Pothos wilting is a common problem due to watering issues, lack of humidity, inadequate sunlight exposure, the weather being too cold, having constricted roots, or your plant suffering from pests or diseases.
Epipremnum aureum or pothos are hardy vines and survive for years with little care. Although seeing wilting pothos leaves might seem alarming, it can be fixed with easy steps. Our gardening team will help you deal with this problem, so keep reading.
What Are The Causes of Pothos Wilting Leaves?
The causes of pothos wilting leaves are due to transplanting shock, and facing watering issues. In addition, it can also be because of dry weather, being placed in a low-temperature setting, having inadequate light exposure, and the plant being root-bound, or having pests and diseases.
– Transplant Shock
Pothos plants might suffer from droopiness and wilting after being repotted. The change in the plant’s environment leads to stress that usually causes the leaves to droop and wilt. After moving your pothos cutting to a new pot in drained soil, you might notice that the leaves are losing their color and drooping, although you’re keeping the plant in direct sunlight.
– Watering Issues
When you water the plant less than or more than what it needs, this matter might lead to droopiness and wilting. These tropical plants should be watered only when the soil dries out because too much or too little water can lead to droopiness and wilting.
Watering your pothos according to a schedule is a big mistake. The plant’s watering needs should be adjusted according to the weather, you will also see leaves turning yellow in the long run when you are watering the plant in an excessive way.
When you water plant in an excessive way, without giving the soil any chance to dry out, the roots will always be damp, leading to root rot formation. It deprives the roots of absorbing nutrients, and as a result, the leaves will droop and wilt before they fall off the plant, and it will not have the ability to look green and fresh again.
At the same time, you should take into consideration that watering the plant less than what it needs can also lead to wilting. The leaves become dry and brittle due to loss of moisture. This happens when you wait for too long between each time that you water them.
– Weather Is Dry
Pothos plants thrive in high humidity levels, and the foliage will droop and wilt when the weather is too dry. Your pothos yellowing leaves might droop and wilt, especially in winter when the temperature and humidity levels drop, and this can also be the case, if where you are located does not have proper humidity or moisture, and it is dry.
– Temperature Is Low
Pothos tropical vines thrive in warm weather as they originate in the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific. This is the reason why they are better suited for controlled indoor climates, making them excellent indoor houseplants, so you can see how cold weather is a determining factor when it comes to the wilt of the plant.
However, if you keep the plant outside, the frost will make the foliage droop and wilt. Keeping the plant in dry air and close to cold drafts in winter is one of the common reasons for droopiness and wilting, and you will see it losing unhealthy as the days go by.
– Inadequate Light Exposure
In their native habitat, pothos vines can survive in sunny and shady locations. But they don’t prefer being exposed to extreme light conditions. In addition, you must note, pothos might not receive enough light when kept indoors, less than what they need. This can cause the yellow leaves to appear, and they might start to droop and wilt.
The plant’s leaves will curl and wilt in intense light because it’s trying to decrease its surface area to preserve its moisture. The leaves get scorched, and they might become yellow or brown.
– Your Plant Is Rootbound
Rootbound plants have restricted roots because the rootball grows too big for the plant’s current pot. As a result, your pothos plant won’t be able to receive enough water and nutrients, and the leaves will droop and wilt.
When a plant is rootbound, it tries to protect its energy. So, it doesn’t grow new foliage, and the current pothos leaves feel thin and dry. If you don’t repot your plant, your pothos will lose its leaves and die.
– Pests and Diseases
If the plant is sick, you might see limp and wilting leaves on your pothos. You should remember that these are hardy and low-maintenance plants, but they can get infected by pests when they’re near sick and infected plants in your outdoor or indoor garden.
Spider mites and aphids usually attack pothos, sucking the sap out of the leaves. This weakens the leaves, and they become dry. When left untreated, the leaves will droop and wilt before falling off the plant. The vines and stems will turn brown, so the plant will eventually die.
Some bacterial and fungal diseases can also make the foliage lose its healthy texture and color. You’ll notice the leaves drooping and the stems becoming discolored or mushy.
How To Fix Pothos Drooping Leaves
To fix pothos drooping leaves, you should start by adjusting the watering schedule, providing enough water, and keeping it at the right temperature and humidity levels. This will restore the plant’s healthy look, so you can repot the plant, give it time to recover, and treat the pests and diseases.
– Give Your Plant Some Time
Pothos drooping after repotting can recover over time, and if you’ve just transplanted your pothos seedling to a new pot or picked a new location for your plant, giving it some time to recover will be an excellent remedy. Understanding why your plant has droopy and unhealthy leaves will help you wait for a bit so that the recovery can take place with ease.
Pothos is a hardy plant and will adapt quickly. The symptoms of a transplant shock might seem alarming, but they’re not that serious and don’t mean your plant is dying. Within a few days, you’ll see your plant gaining its natural color, and the stems are becoming thick and healthy.
