Does Anyone Know What's Wrong with my House Plant???

[Peggy]

I bought two houseplants about 6 months ago from the same store, on the same day and they are the same plant (type, size etc). They are called "Santa Rosa Dracaena", if that helps. They are each about 4 feet tall and they both sit on either side of our front entry door in front of windows, so they get the same amount of light and I water them at the same time. Everything seems the same...

However, for the past 2 months, the leaves at the top of the plant on the left-hand side of the door keep turning yellow, then brown, then die. The first time I thought it was just a fluke and I trimmed off the dying leaves. But now it is happening again. :( The plant on the right-hand side of the door is thriving. I'm stumped! :confused: What does it mean when green healthy leaves turn yellow and then die? Why would these identical plants living under the same conditions be different? Is there anything I can do???

TIA for any help and advise.

Peggy

[tbb113]

Peggy - I don't know that much about plants, but could the one on the left be in more of a draft then the one on the right?

[Arete]

Maybe it just has bad karma?

[funnybone]

Have you switched them around? :D


I'm terrible with plants, so I really don't know, but could it have something to do with the soil? Perhaps one was planted in better soil than the other? Just a thought

[Hammster]

Try swapping the positions of the plants. This could eliminate if the location is the issue. Or could tell you if location is the issue and you need to figure out how to protect the plant in that location. Is the left hand side of the door the side that gets opened and closed all the time? That could be the culprit right there. Just the sudden changes in temp with the door opening and closing might be hard on the plant.

Also the dying one might have a bug in the dirt. Or a fungus in the dirt. Try repotting the plant. You would shake off all the old dirt from the roots, and clean the inside of the pot with bleach and rinse it clean just in case there is a fungus. Then repot as normal.

Or the one that has the brown leaves may not need as much water. Too much water could cause the symptoms too. Don't water based on a schedule but on if the dirt in the pot is dry up to an inch down from the top of the dirt.

Or it could need more water if it's on the side where the door opens and closes.

good luck.

[imloulou]

Hi Peggy...do you have a cat?

[Aubergine]

i've been growing houseplants for 30+ years, and i own several dracaenas. i think i can give you a little help:

1. they do drop leaves, altho' usually from the bottom.

2. i would recommend rotating them, in 2 ways: swap them each week from window to window, and mid-week turn each once 180 degs. (front to back)

3. when in doubt, underwater. over-watering is the main reason for indoor plants dying quick deaths. feel the surface soil; if it's quite dry, water, but not overly. check the saucer; don't let it sit with wet feet. better to err on the side of less water.

4. check the heat sources; is one nearer to a heat register?

5. they're remarkably resiliant plants. if one really isn't looking well, you can cut it down, and it will sprout a new stem/trunk.

6. maybe this should have been first: talk to the place where you bought them. if you have the receipt (i save all of mine for a year) and got it from HD or Lowe's, they have a 1-year replacement/refund policy. if it's from a smaller, independent seller, i'd still ask them about it.

7. it might be a dud; i've read on gardening MBs like at hgtv.com that there were a slew of draceanas for sale that weren't properly rooted.

8. it might have something like spider mites; they can really diminish a plant's vitality, and they're common in houseplants. if that may be the case, get rid of it and replace it with another plant. unfortunately, whenever we buy a plant, whether for indoors or out, there's no certainty what may come along with it.

don't despair! it's the rare houseplant that has to meet its maker early, in my experience.

[Peggy]

The plant with the yellowing leaves is on the side of the door that doesn't open, so it is protected from the draft. The other one seems to be thriving so it must like the extra cold air. :D I did think about switching their positions and seeing if that made a difference. I will try that.

So yellowing leaves can mean too much water OR not enough water? I was hoping it would mean one or the other because that would be an easy fix.

I will snope around in the soil and look for unusual growths and bugs.

Yes - I do have a cat... what are you suggesting she is doing???? She is very good and never has accidents, is fastidious about her litter box and doesn't claw furniture. Basically no bad habits that we know of. Do tell what you suspect! :)

Peggy

[Aubergine]

So yellowing leaves can mean too much water OR not enough water? I was hoping it would mean one or the other because that would be an easy fix.

