What to Do When the Leaves of a Lucky Bamboo Turn Yellow? Plus a Detailed Guide to Growing It

Lucky Bamboo: also called curved bamboo, Chinese scientific name: fuguizhu (Dracaena sanderiana). Formerly called: Dracaena sanderiana, aliases bamboo banana, ten-thousand-year bamboo, wanshouzhu, juhua wanshouzhu, kaiyunzhu, fortune tower, bamboo tower, tower bamboo. What follows is what to do when the leaves of a lucky bamboo turn yellow. Let's take a look.

I. What to Do When the Leaves of a Lucky Bamboo Turn Yellow

The first case: you bought stems:

When the leaves of a lucky bamboo turn yellow, it is not only a matter of the grower's care methods; it can also be a problem with the lucky bamboo itself. If you bought stems and put them in a vase at home, after a few days some leaves may turn yellow, or the stems may start to yellow as well. In this case, there is no need to try any rescue measures, because they are all futile. The best approach is to take the yellowed ones out and throw them away. For the sake of appearance, you can buy some more to fill in.

Note: For newly bought stems, use a sharp knife to make a 45 degree diagonal cut at the base. This helps the stems absorb water, and they will generally take root in one to two weeks. There is no need to change the water every day, nor to fuss with them daily. When the water runs low, just top it up.

The second case: you bought a lucky bamboo already cultivated by a vendor:

In this case, all that can be said is that you hope it can live as long as possible. With this kind of potted cultivation, many vendors use water-absorbent gel, and some put vitality agents, rooting agents and various chemicals in the water, all for the purpose of making it look like it is thriving. After the grower takes it home and keeps it for a while, the lucky bamboo starts to decline, and yellowing leaves are only the first sign. Of course, some of these are quite carefully shaped.

With a lucky bamboo shaped like this, the advantage is that it looks nice; the disadvantage is that if one stalk dies, it loses its ornamental effect.

Additional note: The main reasons lucky bamboo leaves turn yellow are the following:

1. A problem with the stems themselves; in this case, there is no way to save them.

2. Natural metabolism; usually the leaves at the bottom turn yellow while the other leaves remain normal.

3. The top leaves begin to turn yellow. You can first check the air, keeping the air circulating, and then check whether it has been over-fertilized, for example with foliar fertilizers or nutrient solutions.

II. How to Grow Lucky Bamboo

Light conditions:

Lucky bamboo is shade-tolerant and afraid of sun. Placing it in a bright spot indoors helps the leaves carry out photosynthesis, making the leaves dark green, broad, thick and glossy dark green; otherwise, they turn yellow and thin, losing their ornamental value. So do not expose it to harsh sun, especially absolutely not when the sunlight is strongest.

Water quality conditions:

Once lucky bamboo has rooted, it should not have its water changed. If it lacks water, just top it up. Well water is best, but under normal circumstances that is hard to do. If using tap water, let it sit for a day or two before adding it. Do not use oily water or polluted water, as this easily causes root rot.

Fertilization conditions:

Do not add chemical fertilizer, to prevent the lucky bamboo from growing leggy and turning yellow. When topping up the water, add a few drops of nutrient solution, which helps it grow and develop new leaves.

Radiation conditions:

It is afraid of wind, and extremely afraid of dry wind. Keep it away from places where an electric fan blows. Normally spray water on the leaves to keep them moist.

Keep it away from the TV, washing machine, air conditioner, etc.

Pruning conditions:

Maintain a moderate density. Too dense and the leaves easily dry out and die; too sparse and it affects the ornamental value.

III. Precautions for Lucky Bamboo

Normally, when the leaves turn yellow, find a few rusty iron pieces or iron wire and put them in the water container to encourage new roots to grow, which helps the leaves develop normally.

Root cutting: when the lucky bamboo you bought does not match the container at home, you need to cut the roots. It is best to disinfect the cutting tool with alcohol. Cut straight across, half a cm below a node.

The above is our introduction to what to do when the leaves of a lucky bamboo turn yellow. We hope it can help you.

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