy soil falling off the roots, mouldy roots all cramped towards the top soil, roots and soil dripping water. Place your plant with its roots ball on top of an absorbing material, like newspaper sheets. Change to dry sheets once it’s completely soaked, until the plant’s roots ball stops dripping water. Do not squeeze the roots with your hands! Cut off the mouldy, rotten, pieces of roots and cut the extensively damaged stems and leaves. Once the roots ball is cleaned and relatively dried out, re-pot your plant into a clean pot with draining holes and new soil appropriate for the plant species you are caring for. - UNDER WATERING
Under watering is mostly an issue for outdoor plants, then it is for indoor plants, unless you are neglecting your plants, of course! Typical symptoms of under watered plants are; Slow growth, Wilting, crisp leaves, Dropping of leaves and flowers, Yellow and curled-up leaves that will eventually fall off, Extremely hard, cracked and dry top soil.
Potential solutions;
The first thing you need to do to save your plant, (provided that is not too late), is to remove the plant from the pot to make sure the soil is in-fact bone dry! If that’s the case, put your plant back into its pot, (making sure it has proper drainage) and water it thoroughly. Avoid under watering your plant by researching your plant species watering, lighting and humidity needs. - POOR DRAINAGE
Poor drainage is as bad as over watering your plants. It basically has the same symptoms as over watering plants; the water gets stuck in the pot and water logs the roots, causing rot. Typical symptoms of poor drainage are; Roots rot, (waterlogged roots cannot absorb oxygen, causing the plant’s death.)
Potential Solutions;
Like in the case of over watered plants, the first thing you need to do when you have a pot without draining holes is to take it out of its pot. If your plant is suffering the symptoms of poor drainage, you will notice; a pool of fowl water at the bottom of your pot, soggy soil falling off the roots, mouldy roots all cramped towards the top soil, roots and soil dripping water.
Place your plant with its roots ball on top of an absorbing material, like newspaper sheets. Change to dry sheets once it’s completely soaked, until the plant’s roots ball stops dripping water. Cut off the mouldy, rotten, pieces of roots and cut the extensively damaged stems and leaves.
Once the roots ball is cleaned and relatively dried out, re-pot your plant into a clean pot with draining holes and new soil appropriate for the plant species you are caring for. - LACK OF HUMIDITY
Lack of humidity is a major problem, especially for tropical plants and ferns in homes with forced air heating systems during the winter season. Abundant watering is not always the solution as it may lead to other over watering problems. Typical lack of humidity symptoms are; curled leaves, dry leaves tips, dropping of leaves and flowers, wilting leaves, shriveling flowers.
Potential solutions;
There are a few options to increase the humidity levels for your plants. However, there are only two effective ways to help your plants with humidity. Using pebble trays filled with water under your pots. Depending on the plant species needs and the humidity levels within your home, you may choose to mist the plant’s foliage. - WRONG LOCATION
Wrong location means three things:
Placing plant in a spot that is too bright for its species needs.
Placing plant in a spot that doesn’t have enough light for its species needs.
Placing plant in a spot that has too many drafts, (and no plant likes that, no matter the species). Draft areas are those areas that are either too close to a door that exposes the plant to cold air in the winter; or spots near a source of heat and air conditioning, such as vents.
Potential Solutions;
Avoid the third location at any cost for any plant. However, you need to do research specific to your plants species to determine if your plant thrives in bright, direct sunlight, bright indirect light or medium to low light.
It’s best to avoid mid-day and afternoon Southern and Western exposure for any plants. However, there are some plants that love the heat generated by the magnifying lens effect of the hot sun through the window pane like some species of succulents and cacti. - ROOT BOUND AND REPOTTING
Some plants really enjoy being root bound, others don’t! But even the plants that love to cramp their roots in a tight pot will eventually need a larger pot! Why some plants like to be root bound? It turns out that plants have instincts too. When their roots are cramped inside a pot, the plant receives threatening signals that make them produce the next generation of plants. Peace Lilies and Spider Plants are the most common house plants that need to be root bound to produce the beautiful white flowers and off-shoot spiderettes they are known for. Whether you have a plant that enjoys to be root bound or not, the most common root bound symptoms are similar to the under watering symptoms, slow growth, wilting, crisp leaves, yellow and curled-up leaves that will eventually fall off.
Potential Solutions;
If you have a plant that loves to be root bound like a Spider Plant, repotting will promote the plant growth but it will stop the production of spiderettes. The same goes for Peace Lilies; new leaves may grow but the beautiful specialized white leaves won’t be reproduced until the roots grow with the plant and become cramped inside the pot again. However, even these plants need to be repotted every once in a while. The best way to re-pot these plants is to place them in a pot that is only one size bigger than its previous one. - WATER QUALITY
The type of water you use to water your plants makes a huge difference! Some tap water has high levels of chlorine or fluoride and some is affected by the use of a water softener. The most common water quality symptoms are: Leaf burn, (brown tips), White crust on soil surface and around the pot rim.
Potential solution;
Collect enough water the night before you water to allow salts to settle at the bottom of your container and chlorine to evaporate.
Another advantage of collecting water hours before watering your plants is that the temperature adapts to the room temperature in which the plants live and it is not too cold from the tap. These are the 7 most common problems for house plants. Before you start your troubleshooting process, it is better to do some research on your plant species needs for light, water and humidity to start with.
Author is Scientist-Floriculture and Landscape Architecture, KVK, Srinagar, SKUAST-K and can be reached at raizahmed999@gmail.com