Are the leaves of your favorite elephant ear drooping? And you’re oblivious to the reason? And you’d like to shield your plant from this because it’ll be upsetting to witness, right? If that’s the case, you don’t have to worry any longer because, in this post, I’ll show you how to solve all of your elephant ear plant drooping issues.
These plants from the alocasia family is gorgeous, with brilliant colors and huge heart-shaped leaves that give them an exotic appearance. The name comes from the tall, wide leaves that resemble an elephant’s ear and are both attractive and delightful to look at. Elephant ear leaves that are drooping indicate that the plants are stressed.
Why Are Elephant Ear (Alocasia) Leaves Drooping?
What is the cause of my Elephant Ear Plant’s drooping?
This stressful condition is caused by water conditions, such as overwatering or underwatering, and it may be detected by adequate plant monitoring. There might be a number of other reasons for this drooping, and you should investigate and address them as soon as possible. Improper sunshine, temperature, low humidity, nutritional imbalance, fungal infestation, insect infection, water quality, and relocation stress are only a few of them.
Problems with Watering and How to Fix Them
Too much watering or not enough watering your plant can be stressful, resulting in leaf drooping and discoloration. As a result, it’s critical to keep track of your elephant ear plant’s watering routine. You can resolve these challenges by paying attention to the following points:
- Water your plant once a week in the winter and daily in the summer.
- Maintain wet yet unclogged soil.
- Make sure there are no water puddles in the soil.
- Excessive watering will block the soil due to a lack of effective drainage, making it harder for plants to absorb nutrients, while excessive water absorption will cause wilting.
- If your plants are withering due to too much water, turn off the water for a few days.
- Root rot is caused by excess water, which emits a foul decaying odor.
- In the morning, water your plant and clean out any clogs you find.
- Excessive watering will result in yellowing, discoloration, and leaf blisters.
- Root rot can promote the growth of infections, which can lead to wilting.
- Water the plant once or twice, but spritz the water on the soil to keep it moist.
- This mist will offer exactly the right quantity of humidity for the plant.
- If you’re watering for a few days, turn off the water source and watch for wilting.
- Elephant ear plants are fragile and require special attention during their development. They grow up to 2 feet in no time after receiving it. However, make sure you are correctly watering it and not overwatering it, which can cause this lovely plant to wilt.
Conditions of Lightning
Lighting and temperature control are critical for plants, especially elephant ear plants. If you give your plant enough light, it will thrive; otherwise, it will wilt and its leaves will droop. You may avoid this leaf drooping by remembering the following points:
- They enjoy the light that is bright but not direct.
- Direct sunlight can cause the leaf to discolor or yellow, and it can also be stressful since it burns the leaf.
- If the leaves are not in a light region, they may droop.
- Remove them from shaded areas since there’s a good risk you’ll supply too much water.
- Place them near a window that receives indirect sunlight.
- Rotate the pot orientation once a month to ensure balanced leaf development.
- Trim the leaves as needed to ensure that each one receives the right amount of sunlight.
- It’s ideal to put your plant in front of the window facing north or south.
Temperature
Elephant ear plants prefer bright weather and summers; they struggle to flourish in cold weather, particularly winters, and their leaves may droop if not properly cared for. 70-80 degrees Fahrenheit is the ideal temperature for these plants.
In the winter, keep your plant containers indoors, where it is warm, especially at night, to avoid drooping foliage. You may observe immediate drooping if left in chilly temperatures. Check the temperature fluctuations if you want this gem to stay fresh for a long time.
Because the elephant ear plant is sensitive, if drooping persists after moving it indoors to a warmer temperature, check for vents, if available, owing to its proximity to a cold vent. The leaves’ drooping concerns can be alleviated by moving it away from the source of cold. The only way to prevent it from cold temperatures and drooping is to keep it inside at a warm temperature.
Unbalanced Nutrition
Alocasia plants thrive and grow very well in nutrient-rich, organic-rich soil. Every living species, including elephant ear plants, requires a healthy balance of nutrients. Keep the following items on your checklist for exponential development of this plant:
- In the summer and spring, fertilize the soil with indoor plant food twice a month.
- Because the plant is dormant over the winter, you won’t have to fertilize it as often.
- Fertilizers should be applied in diluted form during the summer to avoid root rot.
