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Unfortunately, it is very common to find that some of our plants sometimes show areas or spots of dryness on their tips or edges. When this appears it means that the plant is stressed and needs something to be done about it, but you should not be overwhelmed: it is far from being an unsolvable problem. If your plant has completely dry leaves, there are many causes that can cause its condition, from diseases and pests to all kinds of deficiencies or excesses. However, when only the tips or edges of the leaves become dry or brown and have a fine or wrinkled texture, it is always an indicator of the same thing: stress.
If you want to know more about why the tips of plant leaves burn and what to do when plant leaves dry out, join us in this Green Ecologist article where you will find a practical gardening guide focused on the question of Why do the tips of plant leaves dry out.
Stress from lack of water
When the plant shows the brown tips of leaves, the most common is that lack of water. This does not necessarily mean that you are watering it too little: its roots may not be able to absorb the water because the substrate is not adequate.
If you notice that the substrate or soil of your plant with the dry leaves is very dry, the first thing you should do is increase the frequency of watering slightly. Do not cause a very drastic increase, as it could cause the opposite effect: make sure that the soil does not puddle and that you remove the excess water from the dish if the plant is in a pot with drainage.
If what happens is that the substrate or soil has too high a drainage, the roots of the plant will not have time to absorb the water, even if you water often. This often happens in very sandy soils, which will appreciate your contribution of materials such as peat or worm castings, with a contribution of rich organic matter that will also help to improve the ability of the mixture to retain water.
If you can't afford to add a significant portion of these materials to the mix, a good amount of vermiculite and perlite will also go a long way in retaining and releasing moisture.
Stress from tight roots
Many times, we forget that the plants in the pots continue to grow with each season, and most of them need regular transplants. These can be annual, biennial, or more widely spaced for slow-growing plants, but they still need to be cared for when the time is right.
If your plant is in a container or pot and its roots have taken up all the available space, they will end up squeezing together so much that they will form a massive mass unable to absorb water or nutrients properly. What to do when plant leaves dry because of this? You just need transplanting your plant into a larger pot, with new suitable substrate. If the roots are close together and compacted, you will need to carefully loosen them with your hands and prune them if necessary. In these cases, try to prune about a third of the roots of the plant with a well-sterilized tool: this will stimulate the growth of new loose roots.
The roots can also clench when they are plants without a container, especially in very heavy and clayey soils, which can end up acting like the hardest of pots. In these cases it will be necessary to transplant, either to another location, or to remove it, loosen the surrounding soil over a considerable distance, and return it to its place.
We recommend this guide on when and how to transplant a plant.
Stress from damaged roots
Irrigation problems are not always by default: a excess of water it causes just as serious damage to the plant and, in fact, more dangerous. Just as a dry plant can easily be revived by irrigation, one that has been drowned will have suffered root damage, rot and dead spots.
In these cases, it will be necessary remove the plant and prune the damaged areas, in addition to reducing watering or transplanting the plant to an area of soil or container with better drainage. Use a light mix, adding equal parts peat, coconut fiber and worm castings: this results in a soil rich in nutrients and with ideal moisture retention capacities for most plants.
Draft stress
Some plants need circulating air to be healthy, while other species, particularly those that require humid environments, do not tolerate them. If the plant is in a drafty area and its leaves or edges turn brown, this is likely the problem.
To avoid it, move the plant to a more sheltered area, sheltered from the currents and without sticking it to the walls.
Sun stress
A location too bright It can also be the cause of dry leaves on its edges, especially if the plant has not previously been subjected to a few days of semi-shade acclimatization. If your plant is burning from the sun, move it to an area of dim light for a few days and observe its evolution.
How to prevent the tips of plant leaves from drying out
You will have to pay attention to all the factors of the causes of plant leaf tips to dry out. If your plant receives all the nutrients it needs, is protected from a stronger sun than it can bear, protected from drafts, in a pot that is large enough and with adequate watering, you should not encounter any of these problems.
It may seem like a lot of things to manage, but if you observe your plants often, you can identify these problems in isolation before they become serious and correct the points below. improve in the care of your plants.
If you want to read more articles similar to Why do plant leaf tips dry out, we recommend that you enter our category of Cultivation and care of plants.
