Software
Houzz Logo Print
webuser_286844441

Can this plant be saved?

2 years ago

I've had this house plant for about 5 years. It's deteriorated in last 6.months. I have re-potted it with new soil but it hasn't helped. Any tips on how to save it would be appreciated.

Comments (3)

  • 2 years ago



  • 2 years ago

    use scissors to cut all the brown off ...


    water properly.. insure proper light.. and give it a year or two to get better..


    you already repotted it.. so just stop doing more.. dont love it to death ...


    its highly stressed right now .. no fert for 6 months ...


    its commonly called a corn plant ... more properly known as Dracaena fragrans ...


    read up here: https://duckduckgo.com/?q=Dracaena+fragrans+care&t=ftsa&ia=web


    much of the damage looks like what we call mechanical.. meaning something was attacking it physically.. pet.. child.. office workers brushing by.. etc... no cure for that besides protect it from such...


    ken

  • 2 years ago

    Removing the necrotic tissue at leaf tips and margins will do absolutely nothing to improve the plant's level of vitality (health), and none of the injury shown is mechanical. It's related to either poor root function/health or possibly a build-up of fluoride in the grow medium. Unfortunately, a good deal more information would be required to arrive at a logical conclusion insofar as what the underlying cause of the spoiled foliage is. Prime suspects are over-watering (but under-watering can't be eliminated as a cause based on the meager info at hand), a high level of dissolved solids in the soil solution, or as mentioned, a fluoride toxicity which commonly affects this plant.


    Correctly performing a full repot, which includes bare-rooting, root pruning, and a change of soil, is mildly stressful for a very short period - 1-2 weeks maximum. Potting up can be mildly stressful, especially if performed in fall through early spring, with the stress originating from the fact that root colonization of a newly added volume of soil is very slow during the period mentioned. This leaves the plant more vulnerable to limitations associated with over-watering. Both repotting and potting up are best done in the month prior to the plant's most robust growth period. For most of the US, early to mid-June is the best time to repot a very high % of houseplants.


    Withholding fertilizer for 6 months is not a good strategy. Typically, houseplants should be fertilized about every 3rd to 5th time the plant is watered, depending on timing and how robustly the plant is currently growing. Too, very often spoiled foliage is due to deficiencies of mobile nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium, magnesium). Deficiencies of these nutrients will cause the plant to start the shedding process, the first step of which is resorption. During this phase, the plant reclaims nutrients from leaves to use elsewhere in the plant, usually to serve as building blocks for new growth, after which the leaves are shed.


    Your focus should be on watering and fertilizing correctly, with close attention paid to ensuring the intervals between waterings is appropriate. Water when the grow medium is nearly but not completely dry at the bottom of the pot. One of the most reliable methods of checking a planting's need for water is using a 'tell' (more reliable than a 'moisture meter'. You can use a bamboo skewer in a pinch, but a wooden dowel rod of about 5/16” (75-85mm) works better. They usually come 48” (120cm) long and can usually be cut in half or in several pieces, depending on how deep your pots are. Sharpen both ends of each tell in a pencil sharpener and slightly blunt the tip so it's about the diameter of the head on a straight pin. Push the wooden tell deep into the soil. Don't worry, it won't harm the root system. If the plant is quite root-bound, you might need to try several places until you find one where you can push it all the way to the pot's bottom. Leave it a few seconds, then withdraw it and inspect the tip for moisture. For most plantings, withhold water until the tell's tip comes out nearly dry. If you see signs of wilting, adjust the interval between waterings so drought stress isn't a recurring issue.


    Al