What's Wrong with My Plant? Top 10 Common Houseplant Issues and How to Fix Them

1. Yellow Leaves: The Universal Distress Signal

What's causing it: Yellow leaves are tricky because they can mean a bunch of different things. Usually it's one of these: you're watering too much, the soil isn't draining well, your plant needs nutrients, or (good news) it's just the plant naturally shedding its oldest leaves.

How to fix it:

• First things first—check the soil. Stick your finger about two inches down. Is it soaking wet? Too dry? This tells you what's up
• If it's soggy, back off on watering and let it dry out a bit
• Make sure your pot has drainage holes—standing water is a plant's worst enemy
• If watering isn't the issue and you haven't fed your plant in a while, it's probably hungry
• Feed with something that'll actually help, like organic fertilizer packed with beneficial microbes
• Go ahead and remove those yellow leaves—they're not coming back, and they're just draining energy

Prevention tip: Water based on what your plant needs, not what day of the week it is. A pothos and a succulent need totally different amounts of water. Our yellow leaves guide breaks down the most common causes.

2. Brown Leaf Tips and Edges: The Humidity Cry

What's causing it: Nine times out of ten, it's the air being too dry—especially in winter when you've got the heat cranking. But it could also be your tap water (some plants hate the fluoride or chlorine), you're fertilizing too much and there's salt buildup, or your watering is all over the place.

How to fix it:

• Group your plants together—they'll create their own little humid microclimate
• Try a pebble tray with water under the pot, or just get a humidifier
• If you use tap water, let it sit out overnight before you water
• Once a month, really flush the soil with water to wash out any built-up salts
• You can trim off the brown edges with clean scissors—it won't hurt the plant and looks better
• If your tap water is super hard, consider switching to filtered water for your pickier plants

Prevention tip: Most tropical houseplants like 40-60% humidity. Grab a cheap hygrometer to see what you're working with. Our plant care guide has more tips for getting the humidity right.

3. Drooping or Wilting Leaves: The Thirst Trap (or Drowning Signal)

What's causing it: Here's the confusing part—wilting can mean your plant is too dry OR too wet. I know, right? When a plant's thirsty, the cells deflate and everything droops. But when you've overwatered and the roots are rotting, they can't take up water anymore, so... the plant droops. Fun times.

How to fix it:

• Check the soil right away—this is literally the only way to know
• Bone dry? Give it a good drink until water runs out the bottom
• Soggy? Stop watering immediately. You might need to repot if the roots are mushy and gross
• For an overwatered plant, cut off any black or slimy roots before you repot it
• Make sure it's not sitting in a draft from a window or vent

Prevention tip: Get to know your plant's personality. Succulents and cacti like to dry out completely between waterings. Ferns and peace lilies? They want consistently moist soil. Our plant care guide covers the watering quirks of popular houseplants.

4. Leggy Growth and Sparse Foliage: The Light Seeker

What's causing it: Your plant is basically reaching desperately for more light. It's putting all its energy into growing taller instead of fuller, hoping to find better lighting. This is called etiolation, but really it just means your plant is getting leggy because it's too dark where it lives.

How to fix it:

• Move it closer to a window—most houseplants want bright, indirect light
• Rotate your plant every week so all sides get equal light
• Go ahead and prune back those long, sparse stems. It'll encourage bushier growth
• If you don't have good natural light, invest in a grow light (they're not expensive anymore)
• After you prune, give it some fertilizer to support all that new growth

Prevention tip: "Low light tolerant" is plant code for "won't die immediately in low light." It doesn't mean the plant will thrive there. Even "low light" plants do way better in bright spots. Check out our lighting guide to decode what your plant actually needs.

5. Pests: The Unwelcome Houseguests

Common culprits:

• Spider mites: Tiny red or brown dots with fine webbing
• Aphids: Small, soft-bodied insects clustering on new growth
• Fungus gnats: Small flying insects around soil (their larvae live in moist soil)
• Mealybugs: White, cottony clusters on stems and leaf joints
• Scale: Brown or tan bumps attached to stems and leaves

How to fix it:

• First things first—quarantine that plant. Pests spread fast
• Blast the leaves with water in the shower to knock off as many bugs as you can
• For soft-bodied pests like aphids, insecticidal soap or neem oil works great
• Fungus gnats? Let your soil dry out more between waterings and grab some sticky traps
• Try natural products that repel pests while keeping your leaves clean
• Get in the habit of wiping down leaves weekly—you'll catch problems early

Prevention tip: New plants need to quarantine for at least two weeks before joining your collection. I know it's hard to wait, but trust me on this. And check under the leaves regularly—that's where the troublemakers like to hide.

