Spathiphyllum leaves turn yellow: causes and solutions

Spathiphyllum or "female happiness" refers to perennial evergreens from the Aroid family. The birthplace of this tropical plant popular in our country is considered to be America, as well as the Philippine Islands. Under natural conditions, some species are found in the tropical rainforests of Venezuela, Colombia, Guiana and Brazil.

In indoor floriculture, the plant is unpretentious, but there are still problems. Most often, beginner amateur gardeners are faced with the fact that at spathiphyllum leaves turn yellow or the appearance of the aerial part changes. To understand why even very young leaves turn yellow in a decorative plant, and also what to do if, under conditions of seemingly proper care, the flower turns yellow completely, it is very important to determine the cause of external ill-being in a timely manner.

Botanical characteristic

In indoor gardening, the flowering of spathiphyllum, depending on the observance of the care technology, can be observed once a year, in the spring, or twice a year, in the spring and in the autumn-winter period. With proper, quality care, the growth and development of a room culture is quite fast.

A perennial herbaceous stemless plant has long, oblong dark green leaves, located on those with an extension in the upper part of the petioles. Flowering is very spectacular and long. The flowers gather on the cob of white staining and have an environment in the form of a white or light green bedspread.

Amateur gardeners-lovers know several varieties and varieties of spathiphyllum. The most widespread spathiphyllum blooming or Spatiphyllum floribundum, which has an underground creeping stem and leaves 20-22 cm long. Peduncle length is about 20-25 cm. Flowering is almost year-round. Also received sufficient distribution spathiphyllum pleasant or Spatiphyllum blandum, which is characterized by larger leaves and a flower bedspread of light green color. Flowering is also almost year-round.

Of particular interest for indoor floriculture is miniature spathiphyllum wallis or Spatiphyllum Wallisii. A medium-sized bedspread in the process of development and growth changes the white color to green. Flowering occurs from early spring to the last decade of autumn. The most common cause of Spatiphyllum’s lack of flowering, regardless of species, is the combination of low light levels and low humidity. In addition, old house plants are hardly moving into the flowering stage.

Spathiphyllum: cultivation and care

Determining the cause of yellowness of leaves

If an indoor ornamental plant has lost its external attractiveness, while the tips of the leaves have turned yellow or their turgor has sharply decreased, then it is necessary to carefully examine the yellowed aerial parts of the plant and correctly determine the cause, which will allow to correctly carry out Spathiphyllum treatment. The homeland of the plant, popular and widely demanded in indoor floriculture, is the tropics, therefore for the full development it is necessary to provide the culture with the most appropriate conditions.

The main reasons that can cause a discoloration of the leaves of an indoor plant can be as follows:

• as a result of damage by root rot when the irrigation measures are not observed and excessive soil waterlogging in the flowerpot leaves fall down and powerlessly sag, the plant may even die;
• if the internal reserves of nutrients, minerals and vitamins are used up, then the plants become very weak, which is expressed in the sudden yellowing of the aerial part;

• a characteristic change in staining of leaves of room culture may be due to a lack of nutrition, namely a lack of such necessary elements as nitrogen, iron and magnesium;
• One of the common reasons for the appearance of yellowness of leaves in spathiphyllum is incorrectly selected lighting: even short-term exposure to direct rays of the sun can cause the appearance of large yellow spots and dark brown scorched areas on the aerial part;
• excessive dryness of the air in the room can also cause yellowing of the leaves, which is especially often observed during the heating winter season;
• in the warm season, the plant is able to evaporate a significant amount of moisture, so the soil substrate should be maintained in a fairly moist state;
• Of the most common diseases that cause yellowing of the foliage of spathiphyllum, fusarium can be noted, the defeat of which involves the destruction of a houseplant.

Among other things, it is very important to conduct timely transplantation of plants. If on the spathiphyllum there is a massive yellowing of the leaves without the appearance of extensive shrunken zones, as a result of decay, this may indicate the need to transplant into a larger pot or to divide the bush.

Growing problems

Although such an indoor flower, like Spathiphyllum, belongs to the category of unpretentious and quite easily tolerates some errors in care, the decorativeness of the plant largely depends on compliance with the basic rules of growing technology. Even minor failures in agricultural technology can cause external changes: the leaves turn white or blacken or acquire another uncharacteristic staining.

Wilting inflorescences have natural brown spots. They need to be cut, which will stimulate the faster appearance of new flowers. If the leaves on the plant are too pale, it is recommended to pay attention to lighting, humidity and the feeding regimen. With waterlogging or lack of irrigation, spathiphyllum may look wilted. The same problems can cause a low temperature regime in the room, as well as damage to the aphid indoor culture, spider mite or scab.

Care requirements

Spathiphyllum is one of the very popular plants that are highly valued for the beauty of leaves and flowers, and are also not very demanding decorative crops to care for. However, the plant needs constant spraying, plentiful watering and compliance with the microclimate. It is these main factors that are important to consider when you want to grow spathiphyllum in indoor floriculture:

• lighting should be diffused, without exposure to direct sunlight;
• in spring and summer, it is preferable to maintain the temperature in the range of 22-24 ° C;
• in the autumn and winter periods, temperature indicators should not be lower than 16 ° C;
• in spring and summer, as well as at the stage of active flowering of spathiphyllum, irrigation measures should be plentiful;
• in autumn and winter, watering should be moderate, but the soil substrate should not be overdried or over-moistened;
• high moisture rates are welcome, as well as systematic spraying of the aerial parts of the plant;
• from early spring to late summer and in the flowering phase, top dressing is carried out with complex, mineral fertilizers in low concentrations.

How to make spathiphyllum bloom

Thus, at the stage of plant dormancy, the temperature regime cannot be lower than 16 ° C under moderate watering, and in the spring, in order to preserve the health of the spathiphyllum, it is necessary to transplant the flower with a full replacement of the soil. Proper care will prevent the appearance of yellow leaves in spathiphyllum.