Water the plant adequately, but check the soil and allow it to dry between the frequency of you irrigating the plant. Hence, pothos aren’t heavy feeders, but applying a balanced fertilizer after transplant can help the plant overcome the shock.
– Water Adequately
Pothos are more tolerant of dry soil than wet soil. The plant will suffer from root rot when left in constantly damp soil. So, you should let the soil completely dry out between waterings to keep the overwatered pothos plant healthy.
If you notice black and brown spots on your pothos or your plant is suddenly collapsing, you might keep it in damp soil. In this case, you should let the soil dry out and water your droopy pothos plant once every couple of weeks. You might also have to repot your pothos in a fresh soil mix to eliminate the pothos droopy yellow leaves.
You can use a gauge to measure the moisture level if your pothos isn’t properly hydrated. If your plant is too dehydrated, you can soak it in water for an hour to absorb moisture and allow the excess water to drain. After this, you can water it regularly, but ensure you schedule it properly.
– Adjust Humidity
A healthy pothos is an excellent plant for humid environments, making it a perfect choice for your bathroom. In dry climates, especially in winter, your pothos might suffer because of the lack of humidity.
You can fix this problem by keeping your pothos next to other plants because the transpiration will increase the humidity level. You can also try misting the leaves. However, ensuring that you are transferring your pothos to a humid spot like your bathroom can also help fix this problem. Finally, you can use a humidifier if nothing else works, or place a pebble tray with some water.
– Keep Your Plants Warm
Pothos vines thrive in tropical and warm weather. So, you might notice that your pothos looks unhealthy when the temperature drops. This happens when the temperature is below 50 degrees Fahrenheit or when the frost hits your plants.
Maintain temperatures around 65 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit, and move your plants indoors if you keep them outside. You should also keep your plants away from any cold drafts in winter.
– Adjust Light Exposure
Pothos are easy to maintain and can survive in shade and light. However, this plant will have droopy and wilting leaves when it receives too little or too much light, because they aren’t receiving the right light to function.
If you think your plant is kept in the dark, you can keep it near a window with access to bright indirect sunlight. However, this plant can handle low light conditions better than too much light. At the same time, too much light, the leaves might get scorched and wilt. In this case, you should move your plant to a shady location, so the plant will soon pick up and restore its healthy look.
– Repot Your Plant
Pothos has a moderate growth rate, so you should repot these plants once every one or two years. You’ll start seeing the roots protruding from your plant pot’s draining holes, and your pothos will look limp and wilting no matter how much you water it.
This happens because the plant’s roots are restricted and can’t absorb nutrients or water. A rootbound plant preserves its energy, so it will grow smaller leaves or stop growing new foliage altogether.
In this case, you should move the plant to a pot two or three inches bigger than its current pot, but not bigger than that or else the plant will have excessive water. Make sure that you use fresh soil and water this plant adequately to allow the roots to get established. It’s better to repot your Satin pothos drooping plant in the spring or summer when it experiences its best growth.
– Deal With Pests and Diseases
Pests and diseases can cause stress and weaken your plant. As a result, the foliage will droop and wilt. You can tell that the plant is infested with pests when the stems look brown and weak because the bugs suck the sap out of the plant.
Fungal and bacterial diseases will make your plant’s stems look mushy and discolored, and the leaves will appear drooping and wilting. You can tackle this issue with some neem oil, as you dilute it properly and avoid any leaf burning issues.
Depending on the problem your plant is dealing with, you should use a suitable chemical compound. Pests can be treated with insecticides, insecticidal soap, neem, or horticulture. These treatments can eliminate pests and prevent future infestations.
Some fungal and bacterial diseases can’t be treated, and eventually, the plant will die. However, if it can be treated, you should spray a fungicide on the leaves every few days. Avoid spraying your plant early in the morning to protect the foliage from getting scorched.
Conclusion
Pothos foliage might wilt due to problems in their plant care routine, but there are several solutions to save your pothos droopy leaves, so here is a recap:
- Don’t overwater your pothos; allow for indirect and bright sunlight to keep the plant healthy.
- You might also see wilting pothos leaves due to a transplant shock; a plant disease or pest infestation might also cause wilting.
- Keep your pothos in a warm and humid place to keep it healthy.
- Pothos drooping after watering might need to be repotted and allowed to recover from the transplant shock.
- Deal with pests and diseases using suitable chemical compounds.
In our final thoughts, we believe that pothos are resilient and will stay healthy if you follow these gardening tips, so you don’t have to check and droopy pothos Reddit because you know the answer.
- Grow Mango Tree Indoors: Best Tips and Tricks For You - September 21, 2023
- Are Lilacs Deer Resistant? 10 Other Deer Resistant Plants - September 19, 2023
- 7 Plants With Red Stems To Add Color to Your Garden - September 18, 2023
