A full analysis of the reasons for yellow leaves on pothos - how many do you know?

This episode is part of the "1000 Questions on Growing Flowers" series, the Gardening Lecture Hall. We welcome your questions! We answer all the questions you leave for us in the fastest time possible. This article is the second episode: what to do about yellow leaves on pothos?

This episode is the second in the Gardening Lecture Hall series: where do the causes of yellow leaves on pothos come from? Today we will discuss it carefully in detail. Many companies like to hold a "peel-back" session at meetings, so let us also "peel back" the pothos and see just how many causes there are for these yellow leaves.

What is a "peel-back"

It means a group of people discussing together to dig out the existing problems, and from there set up solutions.

Question: How many causes of yellow leaves on pothos do you know? Let us reveal them together.

Watering problems

This mainly applies to pothos watered in summer and autumn. The chances of yellowing are noticeably higher with self-watering pots than with other pots. Why is that? Many people mistakenly think that a self-watering pot is for lazy people, but that is actually wrong. Watering a self-watering pot is not lazy at all.

The structure of a self-watering pot is: a water storage basin + a soil pot, absorbing water through the humidity difference.

(1) Incorrect watering:

Fill the water storage basin full. Go and look at the instructions for using a self-watering pot; the specification inside says to add about 30% water each time.

Secondly, many people like to top up the water again immediately once the water storage basin runs dry. This easily causes the soil to be soaked in water for a long time, with poor wet-dry cycling, leading to the danger of root rot. The scientific way to use it is: when the water storage basin is dry, you still have to wait until the soil pot is also completely dry before adding water.

The above is about watering self-watering pots, so how do you water other pots?

(2) Be careful with the double-pot method

What is the double-pot method? It means putting a small pot inside a large pot. Many people like to use this method to get their plants through the summer, but they do not know that this small action will kill the pothos.

The double-pot method is also called the two-pot method. It still uses the design of a self-watering pot, except there is no water-absorbing string, and it directly absorbs water through the drainage holes at the bottom of the pot. So this method also causes the pothos to sit in standing water for a long time, resulting in yellow leaves.

(3) Humidity problems

Pothos grown in the north is most prone to yellowing in winter, because the north has heating and the humidity is low. At this time we need to add more moisture to the pothos leaves.

Yellow leaves caused by temperature

Yellow leaves caused by temperature belong to the category caused by sudden external changes, such as a sudden high temperature or a sudden low temperature. Because the plant's resistance is poor, it shows up as yellow leaves.

(1) Placed near an air conditioner's outdoor unit

The air blown out by an air conditioner's outdoor unit is dry hot air. This kind of wind can make pothos leaves quickly dry out, become short of water and wilt. They go "soft" and listless, and in severe cases the yellow leaves become sparse and scattered. The solution is to place it in a well-ventilated spot and add a little water. Or supplement with a good balanced nutrient solution, and it can recover quickly.

(2) Placed inside an air-conditioned room

Cold air blowing is also no good; it is cold but also dry. As we said, to dry something out you can blow hot air directly on it, and of course cold dry air works too. This degree is not as fast as hot air, but if you find it wilted, it is still better to quickly put it outside in a ventilated spot.

(3) Placed on a balcony in the wind

By autumn, the wind on high-rise buildings is no small matter, especially at night. If you put a pot of pothos on the balcony, you will find that within a few days the leaves lose their green, then become very thin, and then wilt and turn yellow. The principle here is similar to the air conditioner.

Yellow leaves from fertilizing

This kind of yellowing is quite serious. It belongs to yellowing from burnt leaves and burnt roots, and cannot be reversed. It is commonly caused by the concentration of fertilizer used, for example a nutrient solution that should be diluted but is used directly because someone finds it troublesome. Secondly, for potted pothos, granular fertilizer is not recommended, but many people like to sprinkle it on the surface, and this also easily causes root burn.

How do you solve it?

After you discover it, please flush with clean water. If it cannot be controlled, change the soil immediately.

Alright, that is all we will say about yellow leaves on pothos. If you have any questions, please leave me a message!