What is your plant doing?

Common problems

• Yellow leaves17 possible answers to tell apart
• Drooping or wilting8 possible answers to tell apart
• Brown tips and edges6 possible answers to tell apart
• Spots on leaves8 possible answers to tell apart
• Leaves falling off9 possible answers to tell apart
• Soft or mushy stem5 possible answers to tell apart
• Insects and residue6 possible answers to tell apart
• Leggy, leaning growth4 possible answers to tell apart
• No flowers, dropped buds8 possible answers to tell apart
• Growth on the soil5 possible answers to tell apart

Pests and growths, one page each

• Aphids Aphids pierce the soft tissue of a plant with slender mouthparts and drink its sap.
• Fungus gnats If small dark flies drift up from a pot when you water it, or walk over the surface of the potting mix, they are almost certainly fungus gnats.
• Mealybugs Tufts of white cotton tucked where a leaf meets its stem are usually the first thing people notice. Underneath that wax sit soft, slow insects drinking sap.
• Mold on the soil People say "mold on the soil" about several unrelated things that appear on top of potting mix. A fungus makes a soft white or gray layer.
• Root mealybugs A potted plant that turns pale, stalls and wilts, with nothing wrong that you can find on its leaves, may be feeding a colony underground.
• Scale insects Scale insects rarely look like insects at all. What most people notice first is a scatter of small brown, tan or whitish bumps along a stem or beside the cen…
• Spider mites The first sign is usually a leaf that looks faintly sandblasted.
• Thrips Thrips are easier to recognize by their leftovers than by sight.
• Whitefly Brush against an infested plant and a small cloud of white specks rises from it. Those specks are adult whiteflies, and the flying adults are the least of it.

Not sure what it is? Start the diagnosis questions

Problems on particular plants

• English ivy pests, webbing or sticky leaves: causes and what to do
• Kentia palm pests, webbing or sticky leaves: causes and what to do
• Areca palm pests, webbing or sticky leaves: causes and what to do
• Rex begonia pests, webbing or sticky leaves: causes and what to do
• Indian azalea pests, webbing or sticky leaves: causes and what to do
• Zonal geranium pests, webbing or sticky leaves: causes and what to do
• Inch plant pests, webbing or sticky leaves: causes and what to do
• Weeping fig pests, webbing or sticky leaves: causes and what to do
• Polka dot begonia pests, webbing or sticky leaves: causes and what to do
• Oleander pests, webbing or sticky leaves: causes and what to do

Plants people ask about most

• PothosBrown brittle margins with a green centre
• Snake plantBlades hang and feel thin between the fingers
• Spider plantEdges of the blades brown while the middle stays sound
• Aloe veraMushy tissue at the base of the aloe vera
• Jade plantPale dry areas across the upper leaves only
• HoyaDry scorched spots after a move into a sunnier spot
• MonsteraBrown brittle margins with a green centre
• Rubber plantCrisp margins that appear in winter
• Peace lilyBrown tips on the newest leaves first
• Heartleaf philodendronA thin dry rim that crumbles between the fingers
• DracaenaBrown tips on the newest blades first
• Areca palmA thin dry rim that crumbles between the fingers
• BougainvilleaCrisp margins that appear in winter
• Moth orchidCrisp margins that appear in winter
• Peacock plantLeaf tips go crisp and brown
• Fiddle-leaf figEdges of the leaf blades brown while the middle stays sound
• AlocasiaBrown brittle margins with a green centre
• Maidenhair fernBrown tips on the newest fronds first
• Boston fernA thin dry rim that crumbles between the fingers

All 113 plants