Reasons why spathiphyllum blackens tips: prevention and care at home
Spathiphyllum - indoor flower "female happiness", which is preferred by both experienced and beginner growers. Some like it for the decorative characteristics of foliage, others make the plant bloom deliciously. But everyone notes the ease of care.
True, sometimes there are problems with the flower “female happiness”, a common misfortune - leaves turn black and flowers dry. In this article, we will try to understand the problem of darkening of the ends of the leaves of Spathiphyllum.
Why is this happening?
The black color of various organs of the plant, of course, is associated with a deterioration in the health of spathiphyllum. Outwardly, blackness looks different.
- The ends of the leaves dry out and turn black, a large area of brown appears at the edges. Over time, places become dry, fragile. Foliage fades and falls away. If it does not fall, all the same the appearance of the plant loses its decorative effect. This is a "dry" black.
- There is still a “lethargic” or weeping blackening. Black leaves become wet, soft, slippery, losing density. Often this phenomenon has an extensive distribution, possibly, fungal spores, mold appear on top of the affected area.
What reasons?
So, to help the plant and get rid of unpleasant phenomena, initially it is important to understand the reasons.
- Fungal diseases. The external picture of lesions is blackness with characteristic signs of fungal intercourse. The affected part of the flower is wet, loose. Brown spots and blotches are possible.
This is a dangerous phenomenon, which mainly affects the root system as a result of supersaturation of the soil with water, at low ambient temperatures. In a matter of days, infections can spread to nearby plants, transferring fungal spores through the air.
- Temperature differences. Sudden changes in temperature indicators affect the general condition of the green mass - blackness. Spathiphyllum is a heat-loving flower, and with drafts and a sudden drop in temperature, the foliage leans down lifelessly.
If hypothermia is not significant, then the “feminine happiness” flower restores elasticity, but the black dry tips remain.
- Illiterate use of mineral fertilizers. Often a lack or excess of minerals leads to blackening of the leaf plate. Over time, the soil is depleted, and the plant reacts sharply to a lack of micronutrients.
It is recommended to feed room exot regularly, however, the frequency of fertilizers depends on the season of the year and the condition of the plant. Perhaps it is necessary to fertilize the plant with a complex of minerals, to restore the natural balance, to protect the flower from starvation.
- Plenty of water. The homeland of spathiphyllum is the tropics, where it rains hot and often. Therefore, many owners confuse humidification and excessive watering.
The flower really prefers moist soil, but not stagnation of water. After all, this causes problems with the roots, which are constantly in the wet substrate, as a result, the process of decay occurs. Diseases of the roots are expressed by darkening of most of the leaf. It is possible that there is no drainage in the flower pot, which leads to fluid stagnation.
- Dry air. High humidity for this plant is quite important. With dry air, many ailments develop. But in an apartment, it is quite difficult to create optimal humidity parameters, especially in winter. Symptom of low humidity: the leaf itself is green, black only the tips.
Watch a video about why black leaves at spathiphyllum turn black:
Effects
Important! If dark spots, blotches, black tips or roots are noticeable on a recently healthy plant, this is a signal to action.One or a combination of the above causes cause similar symptoms. If the matter is improper care, then the situation is fixable.
Worse when the exot rots or an infectious disease develops. In this case, if the treatment does not arrive at the right time, then the room exot expects death. It is possible that in the later stages the whole flower will become black. In such a case, something is already pointless to do.
What to do if the parts of the “female happiness” flower darken?
A healthy plant has a bright green color, a dense leaf structure, the absence of any inclusions on the leaf plate. It grows rapidly, blooms regularly, and in general is actively developing.
Sheet
If the leaves began to blacken, brown spots of various forms appeared on them, possible causes: fungal diseases, in particular black rot. The development environment is humid cold air, frequent watering is also a beneficial effect. In this case, you should act immediately.
- Reset a diseased plant in a separate room.
- Take the plant out of the pot, analyze the root system.
- Dry, rotten roots and black, damaged leaves, cut with a sharp knife.
- Disinfect the slices with ground cinnamon or crushed activated carbon.
- Treat the plant with a 0.2% solution of the drug Fundazole or Topsin.
- An effective method is to immerse the pot in a chemical mixture.
- Transplant the flower into a new dry soil, also change the pot.
- In the future, normalize the irrigation system.
- After 2 weeks, re-treat the flower with a fungicide.
In more detail about why the leaves turn black and dry and what to do about it, see a separate article.
Tips
There are many reasons for the darkening of the edges of the indoor flower. The most common is an excess of mineral fertilizers. I want to feed the spathiphyllum well so that there are succulent leaves and beautiful flowering. But the result is black, dry edges of the sheet plate.
- Remove the plant from the container.
- Remove excess soil.
- Rinse the roots under a stream of warm water.
- Change the soil mixture.
- Add some perlite or vermiculite to the finished soil, making it loose and light.
- Transplant spathiphyllum.
- The first couple of months do not feed, and then apply fertilizers of low concentration.
Flowers
A similar phenomenon in spathiphyllum is quite rare, but still. As it turned out, Exot reacts extremely sharply to excess moisture. As a result, the middle of the inflorescences and edges blackens. Decision:
- To control the irrigation system.
- Avoid fluid stagnation in the ground.
- After 15 minutes after humidification, excess water should be drained from the pan.
- If the situation is critical, a spathiphyllum transplant is necessary.
About why flowers or leaves of spathiphyllum turn black and how to help the plant, we wrote here.
How to fix it?
As a rule, problems of this nature are associated with improperly organized care. Having figured out the possible causes of the troubles, you should help the indoor exotica restore its previous state.
When pouring soil
- Remove the flower from the pot, carefully inspect and feel the root system.
- Dry, rotten roots cut.
- Disinfect the slices with ground cinnamon or crushed activated carbon.
- Treat the plant with a solution of Maxim for prophylaxis.
- Transplant the flower into a new dry soil, also change the pot.
- Do not water immediately.
- Mandatory presence of a drainage layer.
- In the future, normalize the irrigation system.
- After moisturizing, after 15 minutes, excess fluid should be drained from the pan under the flowerpot.
Dry air
- Normalize the temperature and humidity conditions in the room.
- Use a humidifier regularly.
- Spray leaves from a spray bottle daily.
- It is possible to place a flower pot near the aquarium.
- Eliminate drafts and cold air on the flower.
- In winter, it is better to change the place of stay by removing it from the windowsill.
- Or regularly cover heating appliances with a wet towel.
Prevention of recurrence of the disease
Of course, to avoid such problems, spathiphyllum should:
- Protect from the influence of external factors. Therefore, it is advised to take the flower out to the street for a couple of weeks, often not to ventilate, and generally to exclude the penetration of cold outside air.
- Maintain a temperature of + 23 ° C, high humidity.
- Put the pot in a sunny place. However, to avoid the scorching rays of the sun on the foliage.
- Perform regular watering, control the moisture level in the pot.
- To deal with the feeding system, if there is an excess, do not introduce it for some time, and if there is a deficiency, then fertilize with complex components.
- Damaged black edges, cut off dark leaves.
Now finding out why the spathiphyllum blackens, we need to draw the appropriate conclusions. Optimize care and maintenance parameters so that in the future such troubles do not arise. Let this information be just in case, because "He who is knowledgeable is armed."