Yep it's a scheff.
What size pot is this? Looks 10 or 12 inch?
How tall is it?
I am wondering if it is overpotted and usually then they get overwatered.
Your soil looks very very heavy. Is it too wet?
Scheffs like to dry out inbetween waterings.
I can see on the top of tallest stalk new growth but also see a dark yellow spot.
When you potted this did you plant it deeper than it used to be? If so you are smothering it.

Other than the new growth it looks very healthy.

It's in a 6in pot. I'd say it's maybe 10 or so inches high. It actually gets very dry between waterings 'cause it's usually in the back of all the plants and I tend to forget about it, but it's never wilted or anything like that.

It just got watered yesterday, but I agree that maybe the soil isn't good, but I assure you it doesn't stay wet.

The yellow spot on the top is where I pulled the icky leaf off of and where the new icky leaf is growing in. What is that?

I repotted it November no deeper than it was originally potted and it's been fine until now.

Now, I had some medium sized yellow mushrooms grow out from the soil. When I pulled them out, they left a yellow dusty residue on my hands, and I haven't had time yet to repot to get rid of any spores or other little guys hanging out down there. Could they perhaps be causing a problem?

Wow, just 6 huh. Not sure what to call the yellow stuff on top, just bad tissue. If you've had mushrooms thats not good...too dark and wet/moist or maybe even a cold draft.
Definately get it out of that soil into new well draining soil with some perlite. When you do repot it check the roots. They should be white and firm not brown and mushy/stinky. Trim off any brown.
Don't bother trying to get rid of all the spores...not worth your time. It's like finding a needle in a haystack.
Is it getting enough bright light? Thats what they like. They can even handle some direct morning sun depending on where you live and the time of year. If the leaves get sunburned they turn whiteish.
I really think something has happened recently as it is just too healthy. That one cracked leaf isn't a sign of anything.
I assume you have checked for bugs on leaves, but being so healthy I doubt thats the problem. I don't see any.
Maybe cat urine or something not normal.
It's a very nice looking young scheff so I hope the repot fixes it.

It's under artificial light as well as getting direct evening sun. It's not getting any drafts either seeing as how the window doesn't get opened and the door's on the other side of the wall.

Is it perhaps 'cause the soils just really crappy. It was some cheap stuff I bought a while ago and it's completely seperated from the pot. When I water, maybe it's not soaking up any water? I let it sit in the water until the soil looks darker and the pot's heavier, but is that not enough?

No whitish leaves, not brown edges, so paper-thin spots. Nothing. And no bugs as well. That's usually the first thing I check for, plus I check my plants every day. Each plant, top of leaves, bottom of leaves and stems. If anyone has anything, they're off to their own little secluded spot. They get lonely when on their own, but I read them stories to help pass the time in quarentine.

Cat knows better than to pee in my plants. She attacks any plantlet runners I have, but that's it, and dog can't reach to pee in it. She's just a tiny chihauhau. Can't even get up on the couch.

Thanks.

OK then it's probably just the bad soil. When it pulls away from the pot then it is really dry. But that wouldn't allow mushrooms. So maybe just the roots are staying wet.
You won't know for sure unless you repot and take a good look at the roots.
If you can keep track the amount you water vs the amount you drain off that runs thru. You'll know then how much is being absorbed.
Some soils are full of peat and when not watered often enough they get rock hard and then don't absorb.
Give it more light if you can and watch for any whitish sunburn leaves.

Alright. Thanks so much!

Now that I look at it again, I think it is getting enough light.
Since you are providing artifical lighting it probably isn't getting the warmth it would from the sun.
Look at the bottom on the large stalk how far apart each set of leaves are and at the top they are much closer.
When they are further apart that is elongated and is telling of not enough light. So when it was younger it didn't get the light, but now it is.
I just think natural sunlight is better if you can provide.

Oh and if the soil is rock hard from peat, don't break it off you can damage roots. Soak it a bit in a pail of water until it softens to get most of it off.

Alright, so I unpotted my Schefflera like I was told to do, and guess what I found. A nasty nasty mess of mold and mushrooms and grossness. It's close to the grossest thing I've ever seen.

