Friday
May292009
Plant life
Friday, May 29, 2009 at 10:22AM
Help, my plant is dying. I inherited this plant at work when my former supervisor left, and despite having no green thumb, as they say, I somehow managed to keep it alive for over a year. But now it's all yellow and droopy and I don't know why!
When I was in Ireland, my officemate watered it for me, so it was fine when I returned. Then about a week later, I came in one day and it looked so sickly! It's like a chameleon plant - used to be bright green, now it's neon yellow. This picture really doesn't show off just how yellow it is (in fact it looks quite healthy in that photo, and I should probably just delete it, but I'm too lazy to take another). Plus it's all limp and droopy.
It sat on my window ledge for several months, and I watered it 2-3 times a week. But the other day, since it was on its deathbed, I moved it away from the window, which is also directly in the path of an air conditioning vent. I'm hoping that helps, but so far, it still looks like it's begging me to just let it go to plant heaven already.
I also stuck a Miracle Grow spike thingy (no idea what they're called) in the soil. Will that help or is that whole thing a big hoax?
When I was in Ireland, my officemate watered it for me, so it was fine when I returned. Then about a week later, I came in one day and it looked so sickly! It's like a chameleon plant - used to be bright green, now it's neon yellow. This picture really doesn't show off just how yellow it is (in fact it looks quite healthy in that photo, and I should probably just delete it, but I'm too lazy to take another). Plus it's all limp and droopy.
It sat on my window ledge for several months, and I watered it 2-3 times a week. But the other day, since it was on its deathbed, I moved it away from the window, which is also directly in the path of an air conditioning vent. I'm hoping that helps, but so far, it still looks like it's begging me to just let it go to plant heaven already.
I also stuck a Miracle Grow spike thingy (no idea what they're called) in the soil. Will that help or is that whole thing a big hoax?
Reader Comments (10)
I'm certainly no green thumb, so really you shouldn't even listen to me. I think when plants turn yellow, they are usually over-watered. So, maybe give it a day or two to dry out. hope that's helpful.
Yep, second that it was over-watered. Get it back in the sun to dry out and DON'T water. Good luck little plant!
Take out the stake. They're not really a good idea for house plants. You need a liquid and should give it every 2-3 weeks only in the spring and summer. (I almost never fertilize my houseplants, but I did buy worm poop--Terra Cycle--to spray on them to see how that goes. Mostly because I like to say worm poop, and the company packs the goods in recycled soda bottles.)
I **think** it's an Arrowhead plant, but it's hard to say from that photo. There's a troubleshooting guide here: http://www.bachmans.com/tipsheets/indoor_plants/SyngoniumArrowheadPlant.cfm
I've been learning about how to take care of plants as I've acquired three in the last three months or so. So the ladies at the office are mothering me on how to mother my plants.
From what I've learned, I, too, would say it's been overwatered. Overwatering will cause excess water to hang out in the bottom of the pot and can cause root rot. You may want to try to tip it upside-down and see if any extra water runs out.
What I've been told to do with my plant once a week is remove it from the basket (there's a liner that it sits in inside the basket), give it a good soak in a sink (water thoroughly as if drowning it), let it sit for a a little while and then dump off the excess.
Now, my plant is too dang large and heavy to remove it from the basket every stinking week. My first attempt at this was laughable. So, now, I check the soil with my finger once a week. If the soil is still damp, I don't water it. If the soil is dry, I make sure to water all the way around it. It took a little while to figure out how much water to give it so that it didn't go running out the bottom.
So, I guess you may not need to do all that if you’ve kept it alive this long. But I would think you would want to get any excess water out of the bottom if you can so the roots don’t rot.
Oh, and the office mothers also said the Miracle Grow spike things don't really work. You need to the spreadable Miracle Grow if you go that route. That's what they said anyway. *shrug*
i think its over watered too. J and I had that happen to a few of our plants, but also check for small gnats or bugs in the soil,--just by moving the leaves around some. if you do find you have small gnats (common in office areas) you can pick up some spray that will zap 'em.
give watering a rest and check the soil for signs of "life".
:)
My next door neighbor is this little old man who has a HUGE garden on his roof deck and he always tells me what to do with our plants. When a plant starts looking like it's losing it's color, it's missing some nutrient it needs (I forget the name) - he instructed me to add about 1 tablespoon of epsom salt on top of the soil and then water it every few days and voila, it was back to normal. Try it!
I didnt' read everyone else's responses, but it might be getting to big for the basket. The roots are probably not able to spread out very well. You have a couple options, you can get a bigger basket or pull a couple of the plants out. If you do the second, be very careful, because the roots could be entwined.
Oh god, I think I just heard it whimper. Whatever's wrong with it, I hope it feels better soon.
The miracle grow will help. Sun will help. It looks like it was sun deprived.