What should I do if a bromeliad's leaves turn yellow, drop off, or the plant withers?
The center of a bromeliad is usually red, and the surrounding leaves are usually blue-purple, but it is not ivy, so of course there will come a day when it turns yellow. So what should we do? What should we do if a bromeliad withers? To answer everyone's questions, the editor has gathered the following materials for everyone to refer to and learn from together.
What to do if a bromeliad's leaves turn yellow and drop off
1. Excessive fertilizing
Too much fertilizer will cause new leaves to become thick and fleshy, with many bumps and hollows, while old leaves dry at the tips, turn scorched yellow, and drop off. Fertilizing should be stopped immediately, and the amount of watering increased so the fertilizer flows out through the drainage holes at the bottom of the pot, or the pot should be turned out immediately, the root ball rinsed with water, and then replanted in the pot.
2. Hot, high temperatures
In summer, if cool-loving flowers (such as cyclamen, fuchsia, and wax begonia) are placed in a hot spot and exposed to direct strong sunlight, it very easily causes the leaf tips and leaf margins of young leaves to scorch, or the leaves to turn yellow and drop. They need to be moved promptly to a well-ventilated, shady spot.
3. Excessive shading
If sun-loving flowers are kept for a long time in a shaded spot or a place with insufficient light, the branches and leaves will turn yellow.
4. Overwatering
Overwatering, with the potting soil staying too wet for a long time, causes a lack of oxygen in the soil, makes some fibrous roots rot, hinders normal respiration and the absorption of water and nutrients, and causes leaves to turn yellow and drop. After being affected, the young leaves first turn pale yellow, and then the old leaves gradually turn yellow as well. Watering should be controlled immediately, fertilizing paused, and the soil loosened frequently so the soil is well aerated.
5. Drought and dehydration
Missing a watering when growing flowers, or watering halfway for a long time (that is, wet on top and dry below), affects nutrient absorption and also easily causes the leaves to become dull and lusterless, and the leaves to wilt and droop. First the lower old leaves age, and gradually turn yellow and drop from the bottom upward. At this point, water lightly and mist the plant, let it gradually recover, and then return to normal watering.
6. Long-term nutrient deficiency
If no nitrogen fertilizer has been applied for a long time, or the pot and soil have not been changed, the soil lacks nutrients such as nitrogen, causing the branches and leaves to become thin and weak, and the leaves to be thin and yellow. The pot should be turned out promptly, replaced with fresh loose, fertile potting soil, and gradually given diluted, well-rotted liquid fertilizer or compound flower fertilizer.
What to do if a bromeliad withers
After flowering, the original flowering plant will naturally wither. Only new shoots sprouting from the perennial root can take over from it! The growth of the bromeliad's perennial-root offsets and the withering of the old plant after flowering are basically synchronized, so just care for it as usual. Wait until the bromeliad's perennial-root offsets have grown large enough, then consider dividing them (propagating). The suitable season for division is spring or autumn, and the prerequisite is that the offsets sent up from the perennial root need to grow fully for a period of time.
What fertilizer to give a bromeliad
Bromeliad fertilizing is still mainly nitrogen and potassium fertilizer, with phosphorus fertilizer applied sparingly; it is best to apply foliar fertilizer, as this is better for the bromeliad's growth. Today the editor recommends a fertilizer with good results - Yijia Special Fertilizer for Flowers, a foliar flower fertilizer refined through liquid aerobic fermentation, a highly efficient compound microecological preparation that combines nutrition and health benefits. The fertilizer contains rich active glucose, enzymes, nucleic acids, higher alcohols, unknown growth-promoting factors, and active beneficial microorganisms, and can directly pass through the crop's surface cells into deep cells to take part in the crop's metabolic activities. It can effectively improve the ornamental effect of the bromeliad, making the flower's leaves fresh green and glossy.
Points to note when dividing a bromeliad
1. When a bromeliad has just grown offsets, the leaves and roots of the offsets are very tender and must not be touched, otherwise the leaves are easily broken and the new shoots are not easy to keep alive.
2. The offsets should grow beside the mother plant for one or two months, and division should be carried out only after the offsets have grown several layers of leaves, the color has turned dark green, and the stem portion has become somewhat woody. At this time the offsets are flexible and not easily broken.
3. The key point of the operation is to be sure not to use too much force; absolutely do not break the roots of the offsets. If a new shoot has no roots, although it still has a chance of surviving, the survival rate will be greatly reduced.
When a bromeliad's leaves turn yellow, you should first determine whether it is due to pests. If it is due to pests, then simply get rid of the pests. Next, if there are no insects, then could it be an environmental factor, such as being too stuffy and too hot, or it may also be that the plant has reached its growth cycle, so there is no need to panic too much.