The soil wasn't rock hard, easy to get off. So I washed the roots off, washed the pot like no tomorrow and repotted it.

I think you were right when you said it was probably staying too wet. The bottom of the soil ball was still pretty wet, though it was just watered so perhaps that's nothing.

So here's a couple pictures of what it look like...are you guys ready for this?

{{gwi:91791}}

{{gwi:91792}}

EEEWWWWW That's gross. The mushrooms was the key.
I'd get rid of that pot even though it looked plastic.
Spores could be hiding down in the tray.
I bet the soil was contaminated with spores when you bought it...that's sort of common with cheap soils.

It just looked so healthy so I'm glad you found out this soon!

The pot didn't have a tray. It's on a saucer that gets emptied when water runs through the pot.

Now isn't it a good thing I remembered to mention the mushrooms?

And the cheap soil is worrying me 'cause I planted a few plants in that stuff. And one of my sentry palms is showing those little white balls ontop of the soil, so I'm thinking perhaps I should check that one too, though there's no problem with the growth.

Thank you SO SO much for your help. I do really love this plant. One of my absolute favs and it does look pretty beautiful doesn't it? ^_^

Just think...you helped save another leafy life.

You are welcome, no problem. Oh yes definately the mushrooms was the key clue in your problem.
You should check your sentry palm, it's problems might just be beginning.
I just can't believe it looked so healthy with all that mold and fungus. That is really amazing.

If those pots are plastic it wouldn't hurt to just dip in a light bleach water solution and then rinse, rinse, rinse.
But if any type of a porous material don't do that.

My scheffs are special to me also cuz they came from my grandmothers funeral.

I think it looked healthy 'cause I caught the problem early. To be growing so healthy and then all of a sudden new growth looks like crap...hmmmmmm. Gets one wondering.

Hmmmm - I don't think the fruiting bodies of the fungus is a problem at all. First, the fungus won't grow in anaerobic conditions, so the fact that the bodies are in evidence at the bottom of the container is pretty clear indication she's not over-watering. The roots all look nice and white/tan, plump, and healthy. I use pine bark as the basis for many of my soils, and I'm always getting lots of fungal things growing in my containers that I never even give a second thought.

If the leaves are developing spots, it could be a fungal infection (but it's almost a 100% certainty it's unrelated to those in the soil. Have you been misting the foliage?) or an insect issue. The roots are healthy, so I wouldn't look further in that direction or try to 'correct' a soil issue - unless you just can't stand to think about the natural process taking place in a healthy soil. Plants form all kinds of beneficial relationships or just ignore millions of things fungal in the soils they find themselves in. ;o)

Al

I thought about a fungi treatment but I know nothing about them, never used one so can't recommend anything.
Bunny, at least you can see it was time for a repot anyway. I'm assuming no bugs in that cheap soil since you didn't mention it.

A1, I am curious, what would use suggest.

Here's sort of how I reason through the issue: I don't see the fungal bodies as a direct threat to the plant because the plant appears to be living in harmony with them - witness the nice healthy roots. If they were to be a threat, it would be to the longevity of the soil. Since they feed on dead plant matter, they can collapse the soil fairly quickly ..... BUT, the roots have well-colonized the soil already and have actually become part of the soil structure, so a collapsing soil isn't as large an issue as it would be with an over-potted plant or a new planting where roots had NOT colonized the entire mass. So, even if the fungal stuff caused the soil to break down more quickly, it's still not a huge issue.

How would I approach a solution? First, if she was misting, I would stop. I would make SURE the plant is in an area with good air movement. Then, I would identify whether we have a fungal pathogen (it could even be an abiotic pathogen, for all we know) or an insect problem at work. If insects, I would identify & treat with the least noxious means that would would bring them into check. If it was something fungal, I would treat it with a systemic fungicide, which, btw, would also likely kill the fungal bodies in the soil.

Pictures of the affected leaves would be very helpful.

Al

Perhaps I'll wait and see if hte problem persists and if so, move on to a fungal treatment?

Oh yeah I meant to say that. It's always best to make changes one thing at a time so you know what fixed it.