Yes - I do have a cat... what are you suggesting she is doing???? She is very good and never has accidents, is fastidious about her litter box and doesn't claw furniture. Basically no bad habits that we know of. Do tell what you suspect! :) Peggy

gee, all that happened while i was trying to write my 'too much info' reply!:D 's'ok.

yes to your 1st question.

re: cats, yeah...it might be. unusual in my experience, but it does happen, altho' more with Ms than Fs.

[Peggy]

Aubegine - We must have been posting at the same time! Thanks for your tips. I bought them at OSH and did save my receipt because they have a "lifetime" guarantee on their houseplants. There isn't a heating source nearby either of them. I'll try the switching and rotating idea first. Can you see spider mites? Are they in the soil or on the plant?

Peggy

[Aubergine]

Aubegine - We must have been posting at the same time! Thanks for your tips. I bought them at OSH and did save my receipt because they have a "lifetime" guarantee on their houseplants. Thee isn't a heating source nearby either of them. I'll try the switching and rotating idea first. Can you see spider mites? Are they in the soil or on the plant? Peggy

lol, we are playing leap-frog.:D

spider mites are on the plant, not in the soil, and they are invisible. the typical advice is to hold a white sheet of paper underneath some leaves and tap them; if you see something orange on the paper, you've got mites.

but, since you bought them from a place that guarantees plants, i'd start with them, in part because your sick plant's illness could migrate to the other. you're in a good situation, with the receipt and a reliable seller, but i would still advice the swap/rotate/watering principles i gave.

it'll work out. i'm sure. houseplants are so much easier than garden plants.

suzanne

[fci5767]

don't despair! it's the rare houseplant that has to meet its maker early, in my experience.

Don't let your plants come to my house, then. I must live in the Bermuda Triangle of the plant world.

[Peggy]

Just tried the white paper test and no orange on the paper so I guess it's not mites.

Thanks Suzanne and everyone else for your advise and concern. :D Off to move and rotate the plants.

Peggy

[swquilts]

Don't let your plants come to my house, then. I must live in the Bermuda Triangle of the plant world.

*snort* Me too! My house faces north/south so I have just a sliver of sun and only in the AM. I grow plants by the "ignore" method...... :cool:

[imloulou]

Yes - I do have a cat... what are you suggesting she is doing???? She is very good and never has accidents, is fastidious about her litter box and doesn't claw furniture. Basically no bad habits that we know of. Do tell what you suspect! :)
Peggy

I have houseplants and one of my ficus-es (I have no idea what the plural of ficus is :eek: ) was dropping all its leaves. I never moved it or changed watering...it just dropped it's leaves. Well one day I found my cat pee-ing in it! I had no idea! (I just wrote that "I was pissed" and had to erase it...but had to share because I thought it was a little funny :D ) We put seashells in the pot covering the dirt and it solved our problem...my plant is fine.

[oceanjasper]

I had a plant that had leaves turning yellow and dropping off and it turned out that it had scales. When you look underneath the leaves and sometimes on the stems, they look like little brown bumps.

[Dfen911]

*snort* Me too! My house faces north/south so I have just a sliver of sun and only in the AM. I grow plants by the "ignore" method...... :cool:

Just curious...how is this possible? I can see north/west or north/east but I can't see how your house faces oposites directions..? :)

[Peggy]

I have houseplants and one of my ficus-es (I have no idea what the plural of ficus is :eek: ) was dropping all its leaves. I never moved it or changed watering...it just dropped it's leaves. Well one day I found my cat pee-ing in it! I had no idea! (I just wrote that "I was pissed" and had to erase it...but had to share because I thought it was a little funny :D ) We put seashells in the pot covering the dirt and it solved our problem...my plant is fine.

Oh my... I can't imagine our little Precious (that's her name) jumping in the pot and pee-ing it it, but I guess that is possible. Will keep my eye on her! I love your "pissed" comment!!! :D

Peggy

[Peggy]

I had a plant that had leaves turning yellow and dropping off and it turned out that it had scales. When you look underneath the leaves and sometimes on the stems, they look like little brown bumps.

What does one do for "scales"?

Peggy