6. Root Rot: The Silent Killer

What's causing it: Too much water plus bad drainage equals a disaster. The soil gets waterlogged, there's no oxygen for the roots, and boom—fungi and bacteria move in and start rotting everything. It's basically the plant equivalent of trench foot.

How to fix it:

• Take the plant out and look at those roots
• Cut off anything brown, mushy, or that smells funky—use clean scissors
• Let the healthy roots air-dry for a few hours
• Repot in completely fresh soil in a clean pot with drainage holes
• Go easy on the water until you see new growth starting
• Give it some beneficial microbes to fight off the bad bacteria

Prevention tip: Drainage holes aren't optional—they're essential. And in winter, water way less. Your plant is basically sleeping and doesn't need as much. Check our repotting guide for the full rundown on how to do it right.

7. No New Growth or Blooming: The Stagnant Plant

What's causing it: Could be a few things. Maybe it's not getting enough nutrients or light. It might be completely root-bound (roots going in circles with nowhere to go). Or—and this is important—some plants just take a break in winter. That's normal.

How to fix it:

• Check if roots are coming out of the drainage holes or circling around the edges
• If it's root-bound, repot it—but only go up 1-2 inches in pot size
• Make sure it's getting enough light for its species
• Feed it during the growing season with organic food loaded with beneficial microbes
• Want flowers? Switch to bloom-specific fertilizer and look up what triggers your plant to bloom
• If it's winter and your plant is dormant, just let it rest—don't force it

Prevention tip: Feed your plants spring through early fall, then ease up or stop when they go dormant. It's like how you eat more when you're active and less when you're chilling on the couch. Our fertilizing guide breaks down the timing.

8. Brown or Black Spots on Leaves: The Infection Alert

What's causing it: Usually it's a fungal or bacterial infection, but it could also be physical damage or even sunburn. Fungal problems love wet leaves and stuffy air—basically the opposite of what you want.

How to fix it:

• Take off any spotted leaves right away so it doesn't spread
• Water the soil, not the leaves—get down at the base
• Point a small fan near your plants to keep air moving
• If your humidity is crazy high (over 70%), bring it down a bit
• Give your plants some breathing room—don't cram them together
• Water in the morning so leaves can dry during the day, not sit wet all night

Prevention tip: Morning watering is your friend. Any water that splashes on the leaves will dry before nighttime when fungus parties happen. And space your plants out so they're not all breathing on each other.

9. Leaf Drop: The Shock Response

What's causing it: Your plant is stressed about something that changed—maybe you moved it, the temperature fluctuated, you changed your watering routine, or there's a draft hitting it. Sometimes plants are just dramatic about change. They'll also drop leaves if pests are bugging them (literally).

How to fix it:

• Think about what changed recently—new location? Temperature swing?
• Try to keep everything consistent for a while
• Check for pests—they stress plants out
• Keep the temperature between 60-75°F (most houseplants are happy here)
• Move your plant away from drafty spots—windows, AC vents, heaters
• Be patient. Your plant is adjusting and will usually bounce back in a few weeks

Prevention tip: When you bring a plant home or move it around, try to keep the light and temperature similar to where it was before. Plants hate surprises. Some leaf drop during adjustment is normal—don't panic. Our plant care guide has more tips for helping plants settle in.

10. Stunted Growth and Pale Leaves: The Nutrient Deficiency

What's causing it: Your plant has sucked all the good stuff out of the soil and there's nothing left. This happens over time. The most obvious sign is pale, wimpy new leaves that are smaller than the old ones. Could be nitrogen (makes leaves pale), phosphorus (slows growth), or iron (yellow between the leaf veins).

How to fix it:

• Feed it with a complete organic fertilizer—it needs the main nutrients plus trace minerals
• Liquid fertilizers work fast because plants can use them right away
• Go with something that has beneficial microbes—they help unlock nutrients that are already in the soil
• If your plant's been in the same soil for over a year, consider repotting with fresh stuff
• Don't go crazy with fertilizer though—too much burns the roots and creates salt buildup

Prevention tip: Feed regularly during spring and summer when plants are actively growing. Liquid organic fertilizers with lots of beneficial microbes work with your plant's natural biology instead of against it.