Why my plants are in decline

Tips and tricks
Content
1. Wilted Vs Withered Plants 2. why do plants look decayed? 3. Causes of plant decline 4. How to improve faded plants

One day everything is beautiful and green in your inner garden, but the next you wake up and see all your plants drooping, as if they have been reading the news and the weight of reality has crushed them. There are plants that are natural drama queens (yes, I'm looking at you dear Fitonia and Peace Lily), but there are others that don't have this habit of fainting on a daily basis and it's normal to panic the first time you see them like this.

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Don't worry, your plants' fainting has a permanent solution as long as you act fast. Think that when you don't feel very well, you are able to verbalise it and ask for help.

Your plants don't have a voice, but they are living beings capable of communicating with you through their leaves and posture, so all this dramatic display can give you important information about their well-being. Take a deep breath and read on, because in this article you will learn the reasons why your plants are flagging, as well as what you need to do to restore their vigour and liveliness.

Wilted Vs Withered Plants

The first step is always to look carefully at your plants. It is not the same to have a wilted plant than a withered one, as a wilted plant requires more attention and can be more difficult to recover than a withered one; moreover, both conditions can be produced by different causes. We could say that a wilted plant is throwing a tantrum to indicate that it is not feeling very well for some reason, while a withered plant is already beginning to have serious consequences.

The main difference between the two states is in the leaves. Wilted plants have more flexible green stems, unable to stand upright, the leaves are drooping and look tired and sad. The leaves are still green and although they may look a little shrivelled, they are in perfect condition. If you touch the plants, they feel as they always do, just a little more limp.

A plant that is wilting immediately undergoes a colour change in the leaves. They may start to turn yellow or brown, look dry and brown, start to fold in on themselves and fall off. If you touch it, it feels toasted and crunchy. It can occur on a single leaf and this is part of the life cycle of the plant and is normal, that leaf will die, fall off and be replaced by another; but it can also occur on just one section of the plant.

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Decayed plants may begin to wilt if the cause is not addressed soon, and wilted plants are closer to dying. A big difference between the two states is that plants can wilt very quickly due to fungal and bacterial infections, so it is advisable to check well the possible reasons why a plant suddenly starts to wilt, as both situations are progressive and more or less slow.

why do plants look decayed?

Plants are living beings in which processes are taking place that regulate their vital functions. Mammals depend on our skeleton and muscles to keep us upright, but plants with green stems (and some animals such as spiders) depend on other types of structures and a process known as turgor.

Turgor can basically be defined as water pressure. It is actually a phenomenon in which cells expand under fluid pressure and exert outward pressure on the cell wall, making it firmer. Imagine you have a balloon and you fill it with water. If you fill it with too little water, the balloon will have little volume and may look saggy and wrinkled, whereas if you fill it to capacity it will feel firmer. This happens in almost all cells, including human skin cells. That's why when you're dehydrated, your skin looks flabbier and saggier.

Plants are like hydraulic machines, relying entirely on turgor pressure to keep themselves upright, but also to regulate the process of perspiration and metabolism. Plants are composed almost entirely of turgid cells, so they are completely dependent on adequate water flow and water pressure to be able to stand upright. This fluid pressure occurs in the roots, which are responsible for absorbing moisture from the soil and pumping it throughout the plant.

In plants such as Prayer Flower and others in the Maranthas family, a process known as nyctinasty occurs. The leaves of these species have a particular system called Pulvinis that allows the leaves to respond to light and temperature. The pulvini regulate the turgor pressure of the plants, thanks to a chemical photoreceptor that causes water to withdraw from certain sections of the leaves at night and refill them during the day, so that the leaves are folded upwards at night and reopen with the arrival of the sun.

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Unlike balloons, which fill up with water and stay that way because the plastic is quite resistant, cells have permeable membranes that allow the exchange of liquids and so fluid loss is possible, which can lead to dehydration. In the case of plants, there are openings in the leaves called stomata through which a process known as transpiration takes place; it is vital for photosynthesis.

Through transpiration, water is forced to flow upwards and into the plant, transporting nutrients to the leaves, but the water is also transformed into water vapour, which is released through the stomata. This process is particularly efficient in plants such as dracaena and maranthas, helping to regulate humidity levels in spaces.

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If there is no balance between the water that is lost through transpiration and that which is absorbed through the roots, then there is a loss of fluids which will depress the system, the cells will no longer be firm, causing the dehydrated stems to lose volume and turgor. As a result, the plant will look droopy and sad. This is a defence mechanism, because water loss is minimised and used for more important processes, such as food synthesis; moreover, drooping and shrunken leaves expose less surface area to the sun's rays, which can accelerate the evaporation of what little moisture there is.

Causes of plant decline

As mentioned at the beginning, plants have their own language to announce that they are under some kind of stress. They may change colour, develop spots or look droopy. Loss of plant stiffness is a cry for help that must be heeded immediately so that it does not escalate. Some of the causes of this phenomenon can be:

  • Lack of watering

This is usually the most frequent cause. Water is in constant movement in the plant, a tiny part is invested in photosynthesis, the rest is lost in the process of transpiration. If there is not enough moisture in the substrate, then the balance is disturbed and the plant loses turgor, so it collapses before your very eyes.

Identifying this cause is very simple: just touch the substrate very well and feel it with your finger or with a stick (I use one of the disposable chopsticks they give you in Asian restaurants), if it comes out dry, then you have to adjust the watering patterns of that plant.

There are plants, such as Phytonia and Peace Lily, which are very dramatic and will faint at the slightest lack of water. This is not usually serious and watering them very well is enough, as they will recover in a couple of hours.

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  • Overwatering

Paradoxically, over-watering will also result in a drooping plant, but this is potentially more dangerous than an under-watered plant. The plant will always lose turgor when it cannot absorb enough water. This happens either because it is not watered or because it has too much water.

At first you will see the typical signs of overwatering: the plant will turn yellowish, the leaves will feel swollen (this is called oedema and means it is retaining too much water). If overwatering persists then the roots will start to suffer, because with the excess moisture the roots will not be able to oxygenate properly, choking, which will also bring infections with anaerobic bacteria and the roots will rot.

Diagnosing this is simple. Look for signs of oedema and insert the rod into the substrate. If it feels waterlogged, sticks to the rod and stains your fingers, then there may be a problem of over-watering. Try to take the plant out of the pot and take a sniff, because an unpleasant smell, like rotting leaves or mould, means that there is a rotting problem. You have to act very quickly to save it.

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  • Over-fertilisation

This often happens to novice and enthusiastic plant owners, because at first we think that a little more than what the manufacturer says is perfect to make the plants grow bigger and more luxuriant, don't you? The problem is that the caricatures fooled us, because the excess nutrients contained in the fertiliser cause chemical damage and affect the roots of the plants, which will not be able to absorb enough moisture from the substrate.

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  • Temperature problems

Inadequate temperature causes stress to the plant, either because of excessive heat or draughts. Excessive heat causes direct damage to plant tissue if the sun falls directly on the leaves. Even in the shade, if it is too hot the moisture evaporates much faster and dries out not only the substrate, but also the leaves. This is easy to notice: look for brown leaves, brown spots and dry leaf tips.

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Very low temperatures and intermittent draughts can cause direct damage to leaves and roots. The cold prevents the roots from absorbing water properly, wilting it. Check if the plant is near a window or door where it receives draughts.

  • Low humidity

Many plants, especially those of tropical origin, require slightly higher humidity levels than we are used to at home. Most manage to adapt, but if you are in extreme seasons (summer or winter) and have heating or air conditioning, this can dry out the environment too much, affecting the turgor of the plants.

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  • Transplants

Transplants are traumatic for plants, as it is often unavoidable to cause some damage to the roots, either because it was difficult to remove from the pot, because it had grown too much or because the soil was too compacted in the root ball. Roots are not meant to be exposed to the open air or direct sunlight. They are delicate organisms, so their function can be impaired when they are handled. For this reason it is normal to see a slight decline when potted in a new pot. Avoid overwatering after repotting, as this will not help the plant, but can actually make the problem worse.

  • Poor or excessive lighting

remember when we talked about plants that have nyctinasty? These types of plants have specialised organisms that are sensitive to the amount of light in the environment, so they tend to show the effects of lighting problems much quicker. If you have a Calathea roseopicta, for example, and you put it in a place where it gets direct sun, it will fade and wilt almost immediately. But this is not unique to these species, as almost all plants will respond in this way to poor lighting.

How to improve faded plants

If your plants are faint, listless and sad, it's time to get to work. If you've had a good read through the causes, then you'll already know what has caused that level of stress in your plant's tissues, so you're ready to start tackling it:

  • Lack of watering:

The solution is simple: water well and deeply. If you feel that the substrate is too dry, you can submerge it for a while in a bucket of water, barely covering the pot. Then let it drain very well, checking that the excess water is running out. If you have a succulent or a very leafy plant and it is difficult to moisten the substrate well, you can water it from underneath, put it in a shallow basin with water that reaches halfway up the pot and leave it for about 20 minutes, it will absorb the water it needs. Don't forget to adjust watering patterns, it is better to water infrequently and with plenty of water, than infrequently and several times a week. For dramatic plants like the peace lily you can buy an automatic watering device, that way it will never run out of water.

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  • Overwatering

This is a little more complicated. Take the plant out of the pot, being careful with the roots. Check if the substrate is too waterlogged. If so, it is better to put it in fresh, dry substrate, discarding the one that is soggy. Check the roots to make sure they are not rotten or full of mould. Check the drainage holes in the pot and always place a layer of pebbles or pieces of polystyrene at the bottom, which will facilitate the drainage of excess water. Before watering, check the substrate or buy a nice humidity indicator to avoid any watering problems.

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  • Excess fertiliser

This is eliminated by watering generously and abundantly to "wash" the substrate, remove excess nutrients and remove any fertiliser residue that may be affecting the roots. If you think that the excess is too much, you can change the substrate of the plant, leaving only a little on the roots, to avoid mistreating them and water abundantly, letting it drain very well to avoid problems due to overwatering.

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  • Temperature and lighting problems

The solution is simple: relocate the plant. You can find out about the plant's preferences by researching its origin. If you bought them from Be Green, you can find this information on the card that came with your new plant or on our website. Avoid placing plants near doors and windows, as without realising it we subject them to draughts that stress them. do you want to improve the lighting but don't have many windows? Then get a nice UV lamp. Your plants will love it and it will give you a bit of coloured light that will look great with your decor.

  • Low humidity

Spray your tropical plants very gently with a sprinkler. Remember that succulents should never be wet, because they will stain and rot. Another trick is to put a lot of plants together so that they themselves regulate the humidity.

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  • Transplants

Re-pot plants only when it is really necessary. If you find the pot unattractive, you can look for nice decorative pots. Try to transplant in spring and summer, always in the shade or at times of low sunshine. Do it quickly, without pulling the plant and try not to manipulate the root ball. It is not always necessary to loosen the soil attached to it, if the plant is healthy it is better to leave it as it is. Water as normal and give it time to get used to its new home. In a short time it will be back to its healthy and healthy self.

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About the author
Ame Rodríguez

Dedicated to creating an army of cacti, succulents, poodles and cats to help me conquer the world. In the little free time I have left, I play, write and dance.

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