- Use the pruning technique to eliminate overfed leaves, allowing new ones to grow in their place.
- Make careful to apply a slow-release fertilizer since a fast-release fertilizer can cause the plant to burn.
- If you’ve used too much fertilizer, rinse it out well to eliminate the fertilizer that’s causing the scorched appearance.
- Epsom salt, an organic ingredient, may be used to water the borders of your plant.
- If you’re using chemical fertilizers, such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, stick to a 20-10-20 ratio.
- You may feed your plant foliar feed at any time of year.
- A lack of nourishment in the soil might cause drooping, so make sure you feed your plant properly.
- If the dropping happens in the absence of lightning or water problems, the issue is obvious: sufficient nutritional soil is essential for development.
- Fertilizer application mistakes might have a negative impact on your plant.
- You will see astonishing growth in plants if these factors are met.
Humidity is low
Low humidity levels induce higher transpiration, which causes more water loss from the plant, hence a humid atmosphere is also essential for healthy development. When this moisture is withdrawn and watering is done only once or twice, the leaves may droop.
If you reside in a region with low humidity, consider providing additional water and watering the soil many times to keep it moist. Various measuring meters, such as hygrometers, are available to aid in the measurement of humidity content. In the winter, you may use a humidifier or place your elephant ear plant amid other plants to keep it warm and maintain a regulated humidity level. This will also prevent your plant from drooping.
Infection with fungus
Fungal and pest infestations are common in the Alocasia family; overwatering your plant can induce fungal infection in the root, which can lead to stem and root rot. It can also induce drooping in leaves and affects other sections of the plant.
This fungal infestation can only be eradicated if the infected area of the plant is removed as soon as possible; if you notice telltale spots on the stem, your plant’s root and stem have already been compromised. After removing the contaminated area, the only thing left is to clear the clog so that air can flow freely through the soil and avoid excessive watering, which destroys the soil and encourages bacterial and fungal infection.
Infestation with pests
Aphids, thrips, and spider mites are common pests found in elephant ear plants. They attach themselves to the lower side of the leaves and cut off their nutritional and mineral supply, causing the leaf to droop and develop haloes and rips.
You may use margosa oil, which when applied to the damaged region of the plant, aids in the successful elimination of pests, or you can use the water cannon approach to blast the bugs away.
Repotting and Root Bound
The elephant ear plant thrives and develops rapidly in ideal conditions. Owing to excessive growth, the space in the pot might become limited, resulting in the falling of leaves as the plants are unable to obtain enough nutrients and will struggle to survive due to clogged and insufficient space.
To do this, you’ll need to enlarge the drainage holes in the pot so that water and nutrients can flow freely and there’s no blockage causing the plant to droop; in addition, attempt to move the plant to a new, larger pot with fresh soil and an organic-rich nutritional supply.
After moving the plant from its old pot to a new pot, you may see drooping leaves, which might be due to stress or a new environment for the plant. As a result, you don’t need to be concerned because the drooping will be conquered over time if you provide it with the necessary conditions to thrive.
How Do You Save An Elephant Ear Plant That Is Dying?
- The following approaches can be used to rescue a dying elephant ear plant:
- Watering it properly at the right time, not too much or too little
- Checking the relative humidity
- Providing it with adequate nutrients
- Putting it in the sunlight
- Providing rich, clog-free soil
- Keeping it out of bright sunlight and keeping it warm in the cold
- In the event of a fungal infection, the affected area is removed.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best way to rescue wilting elephant ears?
Protecting wilting elephant ears from cold is a good way to save them. Bring them inside so they may flourish in a warm environment. They should be kept away from the heat to avoid drying out.
What is the best way to maintain elephant ears upright?
Place them in a bright beige area with healthy soil to keep them erect. For development, they require a humid atmosphere and a temperature of 70-80 degrees Fahrenheit. Keep them wet at all times.
How often should an elephant ear plant be watered?
You should water it once or twice a week at the most. It is advised that at least 2-3 inches of water be present. Because they eat a lot and drink a lot, you may water them every day throughout the summer to avoid overwatering.
Conclusion
If you’re seeking for ways to prevent leaf falling or efficient ways to remove leaf dropping, I’m delighted you found this post and hope you find it useful. I’ve gone through every action you can take to safeguard your plant, and it’ll help you handle it properly if it does drop.
