Plant help
Plant help articles
Practical guides to the most common houseplant problems — what the symptoms mean, how to tell similar causes apart, and what to do about them.
Quick check
Why is my Christmas cactus not blooming?
2026-11-03
A holiday cactus sets buds when fall nights are long, dark and cool: about 13 hours of total darkness, or nights of 50–55 °F (10–13 °C), for 6–8 weeks. Evening lamps, a warm room and a plant that's really a Thanksgiving cactus are the usual reasons it doesn't.
What does "bright, indirect light" actually mean?
2026-10-23
It means a spot close to a bright window where the plant sees plenty of sky but the sun's rays don't land on its leaves for long. Find one with a shadow test, a look at the sky, and a tape measure.
When should you repot a houseplant?
2026-10-16
Repot when the roots have filled the pot: they wrap around the root ball, poke out of the drainage hole, or the mix dries out within a day or two of watering. Do it in spring, and go up only 1–2 inches (2.5–5 cm) in pot width.
How to save a plant from root rot
2026-10-07
While there are still firm roots to work with, you can save a plant from root rot: cut away everything brown and soft and repot into fresh mix in a smaller pot. If almost nothing firm is left, take cuttings instead.
Why are my pothos leaves curling?
2026-09-29
Pothos leaves usually curl because the pot has gone too dry, and they flatten out again within a day or two of a good soak. If the soil is already damp, look at the roots, the sun, and the undersides of the leaves instead.
Why is my rubber plant dropping leaves?
2026-09-17
Rubber plants answer almost any change by dropping leaves, so the place to start is what changed around the plant in the last month or two. How to tell adjustment from root rot, cold, and the rest.
Why are my orchid leaves turning yellow?
2026-09-12
A moth orchid only grows one or two leaves a year, so losing one matters more than it would on a pothos. The answer is in the roots, and a clear pot means you can check them without unpotting anything.
Why are my ZZ plant leaves turning yellow?
2026-09-05
ZZ plants are sold as nearly impossible to kill, so yellowing feels like a bad sign. Usually it is: the plant stores water in underground rhizomes, and a wet pot rots them before the yellow leaves even show up.
Why is my peace lily drooping?
2026-08-29
A peace lily that collapses over the pot rim is usually thirsty, and stands back up within hours of a proper watering. If it doesn't, the problem is in the roots, and the fix is nothing like watering.
Why does my spider plant have brown tips?
2026-08-23
Brown tips on a spider plant are almost always minerals, dryness, or both. Tap water gets most of the blame, and it deserves less of it than you'd think.
Why are my calathea leaves curling?
2026-08-18
Calathea leaves curl inward when the plant loses water faster than it takes it up. Dry soil, dry air, root damage, and spider mites need different fixes.
Why is my snake plant turning yellow?
2026-08-14
Snake plants are sold as unkillable, so yellowing feels alarming. Usually it's too much water. Here's how to tell that from normal aging, too much sun, or cold.
How often should you water aloe vera and other succulents?
2026-08-10
There's no fixed number of days. Succulents want a full soak followed by a full dry-out, and the gap between them shifts with season, light, and pot size.
Overwatered or underwatered? How to tell the difference
2026-08-06
Both look like a drooping, yellowing plant — but the fixes are opposites. Four checks that tell you which problem you actually have.
Why is my monstera getting yellow leaves?
2026-08-01
Yellow monstera leaves usually come down to watering, light or age. How to work out which one it is, and what to do about it.
Brown spots on your fiddle leaf fig: what they mean
2026-07-25
Root rot, sunburn, dryness, and bacteria all leave different-looking brown spots on fiddle leaf figs. How to read them